Senior ministers in Western Australia have only recently sought access to a key coronial document central to the ongoing child protection crisis surrounding the deaths of three children in Port Hedland two years ago. The situation has raised questions about government oversight and the handling of child welfare concerns.
On Tuesday, Attorney-General Tony Buti’s office requested a copy of a 2025 letter from WA coroner Philip Urquhart, which explained his refusal to hold an inquest into the 2022 deaths of the Hawke children. The letter, addressed to their grandmother Dorothy Papertalk, reportedly concluded that an inquest was neither desirable nor in the public interest, stating the deaths were not predictable or preventable and that no different actions could have been taken by the Department of Communities, which oversees child protection.
The request came nearly two months after media reports exposed critical failures by child protection workers in South Hedland, including their failure to open an email containing warnings about the children’s welfare. In addition to this, it was revealed that child protection had closed the case just days before the children were killed, despite prior police reports that included evidence of domestic violence, such as the mother, Ms. Hawke, assaulting her 10-year-old daughter with a rock.
Further revelations indicate that the Department of Housing had raised concerns about the children’s safety more than two years prior to the deaths. Housing formally requested that the South Hedland Department of Child Protection investigate the welfare of the two eldest children, a request that was never acted upon. Child protection records also show that between 2019 and early 2020, the department was aware of at least 13 police reports involving domestic violence connected to Ms. Hawke and her children.
Dr Buti, responding to the reports, maintained that the newly uncovered information did not constitute fresh evidence sufficient to warrant an inquest. He emphasized that the housing department’s report had already been provided to the coroner.
While Dr Buti did not confirm whether he had personally reviewed the coroner’s letter, he said he had asked the Child Protection and Police Ministers to update him on the issue, describing the matter as “complex” and signaling the need for a coordinated response.
Meanwhile, the state opposition has proposed an amendment to the Coroners Act aimed at clarifying the Attorney-General’s authority to order inquests, a move reflecting political pressure amid the growing public scrutiny of the government’s handling of child protection failures.
The unfolding controversy underscores the challenges faced by Western Australia’s child welfare system in responding to domestic violence and safeguarding vulnerable children, with critics arguing that systemic issues contributed to preventable tragedies.