WARNING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander viewers are warned that the following article contains images and voices of deceased persons.
On a cold May night in Port Lincoln five years ago, 13-year-old Budda Spencer and two friends climbed into an industrial bin for warmth, sheltering under layers of cardboard.
Hours later, about 5.15am, a routine garbage collection turned fatal when the bin was tipped into the back of a truck on Tennant St, triggering a tragedy that is now the subject of a South Australian coronial inquest.
Two of the boys, aged 11 and 12, managed to escape the compactor without serious physical injury, but Budda Spencer died at the scene on May 11, 2021.
The inquest, led by Deputy State Coroner Naomi Kereru, will investigate how Budda Spencer – as his family prefers he be called – came to sleep in an industrial bin for the first time, and whether government and community agencies provided adequate support following a series of notifications regarding his wellbeing.
Counsel assisting the coroner, Rebecca Schell, told the court Budda Spencer had a tumultuous childhood.
Ms Schell told the inquest that for most of his early life, Budda Spencer lived in Ceduna with his mother, father, and four brothers amid several alleged episodes of domestic violence, with the earliest recorded incident occurring when he was aged about four.
The inquest heard Budda Spencer’s parents remained in a volatile relationship until permanently separating in June 2019, and the family relocated to Port Lincoln shortly after.
Although Budda Spencer experienced ups and downs following the move, his behaviour began to decline noticeably around February 2021.
His school attendance dropped, he began couch-surfing, and the Department for Child Protection assessed him as an “adolescent at risk.”
In the lead-up to his death, Budda Spencer was charged with offences including unlawful entry, serious criminal trespass, theft, and bail breaches, which resulted in a one-week stay at the Kurlana Tapa Youth Justice Centre in Cavan.
Upon release, he continued to breach his curfew.
His mother, increasingly worried for his welfare, sought help from local Aboriginal Health Services due to concerns over potential cannabis use, weight loss, and difficulty keeping him at home.
Multiple notifications were raised regarding his safety, prompting a multi-agency meeting six days before his death involving West Coast Youth Support Services, Youth Justice, Aboriginal Families Support Services, SA Police, and the Department for Human Services.
Despite the meeting, Budda Spencer was last seen by his mother on May 7 after promising to return later. When he failed to come home, his family searched for him without success.
Police located him on May 9, but he ran away while officers were attempting to return him to his family.
That night, Budda Spencer and his two friends – who were in state care – slept in the grandstands at Port Lincoln’s Centenary Oval.
The following night, wanting to avoid curfew breaches, the trio decided not to go home and climbed into an industrial bin.
Though they did not intend to sleep, the bin was warm, and after covering themselves in cardboard, exhaustion took over.
The following morning, tragedy struck, horrifying the Eyre Peninsula community.
Ms Schell told the court Budda Spencer would be remembered as an active, kind child who enjoyed sports, loved telling stories, and looked out for others.
“His friend described him as someone who would make him laugh and was always there for him,” she said.
The inquest will sit at Port Lincoln Magistrates Court until Thursday before resuming at the Adelaide Coroner’s Court next week.