0:01

We took it all we brought

0:03

them to on live. And

0:06

and last night, Emperor Hot

0:09

and Ice cold the range

0:11

of the earth. We make

0:13

this colors. Car

0:16

didn't have worked on box we

0:18

did not see we could not

0:21

but she did the a right

0:23

of high pick a. Similar

0:25

starker: How play. To. Play.

0:28

It now with game pass. Z

0:39

You're listening to Trudy Criminal, the

0:41

home of true crime. To

0:44

see the video version of this case including

0:46

the footage and photos, you

0:48

can find us on YouTube, just search

0:50

for Trudy Criminal. The

1:01

20th of July 2019, St Clair Avenue, Western Sydney, 11.43pm.

1:09

A triple zero call was made. was

2:00

much help. He said all I can do is I pulled

2:02

the police and the ambulance to my address and I thought

2:04

it was going to take a bit of time for I

2:06

ran to my other neighbour on the other side. And

2:09

I had my mum's head in my hand. I

2:11

know this sounds insane, but I was taking it

2:13

for evidence to show the neighbour in the struggle

2:15

in the first question I didn't know what I

2:17

was doing. I cut her head off. I

2:20

chopped her head off with a knife. There were

2:22

all sorts of knives. There was about seven

2:25

knives standing her with. A

2:27

few of the knives broke. When that

2:29

knife broke, I got another one into

2:31

the scene. Where's the knife now? They're

2:33

all in the kitchen. There's blood everywhere.

2:35

There's blood everywhere. And you're outside

2:37

the house? Yes. Yes. They're in

2:39

the police have locked up. Do you want to

2:42

stay on the phone? No, that's okay. What's your

2:44

phone number, Jessica? This is my mum's

2:47

phone number. My mum's not here anymore. Okay, she's

2:50

gone. Police

2:54

officers arrived at the scene and senior

2:56

constable Anthony D'Agostino clicked record on his

2:59

body cam, stood in the dark

3:01

and lit up by the office's flashlight with

3:03

a young woman covered in blood.

3:06

I killed my mum. My mum's head is

3:08

over there. She said. 25

3:18

year old Jessica Camilleri was the second

3:20

daughter of Maltese Australian couple, Vincent Peter.

3:23

From an early age, things have been difficult for

3:25

Jessica and her family. Jessica had been born with

3:27

additional needs and had an IQ of between 55

3:29

and 60. It took her longer to

3:32

reach various developmental milestones, such as

3:34

walking and talking. And teachers

3:36

quickly noticed these delays too. Amongst

3:40

her conditions, Jessica had ADHD, bipolar disorder

3:42

and was autistic. She also had something

3:44

called intermittent explosive disorder, which would manifest

3:47

itself in sudden outbursts of violence and

3:49

aggression. This is not just normal anger.

