‘Cracks’ in NDIS led man to seek prison return instead
A young man who was admitted to hospital chose to return to the prison where he was stabbed rather than live outside with inadequate NDIS support.
Jayden Conroy had spent most of his adult life in prison and was struggling to cope with society when he decided to come to the attention of the police on September 15, 2024.
The 24-year-old Indigenous man wanted to return to prison despite being stabbed 11 times while in custody in January 2023, leaving him with a collapsed lung, a broken nose and a black eye.
To get there, he used a knife to steal $125 from a taxi driver and his vehicle before leading police on a high-speed chase through Sydney’s west; The judge who handed down the sentence described this incident as “horrible”.
He stole $382 and several packs of cigarettes from a gas station before surrendering and being arrested that afternoon.
Two weeks before these offenses he had been told he could only get NDIS help for 11 hours a day.
Conroy, who was diagnosed with several disorders including fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, told a forensic psychologist that he confused people and needed someone “telling me how to live life 24/7.”
His choice to commit two armed robberies and a high-speed police chase rather than live with inadequate disability support has raised concerns about the system.
“This case highlights a wider problem where vulnerable Australians with complex and chronic mental health problems are being failed by the system,” federal opposition NDIS spokeswoman Anne Ruston said.
A. last report He said the Australian Psychosocial Alliance showed NDIS application approval rates for people with psychosocial disabilities had fallen to 25 per cent.
“The Albanian government must explain how it will ensure vulnerable Australians with complex and chronic mental health issues can access the support they need through the NDIS,” Ms Ruston told AAP. he said.
Greens disability and NDIS spokesman Jordon Steele-John said underfunding the current disability support system was creating “serious and harmful unintended consequences”.
“This shows how wide the cracks are when our justice, health, housing and disability systems don’t work together,” he told AAP.
Sentencing Conroy last week, NSW District Court Judge Robert Montgomery found his moral culpability was diminished because he was not motivated to harm victims or gain financial gain.
“(Conroy) sought to return to corporate life to escape the outside world after requesting help to cope but being denied support,” the judge wrote in his decision.
“Independent expert medical opinion supports that the offender needed the help he sought and that had he received that support the crime might not have occurred at all.”
With limited NDIS support, Conroy had resorted to smoking cannabis every day, snorting cocaine and drinking heavily at weekends.
Judge Montgomery imposed a maximum sentence of two years and 10 months in prison, with a non-parole period of one year and eight months, which will end on May 14, 2026.
The judge said there was a high chance he would reoffend when released, but this could be reduced with appropriate mental health treatment.
The judge recommended Conroy be assessed for 24/7 NDIS support.
A spokesman for the National Disability Insurance Corporation, which oversees the programme, said it was not designed to replace the mainstream justice and mental health systems.
“NDIA works closely with state and territory government services to ensure NDIS participants receive a holistic approach to supports,” the spokesperson said, adding that specific support is available for participants in the justice system.
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