Rex Martinich
Police missed crucial opportunities to protect a young mother who was murdered after her estranged husband was incorrectly granted bail, a coroner has heard.
Mother-of-three Kelly Wilkinson was repeatedly stabbed, doused with petrol and set on fire by Brian Earl Johnston on April 20, 2021 at her Gold Coast home.
Johnston had been released on bail nine days earlier after being charged with four counts of sexually assaulting Wilkinson.
An inquest into the 27-year-old’s death heard Johnston had incorrectly been granted bail by police rather than having to argue before a magistrate for release.
Granting Johnston bail was one police failure identified in an internal review, Queensland Deputy State Coroner Stephanie Gallagher heard on Wednesday.
Detective Inspector Paul Fletcher, the officer in charge of the Gold Coast Vulnerable Persons Group, said the police involved had missed opportunities.
“Overall, it appears they followed procedures that were outlined for them to do, but there were areas they could improve on as well,” he told Southport Coroners Court.
The senior detective agreed with previous evidence that Johnston’s four rape charges were serious offences that required him to prove to a magistrate he should not be further detained.
“Would any of this have been outcome-changing?” Gallagher asked.
“That’s a hard question. There are a lot of unknowns,” Fletcher said.
Some of the officers involved had since been required to take part in remedial training, the inquest was told previously.
Police also failed to incorrectly file Wilkinson’s complaint about Johnston allegedly breaching a protection order, which made it much harder for other officers to find details about her case.
Officers were first made aware of Wilkinson’s complaints about domestic violence 23 days before her murder, and they later visited her home to organise for her to make a statement.
Senior Constable Julien O’Rourke said he assessed Wilkinson to be a “medium risk”.
“She said she had been receiving messages from a work colleague of Johnston’s … she said she was scared,” he said.
But O’Rourke said he was unable to use his police-issued tablet to read a document in PDF format that stated Wilkinson had been found to be at high risk after an assessment by a domestic violence prevention centre.
Fletcher said he was unsure whether the new generation of tablets issued to police since Wilkinson’s death could read PDF files.
The Gold Coast vulnerable persons unit now had more officers, and Queensland police as a whole were now better able to respond to domestic violence victims, the coroner heard.
“We are always improving,” Fletcher said.
The inquest is due to finish on Thursday.
If you or someone you know needs help, phone 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732), the National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service on 1800 211 028; Lifeline 13 11 14; the Men’s Referral Service 1300 766 491
AAP