At a bail hearing two days before Veronica Nelson died in a prison cell in Melbourne's west, a magistrate told her she would need to prove "exceptional circumstances" to be successful in her bid for release.
The family of Veronica Nelson have granted permission to use her image.
The Gunditjmara, Dja Dja Wurrung, Wiradjuri and Yorta Yorta woman died in a cell at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre in the early hours of January 2, 2020, after being remanded in custody over alleged shoplifting.
Veronica's family requested she be referred to her by her first name during the five-week inquest into her death before coroner Simon McGregor, which began on Tuesday.
The court has heard in the hours before her death, she repeatedly told prison officers she felt unwell and had explained she was withdrawing from heroin.
Veronica was vomiting and experiencing severe cramps, and was increasingly dehydrated.
She asked for help but was never taken to hospital and instead spent the final hours before her death alone in a cell with a sign that read "do not unlock".
An autopsy later showed that that she was also suffering from a rare condition known as Wilkie syndrome that contributed to her death.
At a bail hearing on December 31 where Veronica represented herself, she was told that because she had allegedly breached bail associated with existing shoplifting charges, she would have to prove "exceptional circumstances" to be granted bail again.
Changes to the Bail Act that came into effect in 2018, in the wake of the Bourke Street tragedy, have made it far more difficult for people in custody to be granted bail.
Under the reforms, people who are already on bail or a community corrections order for indictable offences, including theft, must demonstrate there are compelling reasons they should be given bail.
In a recording played to the court, Veronica was told by a magistrate she would have to prove "something really out of the ordinary" to be released.
Veronica's long-term partner, Percy Lovett, supported her in court and the fact that both her mother and brother were seriously ill was brought up.
"It would seem to me that as though there's something going on, either drugs or alcohol, I don't know which it is, which is causing this offending to occur," the magistrate told her.
After her bail was refused, Veronica was transferred to the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre, a women's prison in Melbourne's west.
Police forms 'riddled with mistakes'
The coroner's court on Wednesday heard from Senior Constable Rebecca Gauci, who filled out forms to remand Veronica in custody and oppose her bail application when she was first held at West Melbourne Police Station.
Under cross-examination, the officer admitted errors were made in the forms that were relied upon at the next day's bail hearing.
Those errors included incorrectly stating that Veronica had not made any admissions to police during an interview after her arrest, and stating that she was not subject to a community corrections order when she was.
Lawyer: It was ticked that [Veronica] could endanger the safety and welfare of any person. Do you agree it should not have been?
Senior Constable Gauci: Yes.
Lawyer: It's a document riddled with mistakes, do you agree?
Senior Constable Gauci: Yes.
The officer was also questioned about how much training Victoria Police provided about cultural awareness and how Aboriginal people in custody should be treated during bail applications.
In the weeks ahead, key issues like why Veronica was unrepresented at the bail hearing two days before she died and how the strict bail laws affected her bid to avoid custody will be under the microscope.
Editor's note (29/04/2022): This story has been updated to correct the name and rank of Senior Constable Rebecca Gauci.
