Northern NSW inquest into death of Tweed mum Elizabeth Britton concludes, findings due before Christmas
An inquest into the horrendous death of a northern NSW mother due to traumatic head injuries has heard she agreed when asked if her boyfriend “did this”. Possible criminal charges have now been flagged.
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A coronial inquest into the horrendous death of a “beloved” Tweed mum due to traumatic head injuries has heard she nodded when asked if her boyfriend “did this”.
It comes as the family of Pottsville’s Elizabeth Britton – who died in Gold Coast University Hospital aged just 44 – have spoken out at the end of the Northern Rivers probe, during their hunt for answers.
The inquest which began Monday, held in Byron Bay and Lismore courthouses, has resulted in Deputy State Coroner Carmel Forbes flagging that the matter may be referred to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP).
Ms Forbes told the inquest there was a chance of criminal charges and – at some point – a criminal trial.
Person of interest, Ms Britton’s former partner Anthony ‘Tony’ Siganto did not give evidence.
No charges have ever been laid in relation to Ms Britton’s death.
Ms Britton was found badly injured at home on October 10, 2020 and succumbed to her injuries 14 days later.
Former paramedic Jamie Cameron confirmed to the inquest on Thursday he was the first to treat Ms Britton and she was “very distressed”.
He said Ms Britton was “agitated”, suffering “tremors” and “very skittish” at sounds or movement – she “looked terrified”.
Mr Cameron said he asked Ms Britton if her “boyfriend” attacked her.
“I asked her if her boyfriend did this and she nodded … I asked if she wanted the police, she nodded … ,” the former paramedic told counsel assisting the coroner Phillip Hogan.
Mr Hogan told the inquest the matter should go to the ODPP. Final submissions were ordered and findings were due “some time before Christmas”.
Several family members and friends attended proceedings. Ms Britton’s sister Jessica Britton delivering an emotional statement alongside parents Valerie and Colin Britton.
Jessica Britton told the court it has been “very difficult” for the family and they faced grief and distress from the “prolonged unknown”.
“It’s so important for us to know we are heard and our thoughts, opinions and concerns are considered and responded to,” she said.
Ms Britton thanked the inquest for its “consideration of all the evidence”, some of which was “not easy” to digest.
But she said it was “heartwarming” to see her “lovely” sister described as “genuine, friendly and generous to all people lucky enough to have known her”.
Ms Britton said her sister did enjoy a drink or two, but was never rude, aggressive, or violent. She said her loved one’s substance additions “were beyond her control” and Ms Britton never caused “upset” to people.
The sister continued: “On behalf of the family, we want to thank everyone who made statements, recorded events, called Crimestoppers – and the very brave witnesses who came to court to be witnesses to assist in the findings of how Liz came to suffer a brain injury that ultimately took her life ... She was our Lizzy.”
Ms Britton was described as a “beautiful soul” who had “two green thumbs” and “could grow anything”.
She adored her son, celebrated his achievements and was a “friend to everyone”, the inquest heard.
The mum was described as a caring and devoted person who wore her heart on her sleeve, loved storms and was a “keeper of mementos”.
“Liz had a wide smile, was so friendly, kind, generous, funny, mischievous, cheeky. She was a beloved and fun Aunty,” her sister said.
“We hope that justice can be done, and Liz’s honour can be recognised.”
She said “so many people fought so hard to find out what happened” and she hoped doing helped “to make sure this doesn’t ever happen to anyone every again”.
‘Don’t f**king come near her’: Son’s text before mum’s death
Wednesday: The son of a Pottsville woman with a history of drug and alcohol abuse who was found in a stairwell with severe head injuries which would later prove fatal tried to end his mother’s toxic relationship, an inquest has heard.
The third day of the coronial inquest into the death of Elizabeth Britton, 44, was overseen by Deputy State Coroner Carmel Forbes at Byron Bay Courthouse on Wednesday.
Evidence was given by the former girlfriend of Ms Britton’s son, Jaymie Kowron-Rigney
Ms Britton suffered traumatic head injuries at home on October 10, 2020 and she died at Gold Coast Hospital two weeks later.
Ms Kowron-Rigney told the inquest Ms Britton’s son, who cannot legally be named, hated his mother’s drug use and drinking and “wanted it to stop”.
Needles found in his mother’s drawer made him “angry” and he did not like her being with Anthony ‘Tony’ Siganto, Ms Kowron-Rigney said.
Earlier, the inquest heard evidence of a violent and conflict-fuelled relationship between Ms Britton and Mr Siganto. No one has been charged over Ms Britton’s death.
The inquest heard the son sent text messages to Mr Siganto after he witnessed arguments with Ms Britton and warned: “Don’t f--king come near my mum again.”
Ms Kowron-Rigney said she went to Ms Britton’s Elfran Ave unit after her son made a frantic phone call.
“He said I had to come to his mums because he said her lips were blue and she was shaking,” she told the inquest.
The son was “frantically crying” and told her “not to go in there”.
Ms Kowron-Rigney said she saw “dead leaves” in Ms Britton’s hair and the son said Ms Britton’s lips looked “superglued together”.
The inquest heard Ms Kowron-Rigney has a family connection to Mr Siganto and rang him at 6.12pm to see if he knew what had happened to Ms Britton. He did not answer the phone.
The pair tried to ask Ms Britton who had hurt her. She “mumbled something but we couldn’t understand”, the inquest heard.
Ms Kowron-Rigney said the son ran off having a “panic attack” and was “crying constantly” before his father called triple-0.
Ms Britton was placed on life support due to bleeding and pressure on the brain, but did not survive.
Neighbour Sharron Williams told the inquest she heard “loud thuds” about 2pm on October 10.
“First time I stopped the movie and went to the wall to listen. It was just silence, heard nothing, so I went back to the movie, five minutes on another thud … stopped the movie, went to the wall, concerned – it was a deep thud,” she said.
Ms Williams said she then heard “loud rummaging” and a “lot of rustling”.
She told the inquest someone was “scattering things in the laundry” and she heard the opening and closing of doors for about 15 minutes.
“It was a long time of noises coming out of that unit,” Ms Williams said.
Ms Britton was heard talking “about work” before the noises.
The inquest resumes on Thursday.
Jealous, violent threats aired in inquest into death of single mum
Tuesday: A tumultuous relationship between a man and a single mum who died in hospital after “one to three” major blunt-force trauma blows to the head has been probed in an inquest.
Pottsville woman Elizabeth Britton, 44, was found semiconscious and unable to talk in her Elfran Ave home about 6pm on October 10, 2020.
Ms Britton was placed on life support due to bleeding and pressure on the brain, however died of her injuries 14 days later at Gold Coast University Hospital.
It was heard from a witness in an inquest at Lismore Courthouse on Monday that Ms Britton was sitting in a stairwell, badly injured and “dazed and confused” before she was rushed to hospital.
The witness, who cannot legally be named, told the inquest Ms Britton nodded when asked if ex-partner Anthony “Tony” Siganto had hurt her – but no charges have ever been laid.
On the second day of the inquest, several neighbours testified they heard “loud” and “angry” arguments between Ms Britton and Mr Siganto.
“The language was just awful,” neighbour Lenor Barlow told the inquest.
She said Mr Siganto made threats towards Ms Britton including threatening to “throw her from the balcony”, accusing her of sleeping around, and verbally abusing her and others.
Sounds of “slapping” and “banging” were constant, Ms Barlow said.
Another neighbour, Renee Woods, told the inquest she heard Ms Britton arguing with Mr Siganto on Thursday, October 8.
“I was listening because it was quite a big one,” she said.
“I lived there for eight years and I could hear arguments from Liz’s apartment.”
The inquest heard that Mr Siganto had an altercation with neighbour Guenther Puntingham in October 2020, who he accused of sleeping with Ms Britton.
The inquest heard the altercation resulted in police being called to the scene.
Neighbour Paul Robinson told the inquest he saw and heard the men arguing.
“It seemed very heated and became violent. I saw Guenther defending himself with a carpet-sweeper to stop the man coming into his house,” he said.
Neurosurgeon consultant Professor Michael Besser told the inquest on Tuesday that Ms Britton’s injuries were not an “accident” caused by a fall,
Prof Besser said Ms Britton, who had a high tolerance for drugs and alcohol, may have suffered a minor seizure. He said “people can look confused, their eye movements can be strange”.
“I found it difficult to make the assertion her head injury was the result of a simple fall,” he told the inquest.
“The sphenoid bone is in the skull base … it’s pretty difficult to fracture the base of the skull.
“If you’re hit with a hammer or baseball bat or elbow, or someone who falls out of a window and lands on their head, its that sort of force.
“It’s significant force to fracture this very thick bone at the skull base.”
The fractures Ms Britton suffered began at her right ear “going to the base of the skull and up to the top of her head”, along with significant bruising of her right ear and scalp and a 2.5cm bruise on her right forearm.
Prof Besser said forearm bruises and those on her hand were not from a cannula and could possibly be defensive wounds.
The inquest heard that upon suffering the head trauma, Ms Britton had a “relatively lucid period” before symptoms manifested.
Prof Besser said the trauma would have happened within three hours of her being found.
The inquest will continue Wednesday.
Blood-stained walls, drug abuse probed mum’s mystery death
Monday September 23: Substance abuse, violent relationships and the blood stained walls of a Northern Rivers unit where a 44-year-old single mum was found with skull fractures that later claimed her life have been raised at a coronial inquest.
Pottsville mum Elizabeth Britton was found semiconscious and unable to talk in her Elfran Ave home in the Tweed Shire about 6pm on October 10, 2020.
Ms Britton was placed on life support, due to bleeding and pressure on the brain, however died from her injuries 14 days later at Gold Coast University Hospital.
During the inquest into Ms Britton’s death, held at Lismore Courthouse on Monday, council assisting the coroner Phillip Hogan said Ms Britton’s life was complicated by mental health issues.
He said she battled with addiction and alcohol abuse “that was a cause of concern for her loved ones”.
At the time of her death, Ms Britton was being treated for substance abuse with a daily dose of prescribed oxycontin, the inquest heard.
Ms Britton “self medicated” to cope with a history of “physically abusive relationships”, it was alleged.
Witnesses reported seeing closed curtains with the lights out at her unit about 6pm on the night she was found.
Ms Britton’s mother, former child protection worker Valerie Britton, told police she was “sufficiently concerned” after being unable to reach her daughter. She called family who lived close-by to check in.
The inquest heard a sliding door at Ms Britton’s unit block could not be locked and anyone could have “let themselves in”.
Witnesses told police they heard a “loud bang” and a “loud thud” – and the aggressive voice of a man.
Ms Britton was found on the third step of a stairwell, wearing a striped singlet and underpants, something she would ordinarily sleep in, the inquest heard.
A witness, who cannot legally be named, said Ms Britton was “staring at the wall, dazed and confused and couldn’t speak or make sense and had something sticking her lips together”.
Her eyes were “like talking to a dead person”, the inquest heard, but she could nod and shake her head.
The witness told the inquest Ms Britton nodded when asked if ex-partner Anthony “Tony” Siganto had hurt her. No charges have ever been laid.
A rug was found scrunched up and the laundry door leading to the courtyard was locked in the unit, the witness said. An electric heater was knocked over and a coffee table was pushed against a couch.
Police investigators noted blood stains on a wall near the door of the laundry and on a wall near the top of the stairs.
A dress found inside the washing machine had Ms Britton’s blood on it, the inquest heard.
At Tweed Heads Hospital, a CAT scan revealed skull fractures. Ms Britton was suffering bleeding on the brain and bruising could be seen on her forearms and neck, as well as ligature marks.
DNA from Ms Britton and trace DNA from Mr Siganto was found on a gold curtain tie, which was blood stained.
Ms Britton told the inquest her daughter nodded when doctors asked if someone hurt her, then nodded again when she was asked if Mr Siganto hurt her.
In a report to the inquest, neurosurgeon Professor Michael Besser said two major blunt force injuries occurred between 3am and the afternoon of October 10.
Prof Besser wrote Ms Britton had the cognitive capacity to identify the perpetrator of the assault when asked.
He said Ms Britton’s struggled to speak, but could understand.
About 20 witnesses have been rounded up to help probe Ms Britton’s death. The inquest continues.
Got a news tip? email catherine.piltz@news.com.au
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