Barnaby and Ellena
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.
‘He could die in there, Commissioner. That's what I'm frightened of. And because of his impulsivity and he makes poor judgments and things like this, I'm scared that one morning I'm going to get a phone call to say [Barnaby] is unresponsive.’
Ellena’s son Barnaby is a First Nations man in his 40s who has an acquired brain injury (ABI) after being assaulted more than a decade ago.
‘When he got assaulted he lost everything,’ Ellena told the Royal Commission. ‘He lost his bubbly life he had and his good work, his good pay. Lost all his good friends and no-one wanted to know him.’
Barnaby also developed seizures and lost the ability to control his behaviour.
‘He suffers with, oh what is this thing? … Impulsivity, where they just hit out straight away because he hasn't got that thing to slow him down when people provoke him.’
Ellena said that a couple of years ago Barnaby injured a man who attacked him. Police arrested and charged Barnaby. Barnaby’s lawyer didn’t tell the court about his ABI and a magistrate remanded him in custody until a trial.
‘Poor Barnaby had no say. We didn't have no say. So that's what happened, he went into [prison] and he got treated so badly, you know.’
Ellena said the prison staff told him he was 'playing doggo’.
‘They said, “You haven't got an injury. You're just a criminal.”’
At one point Barnaby’s cell had no water supply.
‘He couldn't flush the toilet where he was and maggots were coming out of there. He asked the wardens to please get him a drink of water and give him his tablets. They wouldn't give him his tablets for his seizures.’
Ellena said Barnaby spends much of his time in solitary confinement. On one occasion he was confined alone for ‘three or four weeks’.
Before being remanded, doctors were treating Barnaby for an infection. He was also in remission from cancer and the NDIS supported him for his ABI. Most of his supports stopped when he went to prison.
‘I'm concerned for [Barnaby] because he needs to get out of there and get his treatment and start using the services that are going to help him.’
When Allena spoke to the Royal Commission, Barnaby had not been convicted of a crime, but was still in prison waiting for a court hearing.
‘Somebody said that [Barnaby] was … suicidal. And he's in confinement so he's not getting bail.’
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.