Hi, it's Jay here, the host of the podcast Our Little Leading I just wanted to say thanks for your support of Eden's case and the heartbreaking story of Eden Westbrook and the ten year journey for her parents, Jason and Amanda Westbrook and their family.

We've always believed that there is much more to Eden's death, and we've spent the last three years looking into all of it.

Of particular interest was the police officer Paul Reynolds, who was working at the Coroner's office at the time of Eden's death and was helping compile the inquest notes for Eden.

In twenty seventeen, police Professional Standards raided Reynolds's home and found child abuse material on his phone and devices.

The next day, he killed himself and that's where our new podcast, Badger Betrayal begins.

It's an investigation into Reynolds and everything revolving around his forty year career as a Tasmanian police officer.

In this podcast, we have whistleblowers that have come forward, a current serving police officer who breaks ranks, a great risk to himself.

We've got emails and behind closed door conversations.

What we know is that there are breadcrumbs everywhere and the place it leads we feel is worrying.

If you're a new listener or a listener that's been with us for the whole journey of Eden's story, I just want to say you've been so supportive of Eden's case, and we're asking for you to help on this new investigation.

The way to do that is to search the podcast Badge of Betrayal on your favorite podcast app, follow the show, and if you like it, give it a review and tell your friends.

Our wish, just like our Little Edie's podcast, is that this new show brings about more chain with those that are supposed to protect us.

Thanks for listening, and thank you again for your support.

Approchate production, Honorable Speaker.

This bill contains amendments that update, clarify, and improve.

Four different acts.

One of the amendments in this bill is made in response to that advice.

I'd like to take this opportunity to again acknowledge the Westbrook family and their continued efforts to advocate for an improved coronial system in Tasmania.

Their advocacy was born out of the tragic loss of Eden Westbrook, and it is recognized that they provide a unique perspective on coronial processes in Tasmania.

Felt condolences remain with the Westbrooks.

That's the Attorney General of Tasmania, the Honorable Guy Barnett in Parliament last week.

You've heard lots about mister Barnett on this podcast and his support Jason and Amanda in their fight for Eden.

Last week he tabled, for the second time in Parliament built change the way parents and family members can access coronial records.

I will now outline the reasons for each of the proposed amendments.

In turn, this bill amends the Coroners Act to insert Section fifty eight Capital C that requires coronial records to be provided to the senior next of kin in certain circumstances.

The Coroner's Act specifies that the senior next of kin as the first available person in a list contained in Section three Capital A of the Act commencing with the deceased current.

Spouse Section three of the Act, and spouse.

As including the other party to a significant relationship which within the meaning of the Relationship's Act two thousand and three.

The Act sits out the procedures for investigations and in quests by coroners and in doing so allocates various rights to the senior next of kin.

It is therefore appropriate to extend the amendment to this person.

Other persons may still apply for access to coronial records under Rule twenty six of the Coroner's Rules two thousand and six under Section fifty eight Capitals see that senior next of kin may apply in writing for a coronial record.

The definition of a coronial.

Record includes any record held by the court in relation to an investigation of a debt under the Coroner's Act, and includes a post mortem report, a document on the court's file, and a transcript of recording of oral evidence given to the court.

Includes all evidentiary material held by the Court in relation to a coronial investigation of a death, including documents, photographs, and other material of evidentiary venue.

The definition also includes such records that can be lawfully provided to the Court.

Under this or any other Act.

We've heard a lot over the last two years about the autopsy photos that Jason and Amanda have been requesting to be able to pass on to doctor Byron Collins, and maybe now we're one step closer.

That ensures that the court can obtain relevant information that it may not currently hold on the file to disclose to the senior next of kin.

For example, this might include autopsy photographs held by the pathologist which informed the written report but are not on the court file.

A coronial authority may not refuse use a request unless satisfied on reasonable grounds, Honorable Speaker.

The draft bill that was released for public consultation proposed an additional ground based on the impact to the health and wellbeing of the senior next of kin in receiving a coronial record.

The draft proposed to refer a copy of the coronial record to a medical practitioner nominated by the senior next of kin.

The intended purposes of this was to facilitate a discussion between the senior next of kin and medical practitioner about the record and provide an opportunity to discuss any medical terminology used.

After the discussion, if the senior next of kin still wished to have a copy of the record, the medical practitioner could release it to them.

The bill before the Parliament has been amended to remove this ground based on the feedback from mister Missus Westbrook and consideration of submissions and approaches in other jurisdictions.

This recognizes that the question of whether to seek medical advice or counseling before viewing the records provided is ultimately a matter for the senior next of kin and not appropriate to mandate in the bill.

The bill was also amended, based on their feedback and with consideration of submissions and other jurisdictions, to require the coronial authority to apply to all coronial records, not just post mortem records and reports.

I have personally met with Jason and Amanda Westbrook and am grateful for the information they have shared with me and for the time they have taken to provide feedback.