3:51

It is a mental disorder that usually

3:54

starts at the age of six and

3:56

intensifies in adolescence and early adulthood. One

3:58

expert would later say. This

4:00

was often made worse by the fact she

4:02

was the target of bullies in school. When

4:05

she did have outbursts at school, she would

4:07

attack teachers and students, normally leading to her

4:09

being suspended. It was usually directed

4:11

at other girls, but in one instance she

4:13

bit a male student. Teachers tried

4:15

to pull her off him, but she refused to release

4:17

her teeth and let him go. Alongside

4:20

her outbursts, Jessica also had deficits

4:22

in judgement and awareness of other

4:24

people's thoughts, feelings and empathy. In

4:27

2015 when Jessica was still a

4:29

teenager, her parents split up. Her

4:31

father was at a loss as to how to

4:34

deal with her behaviour and that his wife, Ruta,

4:36

couldn't discipline her effectively. Ruta

4:38

was devoted to her family and alongside being

4:40

a carer for Jessica, she also cared for

4:42

her mother and the strain of all of

4:44

this continued to get worse. Jessica worked at

4:47

a Kmart in Mount Druitt part time as

4:49

a cashier and she would spend her free

4:51

time watching her favourite horror films, mainly Saw

4:53

and the Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Her

4:56

social media posts documented her obsession with

4:58

horror films and they also highlighted her

5:00

close relationship with her mother. One

5:06

thing she would do in her past time

5:08

was she would make up phone numbers, mainly using

5:10

two, three and five as they were her

5:12

favourite numbers. She would call them

5:14

many times throughout the day, hoping men would answer

5:17

and when they did, she told them if they

5:19

put the phone down on her, she would chop

5:21

their heads off. In

5:24

2018, Jessica had began to obsessively call

5:26

a company in Victoria and became infatuated

5:28

with the boss of the company, a

5:30

man called Matthew. She had

5:32

phoned several male members of staff telling one,

5:34

you're going to die of cancer and if

5:37

not, I will stab you until you die

5:39

motherf****r. She would threaten, I

5:41

will stab you and cut your head off with a knife. It

5:44

would always end that way no matter who she was

5:46

talking to, Matthew said. After

5:48

the calls lasted for around two months, Ruta also

5:50

phoned them to say she was at her wit's

5:53

end with her daughter's behaviour and didn't know what

5:55

to do anymore. She said she was

5:57

going to take away her daughter's phones in the hope that it

5:59

would stop. The calls did stop, but

6:02

after just two weeks, they started up

6:04

again. She found Matthew's friends and relatives

6:06

on Facebook and began harassing them, even

6:09

targeting his wife and his wife's sister, saying,

6:11

I'll cut your head off with a chainsaw

6:14

and flush it down the toilet. The harassing

6:16

calls would be upwards of one hundred times

6:18

a day. Matthew contacted Rita

6:20

again, telling her this is getting out of hand

6:22

and something needs to happen. Rita said

6:24

that after seeing his photograph, Jessica had

6:26

developed a huge crush on Matthew. This

6:28

wasn't the only way that her behavior

6:30

would manifest. Jessica had been banned

6:32

from the doctor's surgery after she had become angry

6:35

at the female patient and needed to be restrained.

6:37

Her anger was also on displaying shopping centers and

6:39

on the street as she would become angry with

6:41

the women around her. She was

6:44

taken to hospital and became enraged with

6:46

a female nurse. She was subsequently admitted

6:48

to a psychiatric unit for nine days

6:50

to treat an episode of severe mood

6:53

disorder. Jessica had been on a variety

6:55

of medications, including antipsychotics, mood stabilizers and

6:57

antidepressants, but they appeared to be having

6:59

very little impact. As

7:01

2018 was coming to an end, Jessica

7:04

was no longer on her medication and

7:06

instead was using alternative natural remedies. In

7:09

spite of all of these difficulties, Rita refused to

7:11

give up on her daughter and would always protect

7:13

her and stick up for her. People

7:15

outside of the family were also aware of what was

7:18

going on and messages that Rita had sent to a

7:20

friend highlighted this. They read, the other day I had

7:22

to call an ambulance because Jess had a meltdown and

7:24

was messing up tight and I didn't know what to

7:26

do so I called the ambulance at two in the

7:28

morning and the ambulance came with the police but they

7:31

didn't take her to hospital because she hadn't done anything

7:33

at that time and she got scared and worried at

7:35

the time because she did not want to go back

7:37

to the mental health unit hospital again. She

7:40

needs to wake up to herself because if she

7:42

doesn't, the police officer who came to my house

7:44

with the ambulance told me if we find ourselves

7:46

back here and have to come back out to

7:48

the house for this matter, this time she won't

7:50

be so lucky and I said to her to

7:52

stop this and let go of this guy. This

7:54

was in reference to a man that Jessica was

7:56

having problems with and it would be referred

7:59

to in another message that Rita sent to the same

8:01

friend. I'm just informing you

8:03

that Jess has changed her Facebook account, she is

8:05

no longer on her old Facebook account because of

8:07

that guy she was having problems with. I told

8:09

her if I were you I would not be

8:11

mucking around with this d-head ever again, otherwise it

8:13

is going to be her own grave she will

8:16

be digging and she is now scared and worried.

