In June 2026, Western Australia's police commissioner agreed to review how his officers had contact with Virginia Giuffre before she died by suicide at her home in Neergabby. Giuffre was famous for accusing wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein of human trafficking and for suing Prince Andrew — a lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2022.

The decision came after Giuffre's family, particularly her sister-in-law Amanda Roberts, publicly campaigned for answers. In February 2026, Roberts said she had "zero confidence" in how authorities were handling the case. The family believes that examining what happened could reveal how institutions fail to help survivors of abuse and domestic violence.

But here's the catch: Giuffre's family and a group of experts want more than just a police review. On 11 June, sixteen experts signed a letter demanding a formal coronial inquest — a separate, independent investigation into her death. They called the lack of one a "profound injustice."

Police Review vs. Independent Inquest: What's the Difference?

Think of it this way: a police review is like a company investigating itself. The police examine their own actions using their own standards, and they decide what gets shared with the public. Nobody from outside is watching.

A coronial inquest is different. A coroner is independent — not part of the police force. They can force people to testify and demand evidence. They can look at what caused someone's death and make official recommendations. That carries real legal weight.

The experts are saying that what happened to Giuffre is serious enough to deserve the full independent treatment.

Giuffre's story connected her to some of the world's most powerful people. She said that as a teenager in 2001, she was taken to the United Kingdom to be sexually assaulted by Prince Andrew. She sued him, and they settled the case without him admitting wrongdoing. In early 2026, Prince Andrew was arrested, and Giuffre's family said they felt vindicated by the news.

There is a well-documented pattern in how police and institutions handle abuse survivors: they often do not provide enough support, they may miss warning signs, and they sometimes fail to treat a survivor's past trauma as relevant to their current safety. Whether the Western Australian police fit this pattern with Giuffre is the real question at stake.

The police commissioner's agreement to do a review shows that something went wrong — or at least that questions exist. But without a full independent inquest, we may not get clear answers about whether the state had a responsibility to protect her and whether it fulfilled that responsibility.