What a difference a dinghy makes – incorrect testimony misled the court

Posted on September 28, 2021 by andrew

The following excerpt from the Etter/Selby papers reveals how the jury, the defence and the judge were all misled at the murder trial of Sue Neill-Fraser in 2010 by the eye witness testimony describing a dinghy alongside Four Winds (crime scene), which was incorrectly presented to the jury and omitted critical details; a handwritten police note. (Paragraph numbers refer to the papers dated August 11, 2021.) Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 2 Comments

Curse of the wrongful conviction of loved ones

Posted on September 27, 2021 by andrew

Partners and other family members are the first people of interest in criminal investigations – and often rightly so. But when the justice system fails and the accused is innocent, the wrongful conviction vastly increases the impact of the punishment. What can be done to avoid – or at least minimise – such MoJs?  Continue reading →

Posted in General articles | 7 Comments

Forensic evidence not always scientific but how would the courts know

Posted on September 26, 2021 by andrew

Andrew L. Urban.

The best first thing that could happen in the criminal justice system is the rending apart of the police from the forensic services around the country, and the establishment of a full scale national forensic institute. The courts would benefit from more reliable forensic evidence. Continue reading →

Posted in Forensic evidence, General articles | 3 Comments

‘The homeless girl’, the bikie, the blue rag, TasPol, the lawyers and how it all went pear shaped

Posted on September 23, 2021 by andrew

The inside story of eyewitness Meaghan Vass, ‘the homeless girl’ at the centre of the Sue Neill-Fraser drama, told by the woman who became her friend, her supporter and her champion – ANDREA ‘ANDY’ BROWN.  Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 17 Comments

What the Sue Neill-Fraser jury heard – and not heard: Letter to Editor

Posted on September 22, 2021 by andrew

In the wake of public comments from senior police and the prosecutor, former DPP Tim Ellis SC, Lynn Giddings, an observer at the Sue Neill-Fraser trial, responds to the prosecutor’s published defence of the conviction. Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 18 Comments

Why Sue Neill-Fraser should not have been charged, let alone convicted

Posted on September 21, 2021 by andrew

Andrew L. Urban.

“No one needs to go to sea, your Honour,” said David Gunson SC somewhat lightheartedly, just moments into the opening of the murder trial of Susan Blyth Neill-Fraser, on September 21, 2010. It’s eleven years to the day – and the case against her was already ‘at sea’ in the proverbial sense. Here is why. Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 22 Comments

Conviction Drive – the cartoon

Posted on September 19, 2021 by andrew

As writer, actor, philosopher Stephen Fry has said, “It is easy to forget that the most important aspect of comedy, after all, its great saving grace, is its ambiguity. You can simultaneously laugh at a situation, and take it seriously.” And a single cartoon can say a thousand funny, serious, and satirical words … Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 14 Comments

Do the Police and the Prosecutor in Sue Neill-Fraser case stand by the forensic scientist’s evidence?

Posted on September 17, 2021 by andrew

We respectfully request Police Commissioner Darren Hine, Police Association’s Colin Riley, Sue Neill-Fraser prosecutor Tim Ellis SC and the Director of Forensic Science Service Tasmania to confirm their trust in the validity of the evidence given by the forensic scientist at trial: the conviction hangs on it.  Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser, Forensic evidence | 25 Comments

Sue Neill-Fraser prosecutor Tim Ellis SC, defends the conviction, but …

Posted on September 16, 2021 by andrew

Andrew L. Urban.

In a rare public comment (Mercury, Sept. 16, 2021) on a case in which he was prosecutor, former Tasmanian DPP, Tim Ellis SC, defends the conviction and refutes Lara Giddings’ claims published the day before. But his comments raise questions …  Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 39 Comments

Truculent police response to new evidence in Sue Neill-Fraser case backfires

Posted on September 15, 2021 by andrew

Andrew L. Urban.

A proverbial bomb went off in Tasmanian law enforcement when credible, documented and exculpatory new evidence came to light in the Sue Neill-Case – and that was before they had even looked at it.  Continue reading →

Posted in Case 01 Sue Neill-Fraser | 10 Comments