8:18

Our whole family told her she is playing with

8:20

fire doing this, just let the d-head go, he

8:22

is not worth it by a long shot. The

8:25

same friend whom Rita had been messaging would also

8:27

reach out to Jessica telling her she needed to

8:29

be careful. Jessica replied, my mum said that I

8:31

don't know what the F you're worrying about he's

8:33

not even good looking he is an ugly d-head,

8:35

you are worrying and wasting your days and time

8:37

wanting to get even with that ugly pig and

8:39

she is right and so are you. I don't

8:41

want to be locked up in some time for

8:44

the rest of my days over this ugly mother

8:46

offer. Jessica's very difficult behavior

8:48

continued to escalate, her older sister Kristie

8:50

would later say that at a moment

8:52

of desperation and feeling like all of

8:54

their options were not working. In early

8:56

July 2019 Rita consulted

8:59

a medium who quoted nearly five thousand

9:01

dollars to quote get the demon out

9:03

of Jessica. Rita paid two and

9:05

a half thousand dollars but never received anything

9:07

for it. Also that month a

9:10

family friend aired their deep concerns to

9:12

Rita about Jessica and her behavior saying

9:14

that they believed Jessica was going to murder

9:17

someone one day. Rita's response was not my

9:19

Jessica she wouldn't hurt a fly. On

9:26

the 19th of July Rita took Jessica to the

9:28

police station regarding the nuisance phone calls that had

9:30

been going on for ages. As we've established this

9:32

is not the first contact she had had with

9:35

the police. Over the previous six

9:37

years Jessica had been convicted of two

9:39

counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm

9:41

and two counts of common assault. She did not

9:43

go to prison and was instead released into the

9:46

care of her mother. The

9:50

20th of July 2019. Jessica

9:53

and her mother had been in a car park

9:55

and a man had walked past them. Jessica

9:57

then became deeply angry at her mother convinced that

10:00

that Rita had humiliated her in front of him.

10:02

They went to her sister's house and the tension

10:04

continued to mount. And Rita was desperately trying to

10:06

calm Jessica down. Jessica then asked for a doctor

10:09

to come out but once the doctor arrived, she

10:11

left saying that she was in fear for her

10:13

life. Jessica chased the doctor down the driveway but

10:15

the doctor was able to get into her car

10:17

and drive off. At the time, Rita was looking

10:20

after her four year old grandson known as Child

10:22

A and Jessica believed that her mother was paying

10:24

too much attention to him instead of her. At

10:26

9.18, 9.20 and 9.21pm, Jessica called the fast food

10:31

chain Red Rooster trying to get more food.

