Arabic version: الطبيبة الشرعية تدعو إلى التحرك بعد وفاة رضيع في أليس سبرينغز

According to ABC News, Northern Territory Coroner Elisabeth Armitage found that a six-week-old Aboriginal baby died from sudden unexpected death of an infant in an unsafe sleeping environment in Alice Springs in September 2024. The child’s mother had been evicted from crisis accommodation six days earlier and was effectively homeless, the coroner found.

Judge Armitage released her report without holding an inquest. She found the 21-year-old mother and baby had been forced to sleep on a single mattress on a relative’s lounge room floor, in a house occupied by eight other people. The infant was closest to the wall, and the sleeping environment included co-sleeping on a soft, single-sized mattress on the floor.

The coroner said the mother was known to be attentive to her infant’s needs, but was highly vulnerable and had a complex trauma history. She found the Department of Children and Families knew the mother and child were being exited from supportive accommodation into homelessness. The woman moved in with a sister-in-law and father who had previously assaulted her, according to the findings.

On September 22, the mother woke to find her baby limp and cold, with blood coming from her mouth. Emergency services were called, but the child could not be revived and was declared dead less than an hour later. Judge Armitage said child removal was not the answer to homelessness and that addressing the mother and infant’s joint housing risks was the necessary response.

The coroner recommended the NT government identify, quantify and map homelessness among expectant and new mothers, establish and fund pathways to suitable accommodation, and prioritise Aboriginal community controlled service delivery. She also called on the Department of Children and Families to review relevant policies, practices and procedures so engagements with families are not closed prematurely.