Some first readers of Andrew L. Urban’s new book, FRAMED – how the legal system framed Robert Xie for the Lin family murders, share their responses.
“After several years of research, Andrew Urban’s new book, Framed, is a thorough examination of the terrible, brutal murders of the Lin family in 2009 that shocked Sydney, as brought to trial – four times. The book contains information of which very few ordinary Australians are likely to be aware.
Crucially, Urban argues that a jury acting rationally ought to have entertained reasonable doubt about the guilt of the accused – Robert Xie. He dissects the way the prosecution tried to negate his alibi, which was supported under oath by his wife, Kathy. If he’s right, this is an extraordinary failure of the justice system. Read it and judge for yourself.”
Margaret Cunneen SC
Barrister at Law
“I have finished reading the book. As I have found with all Urban’s writings, very easy to read. I had always questioned whether one person could have carried out the crime. Now I am even more convinced there must have been more than one person, and there was no person known who could have possibly helped Xie. As you have pointed out there are many more questions to be resolved (eg the secret phone).
“As the wife of wrongfully convicted Noel Greenaway, I am well aware of how the legal system can go off the rails and do terrible damage to innocent people.”
Rowena Greenaway
After the Chamberlain Royal Commission, exoneration and compensation most commentators opined, “Well the system got it right in the end.” In fact, the system completely failed and continues to fail. The Chamberlains were fortunate to have people who kept asking the right questions. This is a luxury afforded to very few.
Our adversarial system is not designed to find the truth. The truth is better found in the Royal Commission Inquiry model. Without people having the courage and determination to examine and question the system, miscarriages will never be corrected.
The eminent English jurist, John Macdonell observed, “There is no accepted test of civilisation. It is not wealth or the degree of comfort or the average duration of life or the increase of knowledge. All such tests would be disputed. In default of any other measure, may it not be suggested that as good a measure as any is the degree to which men are sensitive to wrongdoing and desirous to right it.”
This book examines the trials and conviction of Robert Xie. After four trials there are many unanswered questions.
I applaud the author for asking the questions that need to be answered.
Stuart Tipple
Lawyer
Clearly the onus of proof has been reversed in this case and speculation has been presented as if it were ‘evidence’ which is clearly an affront to human dignity as much as it is to a properly ordered legal system.
The fourth and final trial was clearly farcical in terms of any possibility of a rational assessment of the ‘evidence’ – months of technical scientific evidence with weeks of legal submissions which even a trained lawyer would find hard to follow must have made the task as impossible for the legal participants as it was for the jury and the accused. But after having gone to all that expense and trouble there had to be a verdict, and the outcome in this case is as offensive to justice as it is to rationality. Nothing short of a Royal Commission will get this badly damaged ship back on course.
Dr Bob Moles
Flinders University
Adjunct Associate Professor
College of Business, Government and Law
Flinders University of South Australia
This insightful book raises many important questions in relation to forensic evidence, the treatment of key witnesses by those in authority, and the use of prison informants. Urban reveals startling information about factors and forces external to the family which were relevant to the case. The book is a sad and shocking exposé of miscarriage of justice in the criminal justice system.
Rosemary Eliott
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