A teenager who fatally stabbed 10-year-old Bridgette “Biddy” Porter had made repeated pleas for support as her mental health deteriorated, an inquest has heard, with her grandmother seemingly the only person to fully grasp the seriousness of her condition.
The girl, who was 14 at the time and can only be identified as XR for legal reasons, was experiencing psychosis when she killed Biddy at a home in Gunnedah, in north-eastern NSW, on July 8, 2020.
XR admitted to the stabbing soon after, but the NSW Supreme Court later ruled she was not criminally responsible because she was suffering from schizophrenia that had not yet been diagnosed. She is still being held in a mental health facility.
A coronial inquest into Biddy’s death opened on Tuesday, focusing on whether warning signs were missed and if failures within the system played a role in the tragedy. An urn containing Biddy’s ashes remained inside the courtroom during the proceedings.
The court heard evidence from several witnesses, among them XR’s parents, her general practitioner and a NSW Department of Education representative, who each said her conduct had not appeared alarming enough at the time to trigger formal intervention.
That conduct included killing six chickens and taking body parts to school, striking a boy in the head, giving names to her favourite knives, self-harming, speaking about suicide, writing what were described as “violent killing stories”, and reporting that she heard voices and saw eyes.
XR’s maternal grandmother appeared to have been the only relative deeply troubled by the teenager’s behaviour before Biddy’s death, but the inquest was told XR’s parents had “shut” her out because they believed she was “parenting” their daughter.
Biddy’s father, Dominic Porter, also gave a devastating statement to the inquest, saying he had twice attempted to end his life so he could be reunited with his daughter. His evidence was so emotional that the state coroner appeared to struggle to hold back tears.
Bridgette ‘Biddy’ Porter, 10, was stabbed to death at a property in Gunnedah. She is pictured with her dog, Breeze
Biddy’s killer is known only as XR for legal reasons. She is pictured being interviewed by police in 2020
In the year before she stabbed Biddy to death, XR had asked her father about the voices she was hearing and the eyes she was seeing, but he dismissed her concerns as ‘cr*p’ from her imagination because she was ‘looking for attention’.
He assumed she was being bullied and blamed her overactive imagination on her maternal grandparents for allowing his daughters to watch ‘inappropriate’ films.
The father told the inquest that he taught his two daughters to ‘whack’ children who gave them trouble at school, and he didn’t think the chicken incident was concerning because XR grew up on a farm, as he did, and death was normal.
He wasn’t worried when XR told her mother about her killing fantasies, or about how she had actually wanted to kill her parents instead of her sister, because – at that stage – she wasn’t acting on her homicidal fantasies.
XR’s mother told the inquiry she still has no idea why the chicken incident was ‘such a big red flag’ and, like XR’s father, didn’t understand why her daughter’s interest in knives was an issue.
These included a paring knife, a pocket knife, a filleting knife, and a homemade knife, which she named Rue, Storm, Ray, and Lou.
When questioned on the knives, XR’s mother said: ‘My juicer’s name is Juicy, is that a red flag?’
Both parents described XR’s maternal grandmother as someone who ‘likes to tell stories’ and was ‘making assumptions’ about the teenager.
Bridgette ‘Biddy’ Porter is pictured with her father Dominic
Bridgette ‘Biddy’ Porter, 10, (pictured) was stabbed to death at a property in Gunnedah
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But evidence given at the inquest showed XR’s grandmother was the only person who recognised the severity of the situation.
XR’s grandmother told the inquest that she saw a lot of red flags in her granddaughter’s behaviour – particularly when she heard about the chickens.
She told her daughter, XR’s mother, that XR appeared to be ‘mentally disturbed’, but was repeatedly told by both parents to stop making inquiries.
The grandmother said she and her husband, XR’s grandfather, spent an hour speaking with their granddaughter about the chicken incident.
She told XR’s mother that the chicken incident was ‘not normal’ and that XR’s problems needed to be dealt with by a specialist.
‘XR was a very clever little girl and she talked her way out of things, and this is how she manipulated her parents, and that’s what I said to my daughter,’ she told the inquest.
‘I said, “You can’t trust what she’s saying to you, you need someone smarter than her”.’
The inquest heard the grandmother had suggested to XR’s mother that she take her out of school and seek professional help.
Rebekah Keukenmeester (centre) arrives for the inquest into the death of her daughter
Biddy’s father Dominic Porter is comforted by friends and family as he arrives at the inquest
When XR’s mother was asked about the grandmother’s involvement, she appeared irritated that her mother had ‘made assumptions’.
Biddy’s relatives made statements at the end of the inquest, including her parents, grandparents, and her aunts.
When her father got up to make his statement, several family members gathered around the witness box to support him.
Through tears, Mr Porter said: ‘Biddy is not a file or a case number, she is not the subject of evidence – she’s my daughter,’ he said.
‘She was a young girl with her whole life in front of her. She mattered, she still matters.’
He said Biddy was a gifted writer who dreamed of being a journalist, before talking about the toll her death took on his family and his mental health.
‘In October 2024, I tried to take my life two days running. I saw no hope and no future, I just wanted to be with Biddy – I felt the same from the killing [in 2020] until that point,’ he said.
‘I was going to kill myself by whatever means to get to Biddy quicker.’
He told the inquest there was an open casket at Biddy’s funeral, but he wasn’t allowed to touch her because her fragile body would have ‘fallen apart’.
Mr Porter said there were ‘obvious’ warning signs that XR’s parents missed, and that he hoped the inquest would prevent a tragedy like that happening again.
At the end, Magistrate Teresa O’Sullivan was struggling to hold back tears, along with several others in the room, including legal professionals.
Ms O’Sullivan said it had been a ‘privilege to get to know Biddy’ through her photos, writing, artworks, and family statements.
Biddy’s parents separated after her death. Her mother remarried.
Oral submissions will be heard in November.