On these amendments.

Since the bill was tabled, I have continued to consider these issues and now flag my intention to propose further and endments in the committee stage to ensure the rights of senior next of kin to appropriate records are promoted.

These amendments will replace the power to impose conditions on the use or release of the record with a power only to order that the record not be published, ensuring that use of records by senior next of kin is not subject to other kinds of restriction.

Insert a ground to refuse.

A request for a record if the Coroner is satisfied on reasonable grounds that it will be contrary to the public interest to release the record due to the release having an unreasonable intrusion on the privacy of another person other than the diseased person to which the request relates.

The record can still be released in redacted form and insert an appeal provision to either the Chief Magistrate or the Supreme Court so a senior next of kin has a clearer process for review of a coroner's decision.

The amendments to the Coroners Act provide for a clear and direct right of access by senior next of kin to coronial records.

This is essential in the spirit of open justice to ensure transparency, accountability, and public confidence in our justice system.

I also hope that the provision of this material can provide some amount of closure to families following an investigation into a death.

I'd like to express my appreciation for the hard work of the Chief Coroner, the Coroners, the Coronial Division, and many others involved in this jurisdiction.

They do a great service to the community.

With over one thousand.

Reportable deaths investigated in twenty twenty three, twenty twenty four, and thirty one inquests that year.

They've worked to facilitate access to records under their current practices and rules, and provide support to family members every day.

I particularly note the great initiative of a dedicated coronial liaison officer who assists family members understand the coronial process and comes to terms with the grief and trauma of losing loved ones.

There have been understandable concerns in the community that the right balance of access to records has not been clearly provided for in the legislation to date.

This bill gets the balance right to ensure access to these records by senior next of kin, acknowledging the sensitive and private nature of these records.

This feels like a real win for Jason and Amanda and everyone behind the scenes has been pushing for this change.

It's not the end, but it does feel like it's a great step forward.

In the second part of this episode, I want to speak about some activity on social media.

It's really caught the team behind the scenes and made them ask some questions and probe for more answers.

It relates to the girl that we've called Kate throughout this case.

Now, to make it clear, we're not alleging Kate had anything to do with Eden's death.

We're simply looking at what we know as fact.

Kate was never formally interviewed or had a statement taken by police, despite evidence linking her to the event, things like her Facebook posts soon after Eden's death or the comments she made to Bobby Lee, Eden's sister in the park.

Kate was also suffering a mental health episode that required hospitalization straight after Eden's death.

On Australia Day in twenty twenty three, You've heard, a whistleblower turned up at Jason and Amanda's house to say that two people were involved.

In Eden's death.

In February of twenty twenty three, information was passed to the Commission of Inquiry and they made a formal written referral to investigate the allegation.

A senior police officer from Saint Helen's was tasked with that investigation.

In a recent ARTI submission by Jackie Lambe, a redacted copy of that investigation was obtained.

It did show that the girl we call Kate was spoken to by police with no written statement taken.

There was also an interview with another man who was already in prison.

It was done by another police officer on or around the twenty sixth of April in twenty twenty three, and it was sent via email to the senior officer conducting the investigation in Saint Helen's.

We've had some AI voices read the emails.

The email said he.

Had absolutely no idea what he was talking about, stated he didn't even know who Eden was and didn't know anything about anyone committing suicide in Saint Helen's.

The senior officer replied and said, this is the exact same response we got from that beep indicates the name has been redacted.

The senior officer also said another officer to interview Kate via email on the twentieth of April.

He asked the officer to ask her about a conversation.

The conversation is the one that's alleged to have occurred between Bobby Lee and the park shortly after Eden's death.

Here's an excerpt from Miell with Bobby Lee in a twenty twenty four episode.

So directly coming up from town.

There was the best way I just sort of explain it is at.

The time just looked like I could tell that it was a person obviously, but it was like a black hole coming quite quickly, happy like arms were like sprawled out as well.

A person was wearing a goodie and had their head right down and they were running directly up thus and like it made me step back because of this person.

But they've grabbed me both sides of my shoulders, and in that moment, I knew who that was.

I went to school with this person.

She was a year younger than me, was spent had many a classes together.

We've been at the same house parties, we've been at the pub.

I know who this person is.

I know that I grew up with this person.

And she's grabbed me on the shoulders and she was hysterical, like in her whole body movement in her like she was clearly hysterically crying.

And she just held me very tightly and was apologizing refusedly like it like and I mean like I'm so sorry, sorry, I'm so sorry, And the words weren't even coming out as full sentences, like it was just this repetitive I'm so sorry.

Then she came out and she mentioned.

I could have stopped it.

I could have stopped that I was there, and she ca in between these like words it was I'm so sorry, you know, like it was this constant like rambling of I'm so sorry, and then in the midst of that, it's I was there.

I could have stopped her, like I could I could have.

It was all this, and I'm like fucking done in this moment and pulled them off me and I've told her to fuck off.

