Coroner considers perjury referral for birthkeeper Emily Lal

A Victorian coroner is weighing a referral to prosecutors for birthkeeper Emily Lal, who allegedly misled the court about the nature of her service to a deceased mother. The inquest into the death of Stacey Warnecke resumed on Monday after a delay for forensic phone analysis.

Warnecke died in September 2025 at Frankston hospital in Melbourne following a postpartum haemorrhage. She had given birth at home with Lal present and had paid her $6,000 for support during her pregnancy. Lal, who has no clinical training, initially testified that she acted primarily as a supportive friend rather than a medical advisor.

Counsel assisting the coroner, Rachel Ellyard, presented new evidence that contradicts Lal's June testimony. The forensic analysis of Warnecke's phone revealed a WhatsApp group chat coordinated by Lal for women choosing freebirth. Ellyard stated that this material showed Lal "groomed" clients to resist seeking medical help, pain relief, or hospital admission during labor.

A recorded phone call played to the court captured Lal telling Warnecke, "You should be scared of the hospital." Lal described the facility as "a terrifying place" and suggested that midwives might inadvertently sabotage home births by recommending hospital transfers due to exhaustion. Ellyard argued this behavior was "much more structured, much more deliberate" than a friendship, noting that Lal also provided advice, referrals, and sold supplements.

Lal declined to return to the witness stand to address the new phone evidence. She had originally testified under a certificate of protection, which prevents her statements from being used against her in future legal proceedings. Ellyard told coroner Therese McCarthy that it would be open to her to find Lal was not truthful and to refer the matter to the Office of Public Prosecutions for perjury.

Medical evidence presented earlier in the inquest indicated that Warnecke lost up to 1.5 litres of blood after delivering her placenta. Lal asked Warnecke three times if she wanted an ambulance, and Warnecke agreed on the third attempt. Paramedics found her seriously unwell, and she died in hospital hours later after the facility exhausted its blood supply. Ellyard stated that Warnecke would have survived if she had been in a hospital or attended by a registered midwife, as the condition was eminently treatable if identified immediately. The coroner will deliver final findings at a later date.