Julie Lynette Delaney expressed deep remorse in Brisbane Supreme Court after pleading guilty to manslaughter for the tragic death of her mother, Noelene Delaney. The court heard harrowing details of Noelene’s final days in her squalid Pimpama home on the Gold Coast in September 2020, where she was found surrounded by filth, suffering from ulcers, and forced to use her couch as a toilet.
Despite her plea, Delaney avoided further incarceration. She was released with a five-year suspended sentence, as the judge deemed it counterproductive to her rehabilitation to return her to custody.
Julie Lynette Delaney (left) admitted to manslaughter in 2020, acknowledging her failure to care for her 82-year-old mother, Noelene. (Image: NewsWire / Glenn Campbell)
Delaney, aged 61, was responsible for the primary care of her 82-year-old mother at the time of her passing. Her son, who was not implicated in any wrongdoing, assisted by managing bills, transporting them to appointments, and delivering groceries. Noelene required constant supervision, medical attention including occupational and physical therapy.
The court heard Delaney missed appointments arranged by aged care support group BlueCare and the Gold Coast University Hospital for her mother’s therapy. On September 18, 2020, Delaney messaged her son about Noelene’s deteriorating condition, mentioning she couldn’t move her and described her as “dead weight” and unintelligible.
According to Crown prosecutor Caroline Marco, Delaney later asked her son for help at around 3:30 pm. When he arrived at Noelene’s Pimpama residence, he found the elderly woman in a dire state—frail, malnourished, struggling to breathe, and covered in feces, emitting groaning sounds. Emergency services were summoned later that night.
“(Noelene) was unresponsive and semi-conscious,” Ms. Marco informed the court.
The court heard that Delaney failed to provide adequate medical care for her elderly mother. According to reports, Queensland Ambulance Service officers described Noelene as cold to the touch, gasping for breath, non-verbal, and thrashing her limbs.
Inside the house, a strong, foul odor permeated the air, attributed to the presence of feces. Police discovered that the couch where Noelene sat had been converted into a makeshift toilet, with a large hole containing waste, urine, and soiled towels. Prosecutors stated that Noelene spent several hours daily lying on this couch.
Further investigation revealed additional soiled clothing, bedding, and towels in the bedroom. According to Ms. Marco, there was a notable absence of fresh food, vegetables, or fruit in the household.
Noelene’s death was determined to be caused by sepsis resulting from malnutrition, alongside conditions such as ulcers, Alzheimer’s disease, and hypertension. At the time of her death, she weighed just 49.6 kilograms.
Delaney reportedly told police that she did not mistreat her mother and cleaned the couch hole daily. She acknowledged that caring for Noelene could be challenging but insisted she never believed she was incapable of providing care.
Delaney asserted that she had returned from a doctor’s appointment to find her mother unresponsive on the couch, which had been converted into a makeshift toilet. (Image: Facebook)
She stated that she had attended a doctor’s appointment on the day her mother passed away and returned home to find her unconscious. She told police that she cleaned her mother up “out of respect” for the deceased.
When questioned about whether she believed her actions were correct, Delaney responded, “Not really, I know I made a mistake, a big one.”
According to Ms. Marco, Delaney’s criminal culpability lay in her failure to seek proper medical help when her mother’s condition had clearly worsened. “It wasn’t a momentary lapse of judgment,” Ms. Marco emphasized.
Delaney’s legal aid attorney argued that her client had expressed regret for her actions. The court heard medical opinions suggesting Delaney suffered from schizophrenia and exhibited “borderline cognitive functioning” with deficits in various areas.
The attorney noted that these impairments affected Delaney’s awareness and ability to plan, making it challenging for her to arrange medical care for Noelene.
Delaney’s lawyer mentioned that she was receiving assistance through the NDI
“Ms. Delaney herself required her mother’s assistance to raise her son,” her lawyer stated.
Supreme Court Justice Melanie Hindman remarked that Noelene’s life ended in a manner no one would wish for, emphasizing that Delaney did not fully grasp the extent of care her mother required.
“She must have experienced significant pain leading up to and including the day of her death,” Justice Hindman observed. “It’s tragic that it wasn’t recognized sooner that you weren’t suitable to care for your mother at that stage of her life.”
Justice Hindman sentenced Delaney to five years in prison but credited the 82 days she had already spent in custody as time served. The sentence was then suspended for five years.