And I did it extremely aggressively, like and I mean like every ounce of anger that was in me.

I was at the top of my voice and I told it a fuck off.

My friends were absolutely beside themselves.

They couldn't bullions if this had just happened.

They were like, you need to go to the fleet.

I didn't want to.

I didn't want to go to a place.

I didn't want to talk to police.

I hadn't had a good experience in this class with them since ve dying, and I just didn't want to have to be around them again.

And my friends were like, no, that was weird.

You've got to go and speak to the police.

So I've gone into the police station.

I honestly didn't want to be there, and I probably appeared that I didn't want to be there, and I was like, look, my sister passed away up there, and they're like, we know who you are.

It's a small town.

I knew that.

I was like, well, I was just up at the park and I had this person run up to me and she's come and she sort of screamed in my face, and I repeated that she's told me that she was there last night with my sister and that she could have stopped whatever happened, whatever it was that happened.

She's at that point in time, I'm gone with everything, and I'm like, she could have stopped whatever it was happened, and I think that you should probably go and talk to her.

And they told me pretty much that I was making a big deal out of uphing and that I was very high in my emotions at the time, and I probably felt like everything that anybody was saying to me was related to what was happening that night.

Basically completely disregarded me.

I didn't stay around for the end of the conversation.

I probably was even like, okay, probably a little rude as I left, to be honest, because I was angry at that point in time.

And that was that.

That was the last of it until the most recent little bit of information.

Has it been brought up again?

The senior officer stated in his email.

If she remembers having it, I'd like to know who she was speaking with, where the information came from, and why specifically it was claimed not to be a suicide.

I don't think a statement from is necessary unless she ends up having some genuine information.

There was no response posts this conversation that was provided from the RCA disclosure.

On April twenty twenty five, at eleven twenty six am, the girl we call Kate post it to social media.

The post seemed like was written in third person and was referring to the girl.

He's An excerpt from that post read by an AI voice.

The girl having a manic episode, similar behavior to someone on drugs, no sleep, delirious, etc.

Of bipolar which is a danger to themselves and not others.

She had not slept in about a week and was walking the streets each night tripping out.

When she first heard of Eden's death, the fifteen year old committing suicide rocked the already heightened emotions in her freaked her out and made her question if she had passed her when she was alive.

She felt guilty because she had walked the.

Street that night, and if she had run into Eden, she would have been a safe person to talk to.

She certainly would have talked Eden out of it if the opportunity was there.

At the worst point of her episode, a few days later, she was still not sleeping and she started talking weird, incoherent shit to people, which is what made a lot of people think she was involved, such as she was there at the time or had a suicide packed with Eden.

She unfortunately told the grieving eldest sister she should have helped her.

She felt personally responsible as she had patrolled the streets but didn't see her.

The delirium got so bad she thought she was somehow spiritually connected to Eden.

Around three days later, she went to North Side for her episode, stayed three weeks, and came out heavily medicated.

She speaks to the police and tells them once again her side of the story.

She stated that it was a clear cut suicide.

She stated that it was unfair to put responsibility on others.

It's pretty clear from the Facebook posts made by Kate that she admits to walking or patrolling the streets of Saint Helen's on the relevant nine She also admits to telling Eden's older sister that she could have saved Eden.

It appears that she was well aware of Eden's suicide and had said various things to people about it.

There was no affidavit taken from Kate for the coroner.

On the evidence available, there's no record of Kate's accounts to police.

The police to date have refused over the years to interview her formerly and take a statement.

Hi, it's Jay here, the host of the podcast Our Little Leading I just wanted to say thanks for your support of Eden's case and the heartbreaking story of Eden Westbrook and the ten year journey for her parents, Jason and Amanda Westbrook and their family.

We've always believed that there is much more to Eden's death, and we've spent the last three years looking into all of it.

Of particular interest was the police officer Paul Reynolds, who was working at the coroner's office at the time of Eden's death and was helping compile the inquest notes for Eden.

In twenty seventeen, police professional Standards raided Reynolds's home and found child abuse material on his phone and devices.

The next day, he killed himself, and that's where our new podcast, Badger Betrayal begins.

It's an investigation into Reynolds and everything revolving around his forty year career as a Tasmanian police officer.

In this podcast, we have whistleblowers that have come forward, a current serving police officer who breaks ranks, a great risk to himself.

We've got emails and behind closed door conversations.

What we know is that there are breadcrumbs everywhere and the place it leads, we feel is worrying.

If you're a new listener or a listener that's been with us for the whole journey of Eden's story, I just want to say you've been so supportive of Eden's case and we're asking for you to help on this new investigation.

The way to do that is to search the podcast Badge of Betrayal on your favorite podcast app, follow the show and if you like it, give it a review and tell your friends.

Our wish, just like our little Edies podcast, is that this new show brings about more change with those that are supposed to protect us.

Thanks for listening and thank you again for your support.

Appoja Production