10:34

Rita had had enough, telling her I'm ringing

10:36

triple zero to get an ambulance here and

10:38

put you back into care, back into the

10:40

mental health care system. The situation

10:42

just kept getting worse. Jessica followed her mother

10:44

to the bedroom where she knocked her to

10:46

the ground and then dragged her to the

10:48

kitchen by her hair. It was here that

10:50

she would launch her attack. Jessica

10:54

Camilleri had stabbed her mother more than 100 times

10:57

in the kitchen using seven knives, several

10:59

of which broke due to the sheer

11:01

force. Rita survived the first

11:03

90 stab wounds. Her

11:05

daughter then decapitated her and mutilated

11:08

her head with her nose, tongue

11:10

and eyes being removed. Jessica

11:12

also carried out what were referred to

11:15

as acts of cannibalism. She

11:17

then picked up her mother's head and carried

11:19

it outside to show the neighbours. The

11:22

police soon arrived and they were met with a scene

11:24

like nothing they could have prepared for, standing

11:26

outside her house and covered in blood. Jessica

11:29

said, mum's head is on the concrete over there,

11:31

can they sew the head back on? Can

11:33

you bring someone back to life if they don't have a head? There's

11:36

nothing you can do, she's a goner. Because I

11:38

know doctors can do miracles, they can't re-sew

11:40

her head. The police officer

11:43

replied, that's a bit of a stretch. I

11:45

thought doctors can do miracle surgeries and put the

11:47

head back on. No? Is anything

11:49

going to happen to me? Do I get the

11:52

death penalty? We don't do the death penalty in

11:54

Australia, an officer said. Okay, so I've got nothing

11:56

to worry about, she replied. In

11:58

the chaos and confusion of a scene

12:00

like this, the officers needed to understand

12:02

exactly what had happened. As previously mentioned,

12:04

Rita had been babysitting her four-year-old grandson.

12:07

He had tried to stop Jessica from

12:09

attacking her. He had attempted to

12:11

hit Jessica with the lid of a toy box

12:13

to get her to stop the attack against his

12:15

grandmother. And when Jessica pushed him away, she lacerated

12:17

his hands and head and caused a wound to

12:19

his face. He was treated in

12:21

hospital and then discharged to be cared for by his

12:23

family. The news

12:26

of this brutal murder sent shockwaves through

12:28

Australia. Police Detective Superintendent

12:30

Brett McFadden told reporters, the

12:33

family is distraught as to what has taken place. This

12:36

is up there with one of the most significant,

12:38

most horrific scenes police have had to face. There

12:40

is no slipping away from the fact that this

12:42

was horrific and a significant attack and

12:45

the injuries that the victim suffered

12:47

were extensive. It is a very

12:49

difficult, challenging, confronting investigation. A vicious,

12:51

brutal killing almost beyond imagination stabbed

12:53

repeatedly, then beheaded. She was her

12:56

daughter's carer, protector and only friend.

12:58

But at 57, Rita Camilleri was

13:00

killed in the most horrifying manner

13:02

imaginable. Jessica Camilleri decapitated her mother

13:05

after stabbing her in the head

13:07

and neck more than a hundred

13:09

times in their home at St

13:11

Clair in Western Sydney. Rita

13:14

fought desperately for her life. She

13:16

suffered 90 defensive wounds.

13:20

To cope with the horror of what they had

13:22

seen that night, the officers in emergency services who

13:25

had attended the call were offered counselling. As

13:27

CSI officers were going over the scene

13:29

and police were gathering statements, tributes to

13:31

Rita began to pour in. One of

13:33

her friends said, to add to the

13:35

sadness, Rita was looking after her bedridden,

13:38

frail mother too. This is just horrific.

13:40

She was fun, irreverent and vibrant. She

13:42

loved music and was very community minded.

13:44

She connected with everyone because she was

13:46

lovely. One neighbour

13:48

remarked, they always seem to have parties,

13:50

all the time just parties over there. I

13:53

never heard anything like shouting or screaming. There had

13:55

been some issues in the past that have made

13:57

Jessica known to the cops and other groups. but

14:00

it seems it has gone much further this time. I'm

14:30

not sure what to expect. Yes. What

14:33

will I become? Simless Saga.

