Victorian Coroner May Refer Birthkeeper Emily Lal for Perjury

Coroner Therese McCarthy is considering referring birthkeeper Emily Lal to the Office of Public Prosecutions for perjury after forensic analysis of a phone revealed evidence that contradicts Lal’s previous court testimony. The inquest examines the death of Stacey Warnecke, a 30-year-old nutritionist who died of a postpartum haemorrhage in September 2025.

Warnecke gave birth at home in Frankston, Melbourne, with Lal present. She paid Lal $6,000 for support during her pregnancy. Birthkeepers operate outside the medical system and receive no clinical training. The inquest began in June, but closing submissions were delayed while investigators analyzed Warnecke’s phone. Hearings resumed on Monday with new findings from that analysis.

Rachel Ellyard, counsel assisting the coroner, presented messages from a WhatsApp group chat coordinated by Lal for women choosing freebirth. Ellyard stated that these records directly contradicted Lal’s June testimony. Lal had previously told the court that Warnecke hired her primarily as a supportive friend and that the payment covered her time rather than medical advice. Ellyard argued that Lal’s role was to groom clients to resist seeking medical help, pain relief, or hospital care during labor.

A recorded phone call between Lal and Warnecke was played to the court. In the call, Warnecke expressed fear about the hospital. Lal responded that Warnecke should be scared of the hospital and described it as a terrifying place. Lal claimed that staying home required a solid mindset and condition. She also suggested that midwives attending home births could inadvertently sabotage the process by advising women to go to the hospital when labor runs long, sometimes because the midwife is exhausted.

Lal previously testified that she was not clinically trained and that making the birth safer was not her responsibility. She stated she would not call an ambulance unless asked and that she gave no medical advice, only sharing her own experiences. Ellyard rejected this account, stating that Lal was providing advice, referrals, and selling supplements. Ellyard described the arrangement as much more structured and deliberate than a friend pulling hair back or wiping a forehead. She noted that Warnecke’s husband, Nathan, had been reassured or indoctrinated into believing his role was simply to sit back and support her.

Lal was invited to return to the court to provide further evidence following the phone analysis but declined. She originally testified after the coroner granted a certificate of protection, which prevents her evidence from being used against her in future proceedings. Ellyard told the coroner she could find that Lal was not truthful and refer her to prosecutors for perjury. The Office of Public Prosecutions prepares and conducts criminal matters on behalf of the director.

The court heard that Lal asked Warnecke three times if she wanted an ambulance after Warnecke delivered the placenta, lost up to 1.5 litres of blood, and began struggling to breathe. Warnecke agreed on the third attempt but was seriously unwell by the time paramedics arrived. She died in hospital several hours later after the facility exhausted its blood supply. Lal stated it was not her role to call an ambulance against a client’s wishes, even if the woman was unconscious and dying.

Ellyard stated that Warnecke would have survived if she had been in the hospital. She noted that postpartum haemorrhage is the most common complication of childbirth and that women in well-resourced countries do not typically die from it in a hospital setting. Medical evidence presented earlier indicated Warnecke would also have survived a home birth attended by a registered midwife. Ellyard described the complication as eminently treatable if identified and responded to immediately. The coroner will deliver her findings at a later date.