DCD blamed for infant’s death14th

August 2006, 14:00 WST

A tougher sentence on serial baby basher Kriston John Scale would have made no difference to the plight of an 11-month-old baby who died while in his care, WA Chief Justice Wayne Martin said yesterday.

Justice Martin defended retired magistrate Robert Burton’s sentencing of Mr Scale to a total of 17 months in jail in 1999 and pointed the finger squarely at the Department of Community Development.

“If the department is not paying attention to prior convictions then it doesn’t matter what sentence is imposed,” he said.

But former community development minister Sheila McHale yesterday refused to take responsibility for the Shoalwater boy’s death, despite criticism from the Chief Justice and her successor, David Templeman.

Wade Scale drowned in a bath which his drug-addicted parents, Mr Scale and Angela Jakins, had failed to empty in 2003 — Ms McHale’s third year as community development minister.

The tragic case was highlighted in a damning report released last week by State Coroner Alastair Hope.

Mr Hope attacked the DCD in his report for giving Mr Scale custody of Wade and another baby despite having been jailed in 1999 for beating a 17-month old baby and two toddlers. He was released after just six months.

But Ms McHale, who was dumped from the contentious DCD portfolio in February after a litany of negative reports about children being abused in foster care, said she had been “misinformed” by her department and was therefore not at fault.

That put her at odds with the Community Development Minister’s view that the Gallop government was to blame for Wade’s death.

“The government of the day and indeed successive governments failed Wade because the department was under-resourced,” a spokeswoman for Mr Templeman said.

In his findings, the Coroner concluded baby Wade’s body contained high levels of a prescription sedative for adults. Mr Hope said it was possible the drugs had been given to the infant to keep him quiet and that only his parents would have had a motive to do that.

The Opposition seized on the conflicting views of Ms McHale and Mr Templeman yesterday, with shadow community development minister Robyn McSweeney saying it was indicative of the farcical state the DCD was in.

Ben Spencer