14:36

Hellblade 2. Play it now

14:38

with Game Pass. I

15:00

know this. I've hurt a lot of people in the past

15:02

but I have never laid a finger on my mum until

15:04

tonight. I understand she has had enough of

15:06

me because I'm a piece of work. My

15:08

mum lost her patience. I wanted to give her a taste

15:10

of her own medicine, but not to kill her. I

15:13

had to keep stabbing her. I think that's what's happened

15:15

and then her head just came off. When

15:17

my mum's head came off, I didn't think to put it

15:20

into a bag. I had my mum's phone

15:22

and my phone in my left hand. I

15:24

was carrying my mum's head in my other hand. It

15:26

slipped out of my hand. I couldn't pick it up. The

15:28

head just remained on my neighbour's footpath. I don't know

15:31

how my sister and my dad is going to be

15:33

towards me after this. The officer

15:35

replied and told her that they were extremely

15:37

upset. The day

15:39

after the killing, Jessica appeared in Parramatta

15:41

bail court via a video link charged

15:43

with murder. She made no application

15:46

for bail and told the court, I

15:48

really need medical attention. I told all

15:50

the officers and told the police at the station, I

15:52

cannot move my fingers properly because of the incident. I'm

15:55

not fit to come to jail until I get cleaned

15:57

up. I could not wash myself properly in the shower

15:59

to get... all the blood off me because of my

16:01

fingers. The magistrate ordered that she be

16:03

assessed in hospital before her next appearance in front

16:05

of the court. She entered a

16:08

plea of not guilty to murder, arguing

16:10

that her mental health conditions had seriously

16:12

reduced her self-control. Her barrister said it

16:14

should be changed to a charge of manslaughter.

16:18

While she was in prison awaiting trial,

16:20

psychiatrist Professor David Greenberg would speak to

16:22

her and he later said, after leaving

16:24

school she was placed in supportive environments

16:26

where she had explosive outbursts and was

16:28

asked to leave. She was unable to

16:30

cope in all of these environments so

16:33

she ended up on disability support pension.

16:35

She won't lose control on every occasion,

16:37

loses control when there's a stressor or

16:39

she perceives provocation. The psychiatrist reports also

16:41

stated that she said, I know people

16:43

will think I'm sick. I thought I'll

16:45

put her out of her pain. I

16:47

was so agitated and frustrated because

16:50

I was thinking sick thoughts. She would later tell

16:52

him that she had got the idea to do

16:54

it from a horror film, telling him to write

16:56

that down for the judge. She

16:58

told Professor Greenberg, I wasn't thinking. I was

17:00

panicky, frustrated and raged. Mum was slapping me.

17:02

She grabbed me by the hair. I grabbed

17:04

my mum. I dragged her all the way

17:06

to the kitchen by the hair. I saw

17:08

red. Remember pulling the knife. I wanted to

17:10

scare her at first. Mum got the knife

17:12

off me and chucked it away. I

17:15

was so agitated. I lost it. I was stabbing her.

17:17

I was so angry. I think I

17:19

had sick thoughts. I got

17:21

it off horror movies. Texas Chainsaw Massacre,

17:23

Jeepers Creepers and Saw. I

17:25

remember stabbing my mum. I wouldn't stop. I was

17:28

getting her everywhere. I was getting the

17:30

adrenaline going. When

17:33

it came to Jessica's personality, Professor

17:35

Greenberg said she presents as egocentric

17:37

or self-centered, has a history of

17:39

demanding attention and a problem when

17:41

attention is not focused on her.

17:43

She has a sense of entitlement and

17:45

an unreasonable expectation of favorable treatment. When

17:48

her needs are not met, she can be furious. She

17:51

believes she is unique because of her

17:53

disability and can be exploitative. She

17:56

feels her disability makes her needs special, fails to

17:58

recognize others also have a disability. have feelings

18:00

and needs. She is very

18:02

sensitive to criticism and may react with disdain

18:04

or rage. Even

18:07

though she was now in custody, her

18:09

behaviour continued to manifest in explosive outbursts

18:12

and before standing trial she was involved

18:14

in several incidents in prison. On September

18:17

10th 2019 she was charged with assault after

18:19

she threw a cup of tea at a fellow inmate. Roughly

18:22

a month later on the 14th of October she

18:24

was given five days in her cell after attacking

18:27

another inmate. On the 3rd

18:29

of November she failed to obey a direction

18:31

and then in July the following year she

18:33

was charged $200 after damaging property. Another

18:35

seven days in the cell came on November 21st 2020 after

18:38

another assault. On

18:43

the 30th of November 2020 the case

18:46

that had captured Australia would finally go

18:48

to court and the trial of Jessica

18:51

Camilleri began. It would take place

18:53

at the New South Wales Supreme Court in front

18:55

of Justice Helen Wilson and would last for five

18:57

days. Jessica

18:59

who was now 27 years old would

19:01

occasionally smile at the guards in the court as

19:03

she sat in the dock next to her support

19:06

worker. In his opening statement

19:08

the prosecutor said that Jessica had a lengthy

19:10

history of assaulting people and that Rita

19:12

was overly protective and defensive over her.

