The Coroner's Court of Victoria is investigating the suicide death of 18-year-old Tarsha Golightly, who died in the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre just five days after being transferred from a youth justice precinct. Golightly was found deceased on July 27, having used a smuggled bedsheet to take her own life in the prison yard.
The court heard that Golightly, arrested on May 4, was initially held at the Parkville Youth Justice Precinct before her transfer on July 22 to the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, a facility housing adult female inmates.
Her body was discovered by other prisoners approximately two hours after she left her cell carrying a laundry bag containing the concealed bedsheet. CPR was initiated, but she was pronounced dead by a nurse at 10:03 a.m.
Handwritten notes expressing suicidal thoughts were later found by police. Golightly was facing serious charges including theft, criminal damage by arson, aggravated burglary, and breaching a family violence intervention order. She was due in court on July 28, the day after her death.
Coroner Simon McGregor indicated that the investigation would examine Golightly's criminal history, charge briefs, CCTV footage, records from both correctional facilities, and material from the Office of the Chief Psychiatrist, child protection services, and health providers. Key questions for the investigation include why Golightly was moved from juvenile detention to an adult facility and the adequacy of support and supervision she received, particularly how she was able to take her own life undetected for a period.
Golightly, a mother, was farewelled at a funeral service on August 14. In the months prior to her death, she had reportedly shared a photograph of her legs with the words, "They'll miss me when I'm gone." The funeral director acknowledged Golightly's difficult life journey, marked by early childhood challenges and removal from her mother's care at age 11.
The matter is scheduled to return to court in November.