'Sleep deprived' mother left son to die in hot car: court
A Melbourne mother was so sleep-deprived that she thought she had dropped her toddler at childcare, but he died sweltering in his family car.
A Victorian inquest into the death of 22-month-old Noah has found he was a victim of forgotten baby syndrome in 2015.
The inquest has heard Noah’s mother Romy Zunde was “totally exhausted” as she battled gastro in the family, the 22-month-old’s teething and the death of the family’s pet pigs in a dog attack.
A court has heard that a mother was severely sleep deprived and stressed when she left her toddler in a hot car, thinking she had dropped him at childcare. Source: 7 News
Mrs Zunde's parents were also coming to stay, so she had to clean the house and the childcare routine had changed.
"I was so confused. I had a clear memory of dropping him off. I think my memory was thinking of the day before,” she told police.
Noah was found in the back seat of his family's Toyota Hilux in Kyneton on a hot day in February 2015.
He had been there for seven hours.
The court has heard a mother was sleep deprived and stressed when she left her son to die in a hot car. Source: 7 News
Noah's death is one of two being investigated by Victorian coroner Sara Hinchey, in which a young child died after being unintentionally left in a car.
This week, counsel assisting the coroner, Jodie Burns, said the death met the definition of a homicide.
But the coroner could not be convinced an indictable offence had been committed due to the circumstances surrounding the death.
The inquest was told that the day before Noah's death, Mrs Zunde felt she "needed help" for fatigue but could not ask for it.
Ambulance Victoria attended 1907 cases of children left in cars in 2016, 28 of which required hospital care.
Romy Zunde was so sleep deprived, she thought she had dropped her toddler at childcare. Source: 7 News
In the past 10 years, coronial records show at least five children have died after being left in motor vehicles.
Monash University associate professor in psychology Matthew Mundy said short-term memory was impaired by distraction, stress and sleep deprivation.
"We're talking about an extended period of sleep deprivation," he said of Mrs Zunde.
"There are a number of stressors, some of which had been building up over several days.
Noah was found in the back seat of his family's Toyota Hilux outside his childcare centre in Kyneton on a hot day in February 2015. Source: 7 News
"I believe this kind of memory failure could happen to anyone."
He said whether it was forgetting to post a letter or forgetting a child in the car, the brain did not discriminate when distractions were at play.
Ms Burns urged the coroner to recommend authorities consider safety technology be included in vehicles to remind parents their children were on board.
The case was adjourned to a date to be fixed.
