THE death of Altona Meadows youth worker Daniel Mallia has caused his family to ask whether the media acted responsibly in "naming and shaming" a person at risk of harming himself.
The 29-year-old died from a suspected heroin overdose, his body found slumped in a car in a Footscray street last Wednesday afternoon.
He died a week after the Herald Sun ran a front page report which it said was exclusive and "exposed" that Mr Mallia had been charged with making a false report about being stabbed by an Islander gang at Altona.
Mr Mallia had admitted to police that two superficial wounds to his stomach were self-inflicted.
Western suburbs youth worker and 20th Man Fund founder Les Twentyman told the Herald Sun his former employee was "a ticking time bomb".
Mr Twentyman said on TV that Mr Mallia "should be in Hollywood" for his performance.
A day earlier, Mr Twentyman was quoted in the Weekly saying that Mr Mallia was dismissed for unrelated reasons before he was charged.
The Weekly chose not to name Mr Mallia. Last month, Mr Mallia entered a guilty plea under Sunshine Magistrates Court's diversion program.
He was unlikely to have a conviction recorded if he met certain conditions, with the matter due to be finalised next month.
In a statement, Mr Mallia's family told the Weekly: "We are in shock and deep grief and are highly distressed at the impact the [Herald Sun] article and TV interview had on Daniel's well-being and ultimately the devastating outcome."
Mr Mallia had called the Weekly on January 11, saying he had just returned from the Northern Territory to see himself "exposed" on the front page of the Herald Sun and to find reporters at the door of his parents' home.
He said reports that he had stabbed himself for "street cred" and to be worthy like Mr Twentyman were "bullshit".
He added that he would not be able to get another job and would soon be homeless because he would not be able to pay his mortgage.
Mr Mallia's family said that in the wake of his death there had been an outpouring
of praise for "the beautiful and overwhelming impact on people he helped throughout his career in his paid and voluntary work with Reclink and other organisations".
In a statement issued last Friday, the 20th Man Fund said it was "deeply saddened to hear of the death of our former employee Daniel Mallia".
"Daniel's death is a tragedy, and in such circumstances no words can adequately convey the sense of loss at Daniel's passing, and our thoughts and prayers are with Daniel's family in this most difficult of times," it read.
The Herald Sun told the Weekly in a statement: "It is always sad when someone passes away. The Herald Sun extends its sympathies to Daniel Mallia's family."
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