JC inquest findings: Victim’s family ‘appalled’ by coroner’s recommendations, say justice again denied

The sister of Yamatji woman JC who was fatally shot by a police officer on a Geraldton street almost six years ago says she’s “appalled” and “disgusted” by the findings and recommendations from WA’s chief coroner. State Coroner Ros Fogliani handed down her findings on Wednesday after an inquest last year into the September 2019 death of the 29-year-old Indigenous woman, finding the police officer who shot her, Brent Wyndham, acted “too hastily” and that JC’s death could have been prevented. The victim, known as JC for cultural reasons and who had mental health issues, died after she was shot in the stomach by former officer, Mr Wyndham, after she refused to drop a 30cm knife and scissors. Mr Wyndham was the first police officer in a century to be charged with murder over her death, but he was acquitted by a Supreme Court jury in 2021. He continued to work as a police officer in Geraldton after his acquittal, before leaving the force late last year. JC’s sister Bernadette Clarke said her family had never experienced justice during this six-year ordeal. “I want to put in a recommendation of my own, how much I’m disgusted and it’s appalling what’s come out of the coroner’s report,” she said. “Some of it is aimed at only her, what about what he (Mr Wyndham) did in 17 seconds, pulled a weapon out on her when there were other police officers trying to talk her down but this one cop got out of the car and in 17 seconds just pulled the trigger? “Something should have been done from the beginning, they failed her.” Ms Clarke, who is now looking after JC’s 12-year-old son, said she doubted much would change within the WA Police Force. “Things won’t change when it comes to the police, I find, the force, because the force says it all, they use force,” she said. “I want to be able to keep going for her (JC), just to keep fighting I guess.” Ms Clarke said she still missed her sister terribly, sharing a “wicked bond” with her. “She was my good sister that I shouldn’t have lost in such the way I did,” she said. Ms Fogliani found Mr Wyndham made a “split-second” decision to get out of the police car and pull the trigger within 17 seconds without properly communicating with the other officers at the scene and adhering to WA Police policies. “Had the situation slowed down, there could have been more time to organise a coordinated response,” she said. “He acted too hastily in running towards the threat posed by JC . . . I am satisfied that JC’s death was a preventable death.” Ms Fogliani made nine recommendations, including that WA Police consider establishing a dedicated branch to improve relationships between the agency and Aboriginal people in consultation with the Indigenous community. She also recommended WA Police oversee Aboriginal cultural awareness training to be delivered by Aboriginal people, face-to-face, and that the training is tailored for the regions in which they are serving. Also among the recommendations was that police continue to trial new forms of tasers, and that WA Police and the Department of Health work on how relevant information about a person’s mental health can be shared. A WA Police spokesperson said: “While we have already implemented a number of the recommendations, the WA Police Force is always striving to better serve our community and we will carefully consider the Coroner’s findings.” “Our police force is extremely fortunate to have an incredible team of Aboriginal police staff and sworn officers providing us with invaluable guidance and training.” WA Police established an Aboriginal Affairs Division in 2018, which is currently run by Mechelle Turvey, the mother of murdered schoolboy Cassius Turvey. Ms Fogliani said she could not exclude that JC, who had only been released from prison three weeks before the shooting and spent most of that time as an involuntary mental health patient, was having a psychotic episode at the time she was shot. “JC had endured a difficult life, marred by adverse long term impacts that can be traced back to the lasting and deleterious impacts of colonisation,” Ms Fogliani said in her findings. “JC fell through the cracks in the system.” It’s understood JC’s foster mother, who has been a vocal presence throughout the prolonged legal process, recently passed away. Human rights campaigner Gerry Georgatos said he knew JC’s foster mum and that “if she was still with us, she’d be devastated”. “The real problem is, why did this officer do what he did?” he said. “Anyone else would have been hauled over coals and sacked. Why did it take so long to get him from the police force?” Mr Georgatos said there should have been recommendations about the need for behavioural and psychological assessments of police officers. He said the Coroner’s Act needed to be strengthened to allow coroners to make the “most robust findings” possible. “When we actually dump all these recommendations on, they’re minimalist,” he said. “I can’t see how we would have actually changed the circumstance if we had gone retrospectively, back in time to forward. “I’m exhausted by them (inquests). Just as exhausted as the families that I’m supporting through all of this trauma, and then they’re re-traumatised by the recommendations that go nowhere because they don’t have the bite that’s needed.” Fellow activist Megan Krakouer agreed that JC’s late foster mum would be “angry and upset” about the recommendations, which she described as “mediocre”. “In terms of these recommendations, they do nothing but insult,” she said. “So in terms of how we’re feeling as a community. Another one gets away. It’s another report. It’s another report, to be sure, it doesn’t have any meaningful, lasting changes that’s going to honour (JC).” “It’s very sad in this day and age that we have a coroner still making recommendations about cultural awareness. “So when they say that the law is equal, it is not, it depends on your colour, it depends on your circumstances, it also depends on your class.” Aboriginal Legal Service of WA CEO Wayne Nannup welcomed the coroner’s recommendations into this “preventable tragedy” and called for police and the health system to implement them “so the awful fate which befell JC never occurs again”. “It would be a cruel betrayal of the memory of JC for the State Coroner’s recommendations to sit on a shelf gathering dust,” he said. WA Police Union senior vice president Peter McGee said the union acknowledged the tragic nature of this incident and the complexity officers face in high-pressure situations. “We find it difficult to reconcile the suggestion that a “split-second” decision could reasonably take longer than it did,” he said. “Our union supports ongoing efforts to ensure all officers receive the best possible training and resources to respond appropriately in any situation. “We also back initiatives aimed at improving relationships between police and Aboriginal communities, recognising that trust and understanding are essential for effective policing. “However, we are extremely disappointed that the recent budget allocation provides almost no funding to implement these important recommendations.” In her findings, Ms Fogliani concluded JC’s death was a “lawful homicide”, making it clear under law “I cannot make a comment or a finding that would controvert the jury’s acquittal (of Mr Wyndham).”