The carer at the centre of Ann Marie Smith’s “disgusting and degrading” death faces deportation, which is something the victim’s family now wants.
Rosa Maria Maione, 70, pleaded guilty to manslaughter after the victim in her care, who had cerebral palsy, died from septic shock, severe pressure sores, malnourishment and multi-organ failure in the Royal Adelaide Hospital on April 6, 2020.
Ms Smith, 54, relied on NDIS carers as she lived alone in her Kensington Gardens home.
SA Police said she suffered severe neglect and lived in “disgusting and degrading” conditions by being confined to a cane chair for more than a year in the lead-up to her “preventable” death.
Maione was on Friday sentenced in the South Australian Supreme Court to six years and seven months imprisonment with a non-parole period of five years and three months.
The defendant faces deportation to Italy once released from jail because she is not an Australian citizen.
Ms Smith’s brother Steven said Maione did not receive a fair sentence and deserved to be deported when released from custody.
“Hopefully, they chuck the cuffs back on her and put her on a plane back to Italy,” he told reporters outside of court.
“We (taxpayers) have to pay for her to sit in a prison cell, so why should we put her on a pension when she gets out?
“Let her go back to Italy and be homeless with no family.
“NDIS all the way down to Maione we’re responsible for her death.”
He told the court when delivering his victim impact statement that he woke at night with the “haunting” thought of his sister “rotting away” in the cane chair that was once her safe haven.
Mr Smith said he hoped protocols were implemented so no other person with a disability and their families needed to endure what he and his sister did.
The court was told that Ms Sxjmtzywmith was “stubborn” and wanted to remain in her cane chair and refused to be moved or laid down for toileting, showering or sleeping and wouldn’t see a doctor or dentist.
However, Justice Anne Bampton said Maione, who couldn’t attend to high-care patients after a shoulder injury in 2014, knew that she was not capable of properly supporting her client but didn’t seek help to provide the appropriate care Ms Smith needed.
She said the defendant failed to mobilise and clean the victim properly, feed her a nutritional diet or monitor her intake.
“You were grossly negligent in your care of Ms Smith,” Justice Bampton said.
“You were the only person to recognise – despite Ms Smith's apparent wish not to involve others – the need to involve medical professionals.
“Whilst Ms Smith’s autonomous decision making had to be respected, she required the involvement of her service provider Integrity Care and health professionals.”
A psychological report cited in court found there was a “significant disparity” between Ms Smith’s needs and Maione’s physical ability to attend to those, and the carer lacked the training, knowledge and support to recognise and respond to the victim’s needs.
The defendant previously read an apology to the court and acknowledged her actions caused distress to people living with disabilities and people who relied on carers and would “bear the guilt for the rest of your life”.
The court was told the cane chair Ms Smith was confined to began to decompose and was soiled with urine and faeces, as was the stained carpet below.
Justice Bampton said Ms Smith’s death could have been prevented if Maione had acknowledged her limitations and sought help.
Disability advocate and former member of the South Australian Legislative Council Kelly Vincent said not enough had changed since Ms Smith’s death and others with a disability feared they could face the same fate.
She said she was prepared for a “disappointing” outcome.
“It is an absolute insult and a slap in the face not only to Annie’s memory but to everyone who ever lived with the fear and vulnerability that they or someone they love may end up in that situation,” Ms Vincent said.
“Ann Marie Smith’s death was a result of failing at every level of the system.”
Following Ms Smith’s death, a Major Crime investigation was launched and found a number of her items had been stolen from her home, red light and speeding camera fines had accumulated and about $70,000 of “irregular spending” was missing from inheritance left by her parents.
Maione has not been charged with any other offences..
She was released from the Adelaide Women's Prison on August 13 after being granted home detention bail to stay in her Hectorville home under strict conditions.
