Woman faces losing her jaw after one devastating punch ruined her life

A woman has been left ‘terrified’ of completely losing the use of her jaw due to the devastating damage caused by a one-punch attack more than 10 years ago – as part of a horrific ordeal where part of her face ‘fell out’. 

Jacqui Glynn was attacked by a stranger while waiting to pick up a friend from the Bayview Hotel in Redcliffe, a coastal suburb in Brisbane‘s north, in December of 2012.

Ms Glynn claimed she faced several difficulties when she sought financial help from Victim Assist Queensland for her injuries. She claimed police refused to give her information about her attacker which she needed to fill out her application for support. 

‘The police neglected me for over a year,’ Ms Glynn told Daily Mail Australia.

The consequent delay in treatment meant Ms Glynn’s initial injuries of three loose teeth and a cheek bone fracture drastically worsened.

‘In 2014 I had my whole top row of teeth removed,’ Ms Glynn said.

‘I ended up having four layers of bone grafting and 36-inch screws put in my jaw; it was seven hours on the operating table.’

Unfortunately, complications with the procedure, combined with endless red tape, left Ms Glynn with a botched jaw and no one taking accountability.

Faced with the choice of having to pay thousands of dollars for private dental work or risk letting her jaw wear down while waiting for treatment through the public system, Ms Glynn has turned to GoFundMe.

‘I’m so scared at the moment that I’m not going have a jaw left,’ she said.

‘I asked for help from Victim Assist but they only claim accountability for the three damaged teeth. 

‘I tried to speak to the dentist that did the original work but they said they wouldn’t do anything to help because I haven’t kept up with maintenance appointments.

‘I was being charged about $500 for a cleaning every few months… I couldn’t keep up with the cost.’

Ms Glynn explained that she had to have a series of plates put in her top jaw after the horror attack but just one year after their insertion, two screws holding them in place fell out.

Even worse, the clamps used to hold her fake teeth in place have come loose and she’s been left to use denture glue to try and keep her mouth intact.

The grinding from the metal has severely damaged Ms Glynn’s top jaw and damaged several of her bottom teeth.

‘It’s just been a nightmare. I’m in pain all the time and I bleed everywhere. There’s very little left of my jaw,’ she said.

Ms Glynn said her dental problems have also cost her several relationships as she feels too anxious to leave her home. 

‘I’m not a vain person but I always had a nice smile. Now I don’t go out, my social life is zilch because it’s just embarrassing,’ she said.

‘People want to go out and have a meal but I have to go to the bathroom halfway through dinner to pull my teeth out, apply more glue – because it doesn’t stick properly to the metal plates, and reattach them.

‘When my teeth are in my face looks swollen, when they’re out I look drawn and older.

‘It just makes me so self conscious.’ 

Despite the toll the attack has taken on Ms Glynn’s life, she said she does not ‘hold too much resentment’ towards the woman that hit her.

‘I was waiting to pick up a friend from the Bayview Hotel and was chatting to a guy outside.

‘Suddenly I was punched from the side. Turns out the guy was this girl’s boyfriend.

‘She was a big girl, I’m not very big, and it took three security guards to pull her off me.

‘But, she owned up to it. She did the right thing. She pleaded guilty and paid the court ordered damages. She took accountability, no one else has.’ 

Ms Glynn said she’s not tried public fundraising before but now believes it’s her last chance to save any use of her jaw and not becoming a recluse.

‘I don’t really tell people because it’s embarrassing but I’m constantly crying because of the pain,’ she said.

‘I keep thinking by the time the public system gets around to looking at me, I’m not going to have a jaw to work with.

‘It’s pretty terrifying.’

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Queensland’s Department of Justice and Attorney-General’s Ethical Standards Unit for comment on Ms Glynn’s case. 

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