Mother and aunt of Indigenous teens still 'hurts' over their 1987 deaths near Bourke, inquest hears

The mother and aunt of two Indigenous teens who died in outback New South Wales 36 years ago has told an inquest she was not notified by police that they were dead and did not speak with officers until weeks after the deaths.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that this article may contain images and names of people who have died.

Aunty June Smith wiped away tears as she recalled the last time she saw her daughter Mona Lisa Smith, 16, and her niece Jacinta Smith, 15, whose bodies were found beside the wreckage of a crashed ute north of Bourke in 1987.

"To lose a child, I tell you it's terrible," she said.

"It really hurts, and I hurt every day and every night.

"I think about my daughter and my little niece and what they would have turned out to be today. They could have been mothers but it never got to be that way."

The teenage cousins were found dead on the Mitchell Highway about 34 kilometres south of Enngonia, along with 40-year-old non-Indigenous man Alexander Ian Grant, who was found uninjured.

Giving evidence at the Bourke Court House for a coronial inquest into the girls' deaths, Aunty June said "to this day" she did not believe the girls were killed in a car crash.

She told the hearing a family member told her the 16-year-old had been hit over the head several times with an iron tool by Mr Grant, who had mistaken her for a woman who stole money from him.

She also expressed disappointment at the way police conducted the investigation.

On Wednesday, former detective sergeant Peter Ehsman told the inquest he had convened a meeting with the girls' families at Bourke Police Station, which was refuted by Aunty June.

"There was no such meeting because none of us went to the police station," she said.

She told the inquest she was never contacted by police, and was notified of her daughter's death through her brother.

"We waited for a few weeks before police would come and talk, but all they'd come for is to ask for information if I saw anyone else that might have been a bit of trouble," Aunty June said.

"I wished they would have [come earlier] and if they'd done the right thing in the first place we might not be here today."

Teens were 'like sisters'

In front of a packed public gallery, Aunty June recalled the cousins' relationship as being more "like sisters".

Many people, including legal representatives, were brought to tears during Aunty June's emotional description of her daughter.

She said her daughter and niece Jacinta were "always together".

Thirty-six years after their deaths, Aunty June said she had never recovered.

"I used to say to the kids, 'Don't say her name'," she said.

"I couldn't speak her name for ages because it used to bring back all the horrible memories of what happened to her."

Injuries consistent with crash

Doctor Andrew McIntosh is an Edith Cowan University expert in road accidents and gave evidence about the likely cause of the girls' injuries.

Counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC asked the witness if he believed the injuries sustained by Mona Lisa were consistent with her being involved in road accident and not an assault.

"In total, her injuries are very consistent with an unrestrained occupant being ejected," Dr McIntosh replied.

"She has an unusual head injury. It's certainly not an injury that you would see from a blunt force impact."

Dr McIntosh said Jacinta's injuries were most likely caused by the accident and the vehicle rolling over her.

The inquest was told the reason Mr Grant was uninjured was because he was likely not thrown from the ute.

Dr McIntosh was also questioned about whether he believed the position of Jacinta's clothing could have been caused by the crash.

The inquest previously heard Mr Grant claim that the 15-year-old's top and tracksuit bottoms were disturbed, leaving her partially naked, when he dragged her from the vehicle onto a tarpaulin.

The inquest continues.