19:14

The court was told that Jessica had

19:16

an unreasonable expectation of treatment, a history

19:18

of demanding attention, poor self-esteem but a

19:20

sense of entitlement. When first questioned by

19:22

the police she had said that she

19:25

had acted in self-defense, saying

19:27

that her mother had threatened to take her

19:29

to a psychiatric unit and attacked her. When

19:31

this was told to the court members of her

19:33

family could be heard letting out what were referred

19:36

to as exasperated thighs. Jessica's sister

19:38

Kristy testified and said that Jessica constantly

19:40

demanded attention and would order her mother

19:42

around. She added that Jessica would often

19:44

pause and rewind her favourite sections of

19:46

her favourite horror movies and would go

19:48

into a frenzy if they were taken

19:50

away from her. When it

19:53

came to Jessica's behaviour Rita felt she had been

19:55

let down by the various support services over the

19:57

years. She was exhausted by the

19:59

strain trying to care for her. The

20:01

court heard that when Jessica's father had

20:03

left, her behaviour had worsened as he

20:05

had control over her and discipline. Rita's

20:08

sister said she had spoken to her many

20:10

times about her daughter's behaviour. She

20:12

was blinded and couldn't see what I could see.

20:14

She was a mother and her mother's love knows

20:17

no boundaries. I pray Jess

20:19

will get the help she needs so Rita can

20:21

rest in peace knowing her daughter is being looked

20:23

after by a sister that let her down. The

20:26

court also heard from Professor Greenberg who

20:28

had spoken to Jessica extensively whilst in

20:30

prison. He said she prefers to

20:33

talk to men because that excites her. She's

20:35

not particularly interested in talking to women. If

20:38

they insult her or become angry or

20:40

distressed by her cause, she becomes distressed

20:42

and that kicks into her intermittent explosive

20:44

disorder. He added there's no one

20:46

disorder that describes her. I'm of

20:48

the opinion that at the time of the

20:50

incident, she likely had the capacity to understand

20:53

the events and judge whether her

20:55

actions were right or wrong. However, I'm

20:57

of the opinion that based on the

20:59

comorbid psychiatric diagnoses, her capacity

21:01

to control herself was substantially impaired

21:04

by her abnormality of mind arising

21:06

from her underlying conditions. The

21:10

defence called forensic psychiatrist Dr Richard First

21:12

who said he believed that Jessica had

21:14

a long-standing abnormality of the mind and

21:16

that she knew what she was doing

21:18

was wrong. He said that the main

21:20

question was whether or not she had

21:22

the capacity to control her behaviour. He

21:25

said that he felt that ability was impaired.

