The woman at the centre of a criminal trial over the alleged neglect of her teenager daughter has denied she was concerned by the girl’s appearance, despite her weighing just 28 kilograms when she was 16 years old and having yellow skin and thinning hair.
The woman, who cannot be named to protect the identity of her daughter, was cross-examined in Perth District Court on Wednesday over allegations she was aware the girl was severely underweight in the lead up to a Department of Communities intervention in 2021.
A dance school teacher told Perth District Court the girl was small, even by the standard of other students.
The 47-year-old and her husband were arrested and charged by police shortly after the girl was diagnosed with grade 4 malnourishment at Perth Children’s Hospital, where she was placed on a nasogastric feeding tube and admitted for almost two months.
During that time, the girl gained weight and grew 3 centimetres. Doctors did not find any medical reason for her malnourishment.
At the same time, she was removed from her parents’ care by the DCP, which alleged they were obstructing her treatment.
But on Wednesday, the woman wavered when asked if it was a parents’ responsibility to ensure their child was receiving adequate nutrition, claiming that it was her daughter’s choice to become a vegan and that the girl “did a lot of research”.
She also told state prosecutor Jehna Winter you “can’t force a person to eat more”.
“I suggest even on your version of what [the girl] was consuming, it was not adequate?” Winter asked.
“No,” the mother replied.
Do you accept now [the girl] did not have a great diet? – No.
Do you accept it wasn’t a sufficient diet? – I don’t know.
Do you accept now [the girl] was severely underweight, and she was like that for many years? – Yes.
Do you accept for years her growth was stunted? – No.
Do you accept the reason for her short stature was because of inadequate nutrition? – I disagree.
The couple, who live in Floreat, have denied neglecting the girl, who the court heard was now 20 years old, working as a teacher, studying music and living back home with her parents.
Both university-educated parents have claimed the girl was healthy and had a great diet as a child.
The trial has previously heard evidence from two dance school teachers who independently raised concerns about the girl’s appearance with the authorities in 2020.
At the time, the teachers believed she was 14 years old as the father had supplied them with a false birth certificate. He has pleaded guilty to charges arising from that allegation.
Those concerns led to the involvement of DCP, which made repeated attempts over five months to get the parents to take the child for a medical assessment to clear her of any health concerns.
They ultimately did, the court heard, and the GP referred the girl immediately to the emergency department at PCH for admittance.
On Wednesday, the mother admitted she had a “turbulent” relationship with her extended family, as well as her husband’s, but denied it was because of comments they made about her daughter’s emaciated appearance.
The court was told the girl lived with her uncle in a foster care arrangement after she was discharged from hospital when she was 17, but he relinquished that care because of the parents’ constant involvement, an allegation the mother denied.
The girl then went to live with her grandfather before leaving on her 18th birthday to return to the family home.
The trial continues.
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