Adelaide couple face court accused of starving son in ‘house of horrors’ neglect case

A mother who has pleaded guilty to endangering the life of her 4-year-old son was posting photos to Facebook of roasts while her starving, dehydrated son was locked in a filthy bedroom. Picture: Facebook

A MOTHER posted images of lasagne and roast dinners on Facebook while her starving, dehydrated, four-year-old son was locked in a filth-filled bedroom just days away from death, a court has heard.

The mother 24, and the boy’s father, 28, have each pleaded guilty to endangering life over the incident which prosecutor Lucy Boord today called the one of the most “serious cases of neglect the court will ever see”.
She told the District Court that the boy was found by chance after police responded to a call about domestic violence at the Gilles Plains home in October 2013.

She said officers battled through knee deep rubbish, including rotting meat, to find the boy naked in his bedroom surrounded by soiled nappies, plastic plates and his own faeces.
“You can treat this as one of the most serious cases this court will ever see. this is the pure neglect of a child,” she said.
“In the prosecution case it’s clear he was only days away from certain death if the officers had not intervened.”

The toilet inside the Gilles Plains house. Picture: Supplied

She said the mother had posted images on Facebook of a roast dinner and on another occasion a lasagne she had while her son lay locked in the squalid bedroom surviving off an occasional plate of yoghurt, custard or jelly being slipped under the door.
“It clearly shows food was being purchased.
“Any suggestion this (incident) is about all members of the house not eating — the prosecution disputes that.”
She said the couple had been getting $1200 a fortnight after falsely claiming a single parent payment, as well as a disability payment, providing them with “plenty of money, plenty of food.”
The court heard there had been “well over six attempts” from government authorities to check the boy’s welfare but none had actually seen the child in at least the past five visits.

The lounge room inside the Gilles Plains house. Picture: Supplied

After asking what policies the State Government had in place to ensure a similar incident to this won’t happen again, Judge Cuthbertson said: “You would think it would be a telltale sign to see the child, you would not have to be an expert to realise there was something wrong.”
The court was told the boy was hospitalised for a month after being taken from the house and suffers from a litany of development issues including language, motor and social delays as well as requiring surgery to remove a significant number of teeth because of decay.
Ms Boord said the boy, now 5, had been locked in the room for up to 12 days and was about 48 hours from turning critical.
One of the photos taken by a police officer when she first found the boy was so disturbing, Ms Boord warned Judge Cuthbertson of its nature before tendering it to him as evidence.
A victim impact statement compiled by Families SA and the boy’s foster parents said his language and cognitive skills were equivalent to someone about half his age and he was still learning to self toilet.

Another of the filth-filled rooms. Picture: Supplied

“As (the boy) becomes older it is unclear to what further needs he may require,” it said.
“It is expected may experience delayed trauma responses as a consequence of the environment experiences in his father’s care.”
The statement also said the boy has been mocked by his peers who call him “a baby” and he is “extremely withdrawn”.
The mother’s lawyer, Tim Heffernen, said his client had weighed 38kg when the boy was rescued which showed she was not in a right frame of mind and did not deliberately neglect the child.
“She was utterly unprepared and incapable of performing of any sort of the long-term basic duties of being a mother,” he said.

Piles of rubbish in the kitchen.

He said it was more likely the boy had been left in the room for 3-4 days before rescue and that the mother had been led by her abusive partner during the offending.
“She loved her son and the difficult truth is why did she not care for her son — I cannot answer that.”
He said the couple had been on an alcohol bender, and had no routine to feed or care for their son.
The man’s lawyer, Mark Twiggs, said his client was appalled, contrite and extremely apologetic for his crimes.
Both lawyers asked the court to consider a longer than usual period on parole when sentencing their clients.
Judge Cuthbertson remanded the couple in custody to be sentenced in December.