21:28

The absolute horror of what had happened that

21:30

night in July was laid bare as a

21:32

constable read out a statement. On

21:35

the tiled floor was the body

21:37

of the deceased, head decapitated, six

21:39

knives broken and intact surrounding the

21:41

deceased. To the right was a

21:43

human tongue. Further to the right under

21:45

the fridge was a piece of skin and believed to

21:47

be a human nose. The head

21:49

had numerous jagged and penetrating wounds

21:51

exposing the cervical spine. Human

21:53

eyeballs were on the tiles under the

21:56

deceased's neck. Her body was in a

21:58

prone position on the floor, feet pointing towards her. towards

22:00

the other area. The legs were straight with the

22:02

soles of the feet facing upward and a clump

22:04

of dark hair on the right foot. The

22:07

injuries on the right hand and wrist were defensive

22:09

wounds. The left arm was bent at

22:11

the elbow and the left hand resting on her neck

22:13

area. With

22:16

all of the information now having been put

22:18

forward, it was time for the jury to

22:20

retire and consider their verdict. And

22:23

on the 10th of December 2020, after

22:25

two days of deliberations, that

22:27

verdict came in. Jessica Camilleri

22:29

was found not guilty of

22:31

murder but instead guilty of

22:34

manslaughter. Jessica Camilleri sat

22:36

expressionless in the dock despite many

22:38

of her family members breaking down

22:40

in tears while explaining to the

22:42

court what impact Rita's death has

22:44

had on their lives. Her lawyers

22:47

saying due to her mental disorders,

22:49

she doesn't react the same emotionally

22:51

as other people do. Jessica

22:55

Sister Christie would later speak outside court.

22:58

She had the support from many

23:01

avenues and unfortunately I feel that our

23:03

mental health system let her down, let

23:05

my mother down, let my

23:08

whole family down. My mother was a

23:10

beautiful person inside and out, a

23:12

heart of gold. She would have

23:15

put anybody in front

23:17

of her own needs. I have to live with a

23:19

little boy that has to live with that trauma for

23:21

the rest of his life and

23:23

I am absolutely, she has no support from

23:25

our family. So

23:27

I don't really care what happens to her from

23:30

this point on or when she is

23:32

released and I just hope that it is a sentence

23:36

so that way members of the

23:38

community remain safe. My mother went

23:40

through every avenue, doctor, psychiatrist, the

23:42

mental health system itself and

23:45

nothing ever pulled through which

23:48

led us here. I can't

23:50

look at her. She took

23:53

our mother like she was nothing. Thank

23:57

you. The

24:00

unlawful killing of Rita Pammaleri on the 20th of

24:02

July 2019 must

24:04

be regarded as one of the most

24:07

serious instances of manslaughter. It is possible

24:09

for any imagination to conjure. A

24:12

plea of guilty or an offer to enter

24:14

a plea of guilty can sometimes operate as

24:16

evidence of remorse. I

24:18

do not regard it as such in

24:20

the present instance. Immediately after killing her

24:23

mother, the offender's concern was for herself.

24:26

She invented an account of having been attacked

24:28

by her mother in an attempt to avoid

24:30

responsibility for what she had done. When

24:32

her family gave their victim impact statements

24:34

to the court during the sentence proceedings,

24:37

the offender seemed uninterested rather

24:39

than saddened that what were

24:42

objectively deeply moving accounts

24:44

of loss and enduring grief. There

24:46

is a real issue here of

24:48

the offender's future dangerousness and

24:51

a requirement to consider what is needed

24:53

for the protection of the community. The

24:55

offender told Professor Greenberg and Medical Notes

24:57

Record that she had assaulted a number

24:59

of other people in the community. Since

25:02

entering custody and despite the close

25:04

supervision provided in a custodian environment,

25:07

the offender has been both

25:10

criminally charged and institutionally penalized

25:12

for offending behaviour. Upon her

25:14

eventual release from prison, the offender will

25:17

not have the support and supervision of

25:19

her mother and she will not have her

25:21

mother to ensure that she attends medical

25:23

appointments and takes prescribed medication. She

25:25

will not have a calm and

25:28

safe family home to go to

25:30

upon release. The possibility of

25:32

a violent outburst against someone in

25:34

the community looms large. The protection

25:36

of the community must be a

25:38

significant consideration. In light of the

25:41

extreme gravity of this crime, the

25:43

very great harm done and

25:45

the need to protect the community from

25:47

the offender, the stern sentence is called

25:50

for. Before that sentence

25:52

is imposed, I wish to extend

25:54

my sympathy and the sympathy of the

25:56

cause to the offender's sister and her family. I recognise the fact that

25:58

the victim is not a victim of the crime. that

26:00

no sentence imposed upon the offender

26:02

can make good their loss or

26:05

diminish the grief they feel. Ms. Camilleri

26:07

would you stand up please. For

26:11

the manslaughter of Risa Camilleri on the 20th of

26:14

July 2019 the offender is sentenced

26:17

to a term of imprisonment of

26:19

21 years and seven months commencing

26:22

on the 20th of July 2019 and expiring

26:24

on the 19th of February 2041. The non-ferrol

26:29

period is one of 16 years

26:31

and two months imprisonment which will

26:33

expire on the 19th of September

26:35

2035. My thanks to

26:37

those at the bar table called villager.

