Legal victory for family of murdered nurse Gayle Woodford

The family of murdered outback nurse Gayle Woodford has won a major legal victory for the families of people who die while working.

Gayle Woodford.

The family of murdered outback nurse Gayle Woodford has won a major legal victory that will give greater rights and protections to the families of people who die while working.

After a marathon legal battle with SafeWork SA, which ruled there was no reasonable chance of securing a prosecution against the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands Health Service where Woodford was employed, a major inquiry has now found that the treatment of families such as the Woodfords needs to change.

Woodford was abducted, raped and murdered by lifelong sex ­offender Dudley Davey in the APY Lands town of Fregon in 2016. She was working alone and at night when the attack occurred in or outside the reinforced steel cage outside her home, which was meant to protect her.

Two key reforms have been proposed by former Federal Court judge John Mansfield AM QC who led the review into SafeWork SA’s handling of the case.

The first is to scrap the confidentiality provisions in the Work Health and Safety Act so that SafeWork SA can in future keep families fully informed of the progress of investigations.

The second is to axe the one-year investigation window, meaning that if a victim’s family seeks legal advice or approaches the DPP over their case, the investigation can now extend beyond the existing 12-month limit.

The reforms go to the two key grievances of the Woodford family – being kept in the dark by SafeWork SA over the progress of the case, and running out of time to challenge its assessment that it could not secure a conviction.

The Mansfield review was announced by the Malinauskas government two months ago after a series of articles in The Australian exposed the fury of widower Keith Woodford over the handling of the case. SafeWork SA had concluded that there was little chance of a successful prosecution against her employer, the Nganampa Health Council, but the government said those findings would be reviewed.

Mr Mansfield acknowledged that from the Woodford family’s perspective, the level of engagement from SafeWork SA was “not sufficient”.

He found SafeWork SA’s investigation into the Woodford’s death was “comprehensive and thorough and conducted effectively”, but that SafeWork’s ability to communicate with the Woodford family about the investigation was hamstrung by confidentiality provisions in the Work Health and Safety Act.

He said that with the exception of a six-week period following the conclusion of the coronial inquest into Woodford’s death, the regulator’s engagement with the family was as extensive as it could be under work health and safety laws.

Mr Woodford said he was reconciled to the fact that his wife’s case could not be reopened, but heartened that other families would be spared the same treatment he had endured.

“It doesn’t help us but it does help the next poor bugger who comes along and they won’t get done the way we got done,” Mr Woodford told The Australian.

“Getting rid of the secrecy and changing the time limit will keep families better informed and also make sure that when there’s a chance of achieving justice it’s not killed off by some deadline. With those two things, we consider this a victory,” he added.

The Woodford family was helped in their cause by one of ­Adelaide’s most senior legal figures, former District Court judge Peter McCusker, who has been working pro bono on their case.

“This is a great day for the ­advancement of the law in this area,” Mr McCusker said.

“Gayle was just doing her job as a nurse, and neither she nor her family should have had to go through any of this.”

The Mansfield inquiry was personally presented to Mr Woodford and Mr McCusker at a private meeting on Monday with Attorney-General Kyam Maher and SA Victims Rights Commissioner Bronwyn Killmier.

“I know personally how much Gayle was loved and appreciated by the people she worked with and cared for,” Mr Maher said.

“This report highlights how important timely and clear communication is in these terrible circumstances.”