Victim Lodges Abuse Claim
By Adam Hicks (The Queensland Independent, June 2002)
A former inmate of the John Oxley Detention Centre is suing the state of Queensland 14 years after she was allegedly abused, raped and assaulted while imprisoned in the centre.
The woman, now 28, lodged a claim in the Supreme Court three weeks ago seeking damages of $382,260 for pain, suffering, loss of amenities of life and economic loss suffered as a result of the alleged rape.
The woman is suing the state, claiming it was responsible for the operation of the juvenile detention centre and the care, safety and well being of the inmates.
The claim alleges the state breached its civil, fiduciary and statutory duty to the woman by failing to provide adequate supervision of administration and management or operation of the centre.
She is claiming negligence and unconscionable conduct against the state for the incident, which occurred in May 1988.
The woman alleges that she, then aged 14, was assaulted, sexually abused and raped when left unsupervised with six male inmates of the centre while participating in an excursion at a national park.
According to the claim, the centre required the woman to participate in the excursion in circumstances where authorities knew or ought to have known that she was at risk, and did not fulfil its obligation to provide a safe system of care.
The claim alleges the centre failed to take any measures to reduce the likelihood of assault or sexual abuse of the woman by the other inmates during the excursion.
The woman claims the centre failed to act appropriately and in her best interests after the incident when officials knew, or ought to have known that she may have been sexual assaulted during the course of the excursion.
In addition the claim stated the centre failed to provide adequate medical attention, counselling or rehabilitation to protect the rights of the woman after the incident
The claim also alleges the state failed to take an appropriate course of action to investigate the incident.
Former Detention Centre Resident
Files Second Claim
By Bruce Grundy and Georgina Robinson
A former resident of Brisbane’s John Oxley Youth Detention Centre has filed a second Supreme Court claim against the state government for compensation and damages arising out of an incident in which she alleges she was pack raped while held in custody in the centre.
The claim states that while being held in the John Oxley Centre the girl was taken on an excursion to an isolated national park where she was required to accompany a number of male inmates from the centre on a bush walk.
At the end of the walk, the claim alleges, the staff left her alone in the bush with the male inmates and she was then assaulted, sexually abused and raped.
It also alleges that later the same day the girl was again required to accompany several male inmates into the bush. She was again left alone with them and was again assaulted, sexually abused and raped.
The claim seeks compensation and exemplary damages for a range of matters involving breach of fiduciary duty, breach of statutory duty and/or unconscionable conduct on the part of the state and its employees.
The story of what had happened to the girl was first reported in The Courier-Mail [by Bruce Grundy] in November 2001.
Last May lawyers Shine, Roche, McGowan lodged a separate statement of claim in the Supreme Court seeking damages over a different incident in which the same girl was taken by several John Oxley staff members with a group of male inmates to the remote Lower Portals area of the Mt Barney national park near the New South Wales border.
The claim alleges the girl was assaulted, sexually abused and raped.
Departmental records relating to this incident reveal that despite being aware of what had happened to the girl and being asked by her to take action against the boys, her request was ignored for three days. In the meantime she was given a “morning after” dose of a contraceptive preparation and her accommodation arrangements were changed because of fears for her safety.
Official procedures in place at the time required that a medical examination of a suspected rape victim should be undertaken as soon as possible after the incident. This did not happen. The girl was not medically examined until three days after the incident occurred when the police were finally notified.
The police did not speak to the girl until four days after the incident. After interviewing her they noted that she had decided not to proceed with the matter. She was 14 years old and as a minor did not have standing to make such a decision.
The reasons for her change of mind were officially recorded by John Oxley staff as: the length of time court processes would take; and the fact that she was being abused and threatened by other inmates.
Despite numerous signatures of departmental officers and senior management figures appearing on the files relating to this incident, it remained a well-kept secret for 12 years.
The existence of the files was even denied to the police when a person purporting to be the victim asked about them in August 2001.
The Department of Families advised police there had been “a very thorough search” but no records of such an incident could be located.
When the story of what had happened during the escarpment incident appeared in The Courier-Mail in November 2001, two substantial files relating to the Portals incident were discovered by the Department of Families and were provided to the victim under Freedom of Information processes.
The-then Criminal Justice Commission subsequently examined the matter and determined that since the police had been notified (three days after the incident) and the girl had been medically examined (three days after the incident) none of the John Oxley staff, nor the police, was guilty of official misconduct over the incident.
A former employee of the John Oxley centre said at the time of the Portals excursion staff had been told not to discuss the incident. He described what had happened as a “whitewash”.
The former officer said he had been asked about the incident by the retired magistrate who had been appointed by the National Party government in 1989 to carry out an investigation into the centre.
Shortly after it began the investigation was shut down by the Goss government when it came to power and all the evidence it had gathered was shredded on the authority of the Goss Cabinet.
A member of Cabinet at the time told Channel Nine’s Sunday program in 1999 that when Ministers approved the shredding, they had been aware “in broad terms” that the material had included information about “child abuse”.
Prior to authorising the shredding, Cabinet had also been told the documents created by the investigation were being sought by a firm of lawyers, and a decision relating to the disposal of them was a matter of “urgency”.
Two barristers who subsequently investigated the paper trail involved in the shredding reported there no less than 13 communications on the record placing public officials on notice that the materials were being sought for potential legal proceedings.
The documents were shredded on 23 March, 1990.
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