Rebekah Porter has no memory of the weeks after her only daughter, Bridgette known as ‘Biddy’, was murdered in rural New South Wales.
“I was on my way to work, I’d dropped into the post office and I received calls from my ex-husband saying she was dead. I couldn’t believe it,” Ms Porter said.
“I’d cry and then my body, in shock, would snap me out of it and I don’t have any memory for about six weeks.”
Bridgette’s dad, Dom, had a visceral reaction when police came to tell him the news in the bank that he managed.
“I reacted physically. I punched a hole between one office and the next,” Mr Porter said.
“Now I have nightmares, I have flashbacks, I don’t sleep or if I do sleep, feeling Bridgette lying on my chest.”
The 10-year-old had been murdered in 2020.
Her killer was arrested nearby a few hours later and was found guilty of murder but not criminally responsible in 2021.
They are now being treated in a forensic health facility and their identity cannot be revealed for legal reasons.
Four-year anniversary
Monday marks four years since Bridgette was murdered.
In May last year, the Porters discovered their daughter’s killer had been granted escorted day leave from where they were being treated.
“I thought, ‘Wait a minute, not only has this happened, my daughter’s name has also been suppressed, I can’t speak about her publicly’, so it was just like a bolt of lightning hit me,” Ms Porter said.
In a statement, the Mental Health Review Tribunal (MHRT), which decided if and when the person was released, said it “does not, and must not, discuss any matters that are current or pending before it”.
But its decision galvanised the family to start investigating how to get greater justice for Bridgette.
Biddy’s Voice
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Under NSW law, the name of a child murder victim cannot be published or broadcast without the consent of their senior next of kin — such as parents.
The Porters have given the ABC permission to use Bridgette’s name and image, but they want legislative change to ensure a victim’s identity is not automatically suppressed.
“Bridgette’s memory needs to be honoured, her legacy needs to be honoured. I think it’s really disrespectful to suppress any victims of serious crimes,” Ms Porter said.
“Every victim deserves to have their story told, to have a voice. It makes them invisible and insignificant.
“I think we need to find a balance between protecting people who are mentally unwell and juveniles, and also giving victims a right to still have a voice and the significance of what’s happened to them to be told.
“This is one of the way worst crimes perpetrated by a young person on a child in Australia and yet that victim of that has been suppressed.”
‘No support’
Their trauma has been compounded by what they say is a lack of support for victims of crime.
When Bridgette was murdered, her parents were each entitled to $7,500 in recognition payments and a limited amount of counselling.
“I want to fight to ensure that other people don’t have to go through the process we’ve had to go through,” Mr Porter said.
“My dad’s a clinical psychologist, I can’t imagine somebody else trying to navigate this system without the huge level of family support that I’ve had.”
The Porters have been diagnosed with PTSD and other mental health conditions. Neither has been able to work since their daughter’s death.
“I was just in utter shock to a point where I couldn’t dress myself, feed myself, my partner would have to dress me, prompt me to eat,” Ms Porter said.
“Then I had a nervous breakdown 18 months later. I was diagnosed with delayed onset PTSD and major depression,” she said.
“There was very little support living in regional New South Wales.
“I wasn’t actually able to find a psychologist in person through victim services, only a psychologist available over the phone which is completely inappropriate for the level of trauma.”
System overhaul
At the time of the killer’s day release, Rebekah reached out to her local Independent state MP, Phil Donato.
As a former police prosecutor, he was shocked by how Bridgette’s case was managed by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
“It seemed to be handled very quickly,” Mr Donato said.
“Clearly the family weren’t kept abreast of what was happening because they had so many unanswered questions and that really should have been explained to them by the DPP.
“I mean this is the most serious of offences that come before the courts.
“I would have thought that the DPP would have gone above and beyond what they would normally do to sit down and explain to the family.”
In a statement, a DPP spokesperson acknowledged the “tragic loss suffered by the family” and said it had “regular, ongoing contact with the Porter family, answered their questions whenever possible and at every stage their views were taken into account”.
The Porters were denied access to the brief of evidence.
In a statement from the DPP, a spokesperson said “brief contains highly distressing and extremely sensitive evidence” and it was “determined it was not in the public interest to release the brief”.
The Porters say they were also not permitted to read the full statement of agreed facts, a separate document.
“I think it’s really concerning that families can’t look at the statement of agreed facts because there needs to be accountability and transparency on the part of the DPP to make sure that they’ve done everything for justice for Bridgette,” Ms Porter said.
The ODPP denied it had refused access.
“The office has previously offered and continues to be willing to meet with the parents of the deceased to read the agreed statement of facts,” the ODPP spokesperson said.
Ms Porter disagreed.
“I don’t believe that. I think that we’d be the best gauges of what’s going to traumatise us, and we want to fight and make sure justice was done correctly for our daughter,” she said.
With Mr Donato’s support they have launched an e-petition to try to get NSW parliamentary inquiries established into the DPP and MHRT, as well major reforms to victims support services.
It is also calling for a coronial inquest to examine whether Bridgette’s murder could have been prevented.
“It’s really about ensuring that the voices of Biddy and her family are properly and fairly heard,” Mr Donato said.
“The way that they’ve been failed by the system. We can’t let this continue to occur; we can’t let other families go through the same process.
“That’s why we need to call it out, we need to take action, we need to try and raise it at the highest levels of government to effect change.”
Today, Ms Porter said she felt one step closer to getting the justice her daughter deserved.
“I feel very proud that we’re finally having a voice and for justice for Bridgette. That gets me out of bed I guess and gives me some energy some days,” she said.
“I want my beautiful daughter to be recognised as what she was,” Mr Porter said.
“She was a fantastic poet, she was a fantastic artist, she had great musical talents. She was just highly intelligent, highly gifted, had a lot to give and loved life.”
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