GordonMoyes.com

Many of you will be familiar with the story of Kylie Fitter, a young lady for whom we have a responsibility of care under orders of the NSW Mental Health Review Tribunal (MHRT). For those of you who are not familiar with her story, we would encourage you to look up Google and find the full Sydney Morning Herald story under the search category ‘Kylie Fitter’.

In brief, Kylie is a detainee at the Juniperina Juvenile Justice Centre where she has been detained for almost 5 years. Kylie is detained under the classification “mental health patient” having been found “not guilty” by reason of mental illness of a charge of murdering her mother while under the psychotic dominant influence of her father and brother. However, Kylie is not mentally ill and has not had any psychiatric or psychological indications for almost 3 years.

Kylie was drawn into a peripheral involvement in the unlawful death of her mother in October 2001. Her father has since acknowledged full culpability for the murder and absolved Kylie of any responsibility for the event that was carried out under his influence and direction.

For Kylie, there was no premeditation, no provocation and, in fact, no prior knowledge of what was about to happen. Even the trial judge recorded that Kylie was in a stable, warm relationship with the deceased at the time of the murder. There was clearly no motive for her involvement whatsoever. Until just a few minutes prior to the offence, she had no idea of what was about to unfold before her. By then she was in a very confused state and under the psychological control of her father and brother.

Though not insignificant, Kylie’s actions were momentary (3-5 seconds) and did not inflict injury nor directly cause death. Had she not been involved at all for those few seconds, it is highly unlikely that this would have prevented the murder. Her actions were done under the pressure of directions being shouted at her and in the most traumatic and bizarre of circumstances. She had come to believe that it was a spirit or ghost that was being attacked rather than her mother’s person. Her actions can be clearly differentiated from those of the others involved in the murder.

At the time of the trial, the judge accepted a diagnosis of two psychiatrists that Kylie was in a temporary, shared delusional state but with no prior history of delusional ideation or psychoses. It was not surprising therefore that she appeared to emerge from the delusional state after 2 to 3 months and then entered a period of post traumatic stress and depression. After approximately 2 years, there were no remaining psychiatric indications and no medication was required to maintain her stability. She has remained stable and entirely medication-free since late 2003.

For the last 3 years Kylie has managed to maintain a very positive and stable profile despite the aggravation of being completely well yet still under detention orders. She has had the psychological capacity to complete demanding studies in both the HSC and two TAFE courses and has recently commenced university studies. In the detention centre, she has been a model detainee for the entire period of her incarceration.

Kylie has been recommended for release by the MHRT on four separate occasions over that time. Yet, to date, three of these recommendations have been declined by successive Ministers for Health. The fourth is still pending three months after being recommended. Significantly, one of the main grounds for rejection has been that a professional victims group has opposed her release. The grounds for opposing release appear to be twofold:

That there may be a risk to personal safety for other family members once the release is effected.

That there is not sufficient evidence of the young woman’s insight into the seriousness of the original offence.

The MHRT has considered and rejected both these concerns believing that there is ample evidence to show that neither ground can be sustained.

In addressing these two demands of the victims group, Minister Cherie Burton has bypassed the recommended course of the MHRT (ie of immediately effecting the detailed and endorsed “conditional release plan”) that has been before her. Instead, she demands a prior mediation meeting between the detainee and a relative in which the two conditions would have to be tested and demonstrated to the satisfaction of the relative. This, in effect, hands over control of release to a member of the victims group. Further, though it defies explanation, Minister Burton has been advised by officials that it will take at least two years to bring this mediation into effect! Apparently, that is how long it will take for the Minister and her advisers to position their legal protection.

Kylie is herself a deeply traumatised victim. Yet this Minister effectively allows herself to be used as an instrument to exact revenge on this young woman on behalf of those who oppose her release. She does this by extending the period of detention despite strong evidence that this is not justified.

Kylie has been assessed by several forensic specialists to be of low risk to both herself and others once released. In addition, for a number of years into the future she will be under the conditions of an exhaustive “release plan”. She will be residing with approved carers who have been closely involved with her for over two years.

Kylie is a committed Christian and, with the encouragement of the Juvenile Justice Chaplain and Christian friends, has taken great strength from her faith throughout this ordeal.

We believe that it is now time to put pressure on the Minister by means of this petition to the NSW Parliament to release Kylie. For the last 3 years Ministers Iemma, Hatzistergos and Burton have allowed politics to interfere with justice. With an election looming, there is potential political advantage to still keeping Kylie incarcerated until at least April 2007, even longer if the Minister’s declared intentions are carried through (ie a further 12 months).

Your support in having friends and relatives sign a copy of the attached petition would be greatly appreciated. You can copy as many of the petition pages as you wish, but only those with the full details of the petition can be counted.

When you have completed petitions, could you forward them to us at the above address. We would like to submit the petition to the Legislative Council in early August ready for the first sitting of Parliament after the winter break.

Please feel free to make copies of this letter and the petition to circulate them as widely as you see fit. The greater the number of signatures, the greater the impact.

If you have any questions in relation to the case, please fell free to contact the writers on 0413 368 723.

With our sincere thanks.

Yours faithfully,

Bob and Jan Johnston
Kylie’s Carers

Supporting the campaign starts here by clicking here to download the petition. Please encourage all concerned citizens to sign and then mail to our office so they can be delivered to Parliament.