The closing arguments in the inquest into the death of a woman who gave birth at home without medically trained support have been postponed after new evidence emerged from a forensic analysis of her mobile phone.
Background of the Case
Stacey Warnecke, a 30-year-old nutritionist and wellness influencer, died on 29 September at Frankston Hospital in Melbourne. She had paid birthkeeper Emily Lal $6,000 to assist her with a home birth without any medically trained staff, a practice known as freebirth. Birthkeepers lack medical training and operate outside the healthcare system.
New Evidence Discovered
On Thursday afternoon, counsel assisting the coroner, Rachel Ellyard, informed the court that the contents of a forensic analysis of Warnecke's phone had been made available. Ellyard stated, "It seems to me that the contents that have been made available raise issues that are going to require some further investigation and perhaps the gathering of further evidence." Consequently, the court was adjourned to a date yet to be determined.
Coroner's Remarks
Addressing Warnecke's family, who were listening online, Coroner Therese McCarthy explained that "sometimes investigations take a different course because new information comes to hand." She added, "I take the view that this material is of such significance that the court must delay making any findings and hearing submissions until we've had an opportunity to undertake a proper analysis of that material, and potentially call for more evidence."
Previous Testimony
The inquest had earlier heard that Warnecke suffered a massive postpartum haemorrhage after delivering the placenta. An ambulance was called approximately half an hour after the bleeding was first noticed. Warnecke told Lal and her husband, Nathan, that she was short of breath and needed to lie down.
In her evidence on Tuesday, Lal described her role as primarily a supportive friend, not a clinician. She said she was not responsible for making the birth safer or calling an ambulance unless asked. Lal also claimed she no longer had access to texts from Warnecke alerting her to labour onset on 26 September, stating she got a new phone and lost everything. She could not recall whether she lost the phone in October or November.
Expert Medical Witnesses
Earlier on Thursday, expert witnesses Dr Mark Tarrant, an obstetrician and gynaecologist, and Dr Catherine Adams, a midwife, testified that Warnecke's condition would likely have been treatable if a midwife had been present or if she had given birth in a hospital. Adams noted that postpartum haemorrhage is common and that midwives are trained to assess risk factors and intervene quickly. She believed that within half an hour of the haemorrhage with no treatment, medical staff had "lost the opportunity to control the situation."
