Parrlson helps

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Kathleen Folbigg
A 8eporL by Parrlson helps


Parrlson helps
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1hls case sLudy wlll focus on Lhe 2001 Lrlal by Lhe accused 'chlld klller' kaLhleen
lolblgg She was accused of murderlng her four chlldren over Lhe course of a 10
year perlod from 1989 unLll 1999 Whlle lolblgg malnLalns her lnnocence she was
found gullLy of Lhe quadruple murder ln Lhe flrsL Lrlal wlLh Lhe ouLcomes of
subsequenL appeals supporLlng Lhls verdlcL 1hls essay wlll revlew Lhe evldence
and Lhe Lrlal procedures hlghllghLlng deflclencles ln Lhe way evldence was
presenLed and Lhe case was Lrled AddlLlonally lL ls lmporLanL Lo conslder how
Lhree chlld deaLhs occurred ln one famlly wlLhouL lnlLlaLlng some form of earller
lnLervenLlon addlLlonal pollce lnvesLlgaLlon governmenLprovlded parenLlng
supporL or furLher medlcal revlew 8evlew of Lhe Lrlal processes ldenLlfled Lhree
poLenLlal problems ln Lhe way evldence was presenLed and Lhe case was Lrled
1hese deflclencles may have swayed Lhe ouLcome of Lhe Lrlal and Lhe lengLh of Lhe
prlson senLence resulLlng ln a poLenLlal mlscarrlage of [usLlce
1he flrsL deflclency ln Lhe case was Lhe way lnformaLlon abouL kaLhleen lolblgg's
chlldhood was used Lo powerful effecL by Lhe prosecuLlon Clven Lhe lmpacL of
Lhls lnformaLlon lL ls worLhwhlle Lo brlefly revlslL lL 1he prosecuLlon Lold Lhe
courL LhaL kaLhleen lolblgg's exposure Lo crlme began when she was [usL 18
monLhs old and her faLher bruLally murdered her moLher ln fronL of kaLhleen
kaLhleen was lmmedlaLely placed ln a fosLer home where she was descrlbed as a
happy and peaceful chlld unLll she began showlng dlsLurblng behavlour when she
was Lhree ln Lhe form of slmulaLlng sexual play and masLurbaLlng (AA 2001 p 1)
kaLhleen was removed from her fosLer home and placed ln Lhe 8ldura Chlldren's
Pome before belng adopLed ln 1970 by Mr and Mrs Marlborough who were her
'parenLs' for anoLher 13 years and who ln 1984 revealed Lo her Lhe
clrcumsLances of her moLher's deaLh A year laLer she lefL home and meL Cralg
lolblgg purchaslng a house wlLh hlm and marrylng hlm ln 1987(AA 2001 p 2)
1he prosecuLlon used Lhese facLs ln a way LhaL suggesLed kaLhleen had been
emoLlonally unsLable slnce Lhe murder of her moLher Whlle kaLhleen's early years
were cerLalnly bruLal Lhere ls Lhere was noLhlng LhaL could be used as evldence Lo
suggesL LhaL kaLhleen would one day klll her own chlldren lL can be argued LhaL
Lhe evldence abouL kaLhleen's early llfe was noL relevanL and LhaL lLs admlsslon
lnLo Lhe case represenLed a key flaw ln courL processes

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AnoLher ma[or deflclency ln Lhe Lrlal was Lhe overrellance on sLaLlsLlcal llkellhoods
as evldence 1he defence argued LhaL kaLhleen's four chlldren ln order of daLe of
blrLh Caleb aLrlck Sarah and Laura dled from naLural causes (Lee 2003 p 1)
1he deaLhs of Lhe flrsL Lhree chlldren were recorded by Lhe pollce as belng SluS
(Sudden lnfanL ueaLh Syndrome) whlch occurs when a chlld falls Lo breaLhe whlle
asleep and dles 1he fourLh deaLh was aLLrlbuLed Lo myocardlLls a Lype of hearL
fallure 1he prosecuLlon used Lhe argumenL LhaL all four slbllngs dylng ln early
chlldhood was sLaLlsLlcally unllkely 1hey called upon SluS speclallsL !anlce
Cphoven who gave evldence LhaL 'lL's a one ln a Lrllllon chance LhaL all 4 of her