26:41

In a letter to her family Jessica wrote it didn't

26:43

hit me at first but then it hit me like

26:45

a ton of bricks like a mountain. I

26:47

know it's my fault that my mother isn't here. In

26:51

September 2022 it was reported that Jessica was

26:53

appealing her sentence and her lawyer argued the

26:55

lesser sentence should have been given because she

26:57

had been willing to plead guilty to manslaughter

26:59

before the trial. She had done everything she

27:02

could to bring about the outcome that was

27:04

achieved as early as she could he said.

27:06

He also said that her behavior had improved

27:08

considerably since moving to a different prison. The

27:11

crown was fighting back against the appeal

27:13

saying the gravity of what Jessica had

27:15

done deserved a heavy sentence. Her

27:18

appeal was successful. The sentence

27:20

was reduced to 16 years

27:22

and six months in custody with a

27:24

non-perrol period of 12 years. Two of

27:26

the three judges had granted the appeal.

27:28

The judge said objectively the facts were

27:30

gruesome and brutal and involved a frenzied

27:32

attack on an innocent victim in her

27:34

own home. On the other hand the

27:36

offense was spontaneous and the result of

27:39

Kamalari losing control of herself because of

27:41

her complex psychiatric illness. Her behavior of

27:43

walking into the street with her mother's

27:45

head and dropping it as well as

27:47

asking emergency services personnel whether they could

27:49

reattach it demonstrated the extent to

27:51

which the applicant's conduct was divorced from

27:53

the real world. Since

27:58

beginning her sentence she has been charged with

28:00

multiple violent attacks against fellow inmates and

28:03

officers. In 2021 she was charged

28:05

with attacking two female corrective services officers.

28:07

One of them told the court my

28:10

hair was ripped from my scalp. I

28:12

felt lost and isolated for weeks after

28:14

the assault. All had continued to physically

28:16

endure pain and discomfort. The psychological toll

28:18

is what weighs heaviest on me. The

28:20

assault shattered my sense of security. One

28:22

of the officers attacked would also be

28:24

diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder. Then

28:27

again in August 2023 she was charged with two

28:30

counts of common assault after allegedly attacking

28:32

two female guards. An additional 22 months

28:34

were added to her sentence with a non-parole period

28:37

of 15 months. She told

28:39

the court I don't understand this as a waste

28:41

of time. They don't like me and people outside

28:43

want me to face more time. I'm looking at

28:45

a long time in jail. We've been targeted because

28:47

of what the other girls have made me out

28:49

to be. They single me out in prison because

28:51

of the nature of my crime. Corrections moved me

28:53

from that wing where that fight occurred. I don't

28:55

know what they're doing but now there's some behavioral

28:57

wing. They want to keep me there

28:59

for a month before moving me to the women's prison.

29:01

No matter what I do, no matter where I go,

29:04

other prisoners will make my life a living hell. It's

29:06

not like the outside world. It's hard in here. Despite

29:10

the horrific nature of the crime that happened

29:13

in that house, the property would later be

29:15

put back on the market to be rented

29:17

out. With

29:23

a case like this, it's genuinely hard

29:25

to find the words to end it

29:27

properly. The challenges of caring for someone

29:29

with such complex needs can be both

29:31

extremely difficult and exhausting. But Risa

29:33

refused to give up on Jessica, showing

29:35

a deep and unconditional love. The depths

29:37

of trauma that those left behind will

29:39

have to live with are impossible to

29:41

truly comprehend. One can only hope that

29:44

with the passage of time, there is

29:46

a chance for some much needed healing.

30:00

You