A close family friend says it is difficult for anyone who hasn’t lived with severe disability to truly grasp the daily challenges faced by the Perth family found dead in what police believe was a double murder‑suicide.
The bodies of brothers Otis, 14, and Leon, 16, along with their parents Jarrod Clune, 50, and Maiwenna Goasdoue, 49, were discovered in their Mosman Park home in January. Police say the boys lived with “significant health challenges,” which friends describe as a severe level of autism. Investigators believe the parents took the lives of their sons before ending their own.
Simon Lewis, who knew the family through an early‑intervention centre both families attended, said the pressures of caring for children with profound disabilities are often invisible to the outside world. He and his wife have a daughter, Madeleine, now 16, who also lives with severe autism.
“I can most definitely relate to what they were going through,” Mr Lewis said, while emphasising that his understanding does not excuse or justify the parents’ actions. His comments reflect the complex emotional and physical toll that long‑term, high‑needs caregiving can place on families, particularly when support systems are stretched or inadequate.
The tragedy has sparked broader conversations about the pressures faced by carers, the gaps in disability support, and the need for early intervention and sustained assistance for families navigating similar challenges.
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