The mother of a young girl who tragically took her own life after being allegedly groomed and raped by an older boy was left in tears as she recounted how her daughter had been “destroyed mentally and physically”.
Semina Halliwell, from Southport, was only 12 years old when she passed away at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital on June 12, 2021, succumbing to the effects of an overdose of prescription tablets three days prior. The inquest into her untimely death commenced today (Monday, January 13) at Bootle Town Hall, presided over by coroner Johanna Thompson.
The court heard that Semina, aged 12, had taken an overdose of prescription medication shortly after abruptly leaving a police interview at her home in Southport, telling her mother Rachel that she “had enough”. The Year 7 student at Stanley High School had allegedly endured months of bullying and harassment following sexual abuse by an older boy in January 2021.
During the inquest proceedings today, Rachel Halliwell, Semina’s mother, detailed the interactions between her daughter and the boy, which began in the summer of 2020 when Semina was just 11. She expressed: “She was under a lot of pressure.”
Rachel further explained, reported by the Liverpool Echo: “She told me that she tried to put him off several occasions, making excuses up to not meet. He tried different tactics, started to be nasty but that didn’t work so he started to be nice again. I could see from their messages that she was terrified when the act happened – just before it.”
In a heart-wrenching testimony, a mother recounted the horrific experience her daughter endured. With tears streaming down her face, she revealed: “She said he took her into the woods and he sat her on a tree stump and he took his trousers down… She said she kept saying no.”
The mother explained how the alleged rape had profoundly affected her child: “She said she was scared. She said it was horrible. It destroyed her. It destroyed her mentally, physically. She changed into a different person.
“She felt bad about herself. She looked bad. She thought bad things about herself. She felt used. Of course to keep it a secret from everybody meant she wasn’t allowed to speak about it. It just destroyed her completely.”
Ms Halliwell spoke of her daughter Semina, who was diagnosed with autism, said she had previously been “a happy little girl (with a) big friendship group”, “very popular at school” and “very popular with her teachers”. However, she observed a tragic transformation around 2020, coinciding with the transition from primary to secondary school: “She started to self harm. She became very withdrawn and very sad.”
Despite reaching out for professional help, Ms Halliwell said her daughter suffered in silence: “She didn’t tell me about it. She used to hide it from me.”
Semina’s mum Rachel Halliwell
(Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)
The signs of distress were hidden: “She’d put tights on so I couldn’t see her legs and the tops of her arms were covered. But eventually I saw. This was completely out of character for Semina. We had gone from a happy little girl to a girl who was self harming.”
Semina’s mum, Ms Halliwell, said her daughter was deeply unhappy, but she couldn’t pinpoint the cause: “I didn’t even know how she’d know to even do that. And she was so sad. I tried to talk to her many times and ask ‘what’s making you so unhappy? Something must have happened’.”
She recalled that Semina used social media platforms like Snapchat and Tiktok to stay in touch with friends during the Covid-19 lockdown, but she was unaware of her daughter’s online activities when she was alone in her room.
It later emerged that a nude photo of Semina had been circulated among pupils at Stanley High School, prompting Ms Halliwell to contact the school to express her concerns, although she didn’t specifically ask them to address the issue at the time. In March 2021, Semina revealed to her mum that she had taken four prescription tablets, leading Ms Halliwell to email the school stating that her daughter “had attempted to kill herself by taking an overdose”.
That same month, the 12-year-old confided in her mum about the alleged rape, which had occurred two months prior. Semina also showed her mum a disturbing video of her being attacked by a group of children who didn’t attend Stanley High School.
Ms Halliwell said: “She didn’t tell me at first but she had bruises on her neck and I asked her and she just showed me a video that was online, and it was her being beaten up. I asked who is it in the video, who are these people, and she then told me who these people were and why they were doing it.”
Ms Halliwell reported the alleged rape and assaults to the police. However, Semina “initially didn’t want to talk about what happened. Ms Halliwell said: “Semina wanted to do an ABE (achieving best evidence interview) but she was so very frightened at the time so there was a lot going on.
“And it was only Semina and myself. There was no support, no advice for me, no advice for Semina.
Semina Halliwell
(Image: Rachel Halliwell)
“We were just left in the situation. Then the PC called on a Sunday and asked if she could do an ABE at 11am that day, and there was just no way I could have said to Semina ‘we’re going to do an ABE today’ because she just couldn’t do that. Firstly she liked her routine.
“Secondly you just can’t spring something on Semina like that. Thirdly she was worried about all of this. She was scared what was going to happen when it all came out. I just think if there had been a lot more support at the time it could have been very different.”
“But at the time, you go into that situation you don’t know what to expect and don’t know what’s there for help and support. So when she spoke to the officers, the officers said to her that it was her word against his.”
The mother explained her daughter’s decision to withdraw her complaint, saying: “Because she felt like she wasn’t believed and it’s not going to go anywhere. To say to a 12-year-old child ‘it’s going to take 18 months to two years to go to court, and do you really want it hanging over your head? ‘ and ‘it’s your word against his’ is not what any woman or child who has been through a sexual assault or rape needs to hear.”
Detailing the circumstances leading up to her daughter’s tragic overdose on June 9, 2021, she recounted how persistent harassment by other children continued unrelenting. That evening, even as police officers responded to another harassment report and reviewed CCTV footage at their home, Ms Halliwell conveyed that her daughter Semina was “determined” to proceed with an ABE interview following the discovery of a prior sexual assault allegation against the boy in question.
Ms Halliwell stated: “She told me that what had happened to her (and) the other person, she wanted to stop him doing it to anybody else again.”
At around midnight, Semina expressed she had “had enough” and retreated upstairs. Her mother interpreted this saying: “I took it that she had enough of police being in the house, and also had enough of everything. There was so much that had happened at home and at school.”
As they discussed the sequence of events with police, she just assumed her daughter was exhausted from the ordeal: “While talking to the police about how we got to this place and what had started from the beginning, I just assumed she had had enough of talking about it.”
Police departed from the house at around 12.30 am, and shortly after, Ms Halliwell discovered empty packets of prescription medication on the floor. Semina then revealed to her that she had ingested the tablets.
Semina was rushed to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, where her condition worsened, and she tragically passed away on June 12. Ms Halliwell expressed her concerns, stating that Semina received “no help, no support, nothing” after reporting the incident.
She criticized the officers’ behaviour, saying: “The officers, the way they spoke to her and the way they presented themselves to her, in my view, was unprofessional.
“Not how you should speak to a12-year-old child who has gone through a sexual experience of rape like she had done. The fact that they didn’t care. I felt like it was an inconvenience to them. It was almost like they couldn’t be bothered.”
The inquest continues.