Gloriavale child death that the community tried to keep a secret

Monday, 15 August 2016

A teenage girl with Down Syndrome choked to death at the Gloriavale community in an isolation room where the door couldn't be opened.  

But Coroner Marcus Elliott has ruled it was a tragic accident and the fact people could not get in through the door to help did not contribute to her death.

The death of 14-year-old Prayer Ready and the circumstances surrounding it - including that it happened at the reclusive West Coast Christian community - has been kept secret since last year.

It was subject to suppression orders only lifted today after they were challenged by Fairfax Media.

The tragedy has prompted Gloriavale to halt the practice of taking the pins out of isolation room door handles, meaning they can't be opened.

It's also led to Ministry of Health guidelines for people with Down syndrome being updated to include advice about the risk of airway conditions and blockages.

Prayer Ready's family, including aunts who live outside the community, have been left devastated.

'We know that our sister loved her very much,' one of Prayer's aunties, Polly Withington told Stuff's Circuit investigation team.

'This little girl was one of the most special, you know special little girls to her.'

On June 4 last year, Prayer and her mother, Sharon Ready, four other children and their father were in one of the community's isolation rooms which are used to prevent the spread of illness.

A former community member, Trusty Disciple, said door handles were regularly disabled on the isolation rooms.

'[It's] to prevent children from coming that way, knocking on the doors and not realising anyone is there and coming in and having contact with the person who is sick,' she said.

She told Circuit that some community members had complained about the practice because of concerns about people being able to get in and out in an emergency.

Prayer was eating dinner in the isolation room when she began choking on a piece of meat.

'Prayer then stood up and came towards me,' Sharon Ready told police in a statement.

'I wanted to do the Heimlich. I called out to Stephen [Ben-Caanan, father of the other children] who tried doing it but it didn't work.'

Prayer Ready and her mother, Sharon Ready, photographed shortly before Prayer died (SUPPLIED)

Ben-Caanan told police: 'I realised that I wasn't getting anywhere so I went out of the window to get help. I eventually found some help and we went back into the room.'

Members of the community, including Prayer's father, Clem, desperately tried to save her but she died.

Gloriavale confirmed that the door handle's internal shaft had been removed, meaning it wasn't possible to use the door.

But the Coroner found that the fact people couldn't enter or exit through the door was not a contributing factor in Prayer's death because they could use the window instead.

While he did not hold an inquest, he visited Gloriavale in October and viewed the room where she died.

'I am satisfied that it was possible for people to exit and enter the room via the window quickly,' Elliott said.

Polly Withington and Ruth Green remain disturbed about the circumstances surrounding Prayer's death and the fact people's concerns about the door handles were ignored by community leaders.

Green said there was a culture of obedience to the leadership at Gloriavale.

'So those leaders need to stand up and be accountable for the processes they've put around what they do with sick children, they're supposed to be the protectors of children', said Green.

Gloriavale leaders refused to discuss the matter when approached last year.

Coroner Elliott was told that following Prayer's death it established a policy of not disabling any door handles.

The senior leader, Faithful Christian, formerly known as Neville Cooper, when asked about Prayer's death said: 'We're not answering anything, please leave.'

The coroner granted the Gloriavale community's request for interim suppression of the case last year, preventing reporting of the case.

But an application for permanent suppression was dismissed this month, when Elliott ruled that the 'legal criteria setting out what is required to infringe on freedom of speech have not been met in this case'.

He highlighted 'the importance of freedom of speech, open judicial proceedings and the media's right to report'.

* Stuff Circuit is a team producing video­-led, quality long­form journalism for Stuff. The team includes Paula Penfold, Toby Longbottom, Phil Johnson and Eugene Bingham, who have a background in high-­profile investigative stories.