Jeanette, Ann and Raimondo
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Jeanette is in her early 40s. She has an intellectual disability and is non-verbal, but ‘understands everything you say to her’, her mother Ann told the Royal Commission.
For a decade Jeanette has lived in a government-run supported independent living home and has 24-hour care. A few years ago a new resident moved in. She was regularly aggressive with others.
‘One of the ladies there, her glasses were smashed out. A carer got hit, had a black eye,’ Ann said.
Ann and her husband, Raimondo, felt ‘that this lady was in the wrong place with the wrong people’. House staff acknowledged ‘it was a poor placement decision’ to put the woman ‘in a home with other fragile and vulnerable residents’.
Once, the woman hit Jeanette across the head in front of staff. Ann spoke with a manager about it. His response – 'Oh, it's got nothing to do with me.’
‘Our daughter's being hit. Our daughter's being belted. They let it happen,’ Ann said.
Not only did management let it happen, they made Ann and Raimondo feel guilty for wanting the woman out.
‘We keep getting it thrown down our throat that, you know, the particular person in question has got rights … that we're attacking this person.’
Ann and Raimondo were told about other incidents, but they often felt they weren’t getting ‘the full story’.
‘I think we get a sanitised version. They tell us what they want to tell us.’
Most incidents occurred when ‘casually employed people’ were in the house, said Raimondo.
‘They’re not skilled, not interested in being there.’
When the woman hit out at Jeanette again, her parents tried other legal avenues. Police, lawyers and disability commissioners all said ‘there wasn’t much they could do’.
A couple of years ago the home was privatised. But the disability provider ‘knew nothing about the safety issues’.
‘We've jumped from the frying pan into the fire,’ said Ann.
The provider suggested Jeanette move out – ‘despite her being the victim of violence and having housemates in this house she had grown up with and were equivalent to her siblings.’
Since then the woman has been into Jeanette’s room and destroyed property, and has again assaulted Jeanette.
‘It's been traumatic for her,’ Anne said. Jeanette is showing signs of anxiety.
The manager refuses to sit down and talk. Raimondo wants to ask him, ‘Why have you allowed this to happen?’
The provider has never responded to ‘very detailed letters’ outlining their distress over Jeanette’s situation. Yet under the Disability Act, it is required to ensure ‘a resident's right to privacy and enjoyment of their home’, said Ann.
Ann and Raimondo made a complaint to the NDIA and there’s finally ‘light at the end of the tunnel’.
‘They’re looking for a place for this other woman,’ Raimondo said, ‘coz we've been fighting this pretty hard.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.