’Beautiful girl, not a statistic’: mother

THE mother of a young knife-wielding woman shot dead by NSW police has shared her anguish outside court as a coroner delivered her findings.

A YOUNG knife-wielding woman shot dead by NSW police was probably suffering a psychotic episode due to undiagnosed schizophrenia, a coroner has found.

“It is probable Courtney (Topic) was not able to understand that police were telling her to put down her large knife,” said Deputy State Coroner Liz Ryan on Monday.

She was delivering her findings at the inquest into the February 2015 death of the 22-year-old near a busy intersection and a fast-food outlet at Hoxton Park in Sydney’s west.

Courtney Topic, 22, was brandishing a large kitchen knife outside a fast food restaurant in western Sydney.

Ms Ryan made 10 recommendations to the NSW Commissioner of Police, mainly dealing with the training of police officers dealing with people possibly suffering a mental health crisis.

“If changes are not made, there will be more deaths like Courtney’s,” the coroner said.

“The court heard that in Australia, of the persons shot by police between 1989 and 2011, nearly 42 per cent were suffering from a mental illness.”

Although the woman’s death should not have happened, Ms Ryan said it would be wrong to understate the seriousness of this situation.

The officer who shot Ms Topic ‘had reason to believe his life was in danger’.

Ms Topic was moving towards the police officer who shot her and was within two metres of him when he fired his gun.

“He had reason to believe his life was in danger.”

Errors were made that morning that “made the resort to lethal force a tragic inevitability,” she said.

Outside court, Ms Topic’s parents Leesa and Ron said they had never blamed the police and were pleased with the coroner’s mental health training recommendations.

The Mother of Courtney Topic, Leesa Topic (left) speaks to the media outside the NSW Coroner's Court in Sydney. Picture: Peter Rae/AAP

“Don’t remember her as a statistic, she is not a statistic she is my beautiful girl, who I just want to hold and hug and I’ll never ever be able to do that again,” her distraught mother told reporters on Monday.

“We just hope she is remembered for the beautiful soul she is and if something positive can come out of this so no other family has to live this heartache, then we’ll be grateful for that.” Lifeline 13 11 14, Beyondblue 1300 22 4636