bables dled of SluS wlLh all of Lhe chlldren belng under 4 years of age' (Wllllams
2003 p 6) 1he prosecuLlon used Lhls argumenL very successfully Lo convlnce Lhe
[ury LhaL Lhe pollce lnvesLlgaLlons (whlch found SluS as cause of deaLh) lnLo Lhe
flrsL Lhree deaLhs were flawed 1hls argumenL convenlenLly overlooked Lhe facL
LhaL kaLhleen's chlldren had all been dlagnosed wlLh a condlLlon LhaL ls known as
'enlarged eplgloLLls' whlch creaLes breaLhlng problems Several oLher problems
affecLed kaLhleen's chlldren as well lncludlng epllepsy lnflamed uvula lazy larynx
and myocardlLls (Lee 2003 p 1) 1he defence submlLLed Lhls evldence buL revlew
of Lhe case maLerlal lndlcaLes LhaL Lhls argumenL was noL fully explolLed 1he [ury
could have been offered alLernaLlve experL oplnlons whlch may have allowed Lhem
Lo conslder LhaL wlLh all four chlldren sufferlng breaLhlng problems naLural deaLhs
werequlLe posslble cerLalnly posslble enough Lo cause reasonable doubL"
1he Lhlrd ma[or facLor ln Lhe case was Lhe use of kaLhleen's dlarles by Lhe
prosecuLlon Whlle uslng dlarles as evldence ls unusual ln a courL case key
excerpLs of lolblgg's were admlLLed ularles are a source of conLroversy
LhroughouL Lhe legal world and Lhe rules of evldence dlcLaLe LhaL Lhey may noL be
used as sole or leadlng evldence Powever desplLe Lhese rules of evldence legal
precedenL has seen cases won Lhrough Lhe use of dlarles (8enns 2004 p 1) 1he
lolblgg excerpLs conLalned sLaLemenLs LhaL Lhe prosecuLlon used as dammlng
lndlcaLors of kaLhleen's sLaLe of mlnd aL Lhe Llme lncludlng one of Lhe more
lnfamous llnes 'Sarah's lefL us wlLh a blL of help' Powever famlly frlends of
kaLhleen's have argued LhaL a gross mlscarrlage of [usLlce occurred ln uslng Lhese
sLaLemenLs Cne frlend karren Pall declared LhaL she had read Lhe dlarles herself
and whaL LhaL passage had acLually sald was 'Sarah's lefL us WlLh a blL of help
Lhls won'L happen agaln' Whlle some of lolblgg's frlends dld Lry Lo argue LhaL Lhe
excerpLs were docLored lL appears Lhey were noL successful (Wllllams 2003 p 2)
CLher dlary enLrles LhaL were used were clearly amblguous such as 'new baby ls
on Lhe way Won'L make Lhe mlsLakes l dld wlLh Lhe lasL ones lf l feel llke l'm golng
Lo lose conLrol l'll hand baby over Lo someone else' 1he defence could have called
karren Pall as a wlLness Lo aLLesL Lo kaLhleen's poslLlve aLLrlbuLes as a moLher buL
were foresLalled from dolng so by facLors of cosL (Wllllams 2003 p 2)
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kaLhleen was arresLed on Aprll 19 2001 and Lrlalled under AusLralla's Adversarlal
SysLem 1he Adversarlal SysLem ls when Lhe prosecuLlon ls Lrylng Lo dlsprove Lhe
defendanLs clalm and Lhe defence ls Lrylng Lo creaLe a cerLaln amounL of
'reasonable' doubL ln Lhe [ury 1he !udge a neuLral waLcher presldes over Lhls and
helps declde Lhe faLe of Lhe defendanL Cne of Lhe downsldes of Lhls sysLem ls LhaL
Lhe wealLhler parLy can ofLen 'buy' a beLLer case Lhrough facLors such as lawyer
quallLy experlence and even quanLlLy Lhe ablllLy Lo hlre experL wlLnesses and Lhe
ablllLy Lo fund Lravel and accommodaLlon expenses for oLher wlLnesses kaLhleen
lolblgg was relylng on Legal Ald whlch ls a sysLem LhaL helps Lhose who cannoL
afford a lawyer
lrom Lhe beglnnlng of her Lrlal kaLhleen was ln Lrouble She was belng Lrled for all
four of her chlldren's murders aL once AlLhough courL pollcy ls for crlmes Lo be
consldered separaLely (as parL of a [olnL acLlon lf approprlaLe) lolblgg's crlmes
were Lrled slmulLaneously and Lhls serlously dlsadvanLaged her AfLer havlng
several experLs come ln and provlde sLaLemenLs LhaL mulLlple SluS was exLremely
unllkely Lhe prosecuLlon Lhen produced Lhelr prlze plece of evldence kaLhleen's
dlary Whlle a dlary would generally be lnadmlsslble Lhls Llme Lhe prosecuLlon was
allowed Lo use lL 1hey exLracLed several sLaLemenLs from Lhe dlary and presenLed
Lhem aL Lhe Lrlal uslng Lhem along wlLh a poLLed hlsLory of kaLhleen's chlldhood Lo
palnL a plcLure of an unsLable woman Powever lL can be argued LhaL all of Lhls
evldence was aL besL clrcumsLanLlal and dld noL provlde lnconLroverLlble proof
(Lee 2003 p 2)
noneLheless kaLhleen lolblgg was found gullLy of 3 murder charges 1
manslaughLer charge and 1 charge of deslre Lo commlL grlevous bodlly harm
whlch resulLed ln a senLence of 40 years ln prlson 30 wlLhouL parole 1he
senLence was laLer reduced Lo 30 years ln prlson 23 wlLhouL parole durlng an
appeal Cne of Lhe promlnenL reasons LhaL her appeals were re[ecLed was Lhe
exLremely convlnclng case Lhe prosecuLlon had bullL up agalnsL her 1he only
appeal LhaL had any real value Lo her case was when her senLence was reduced as
Lhe [udge deemed lL Lo be Loo long for lolblgg Lo have any chance of relnLegraLlng
lnLo Lhe socleLy
Several lssues musL be consldered when revlewlng Lhe case llrsLly lf kaLhleen
lolblgg had had access Lo more skllled lawyers and more money Lo flghL her case
she may have been able Lo use experL and oLher wlLnesses Lo creaLe enough doubL
ln Lhe prosecuLlon's case Lo wln a verdlcL of noL gullLy Secondly lL ls llkely LhaL
Lhe psychologlcal background provlded by kaLhleen's chlldhood lnformaLlon would
noL have been enough evldence on lLs own Lo creaLe a compelllng argumenL So
had her dlarles noL been admlLLed lL ls qulLe posslble Lhe [urors would have felL
Lhere was reasonable doubL AnoLher lssue LhaL lmpacLed on Lhe case was Lhe
Parrlson helps
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quallLy of Lhe pollce lnvesLlgaLlon and Lhe coroner's lnquesL Pad Lhe flrsL Lhree
deaLhs been assessed more Lhoroughly by Lhe pollce and Lhe coroner more
compleLe lnformaLlon may have been avallable for conslderaLlon ln Lhe case
Changes are belng made ln Lhls area wlLh a recommendaLlon abouL SluS lnquesLs
from Lhe nSW Commlsslon for Chlldren and ?oung eopleLhaL 'osLmorLem
examlnaLlons should only be conducLed by paLhologlsLs wlLh speclallsL knowledge
or experlence" (nSW Chlld ueaLh 8evlew 1eam 2003 p xlv)
8ecommendaLlons from Lhls case sLudy are LhaL leglslaLlon and courL rules of
evldence should be changed so LhaL all personal effecLs such as dlarles [ournals
and excerpLs from such are ruled fully lnadmlsslble as Lhey do noL necessarlly
provlde a wlndow lnLo Lhe wrlLer's mlnd AddlLlonally Lhe pracLlce of Lrylng
mulLlple crlmes slmulLaneously needs Lo be addressed AddlLlonally changes Lo
Lhe larger sysLem need Lo be consldered so LhaL approprlaLe acLlon elLher by Lhe
pollce Lhe medlcal sysLem or Lhe famlly supporL sysLem ls Laken earller lL
appears LhaL pollce and coroner lnvesLlgaLlons of Lhe flrsL Lhree deaLhs dld noL
ralse Lhe necessary alarms or prompL approprlaLe lnLervenLlons lf kaLhleen's
dlarles dld as karren Pall clalmed acLually say 'WlLh a blL of help Lhls won'L
happen agaln' Lhen ls seems LhaL Lhe sysLem falled her Lraglcally 1he courLs
lncludlng Lhe coroner's courL and Lhe [usLlce sysLem are parL of a larger soclal
sysLem LhaL supporLs