REBECCA Small yesterday told an inquest at the Bathurst Court House of her continuing torment over the night her sister Jessica disappeared.
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Rebecca still wishes she had not gone home without her sister that night, and few of us can imagine how that thought must haunt her.
But it would be unfair to say Rebecca let Jessica down, even if she feels that within herself.
The sad reality is, Jessica was let down many times – both in the days, weeks, months and years before she disappeared, and after.
No-one claims Jessica was an angel, and the three-week inquest into her death has heard upsetting reports about her life in 1997.
She was only 15 at the time, but she had already spent time living away from home in circumstances completely unsuited to her tender years.
As a community, we let down Jessica and her family at a time when they needed support.
And even after Jessica disappeared, she was badly let down again.
Police have already admitted the initial missing persons case was badly bungled, presumably because officers believed Jessica had simply run away.
The inquest has heard officers failed to identify links between Jessica’s disappearance and another attempted abduction, and delays in taking the case seriously made it that much harder to find the answers Rebecca and her mother Ricki deserve.
The disappearance and presumed murder of Jessica Small is a terrible tragedy, and the impacts are still being felt 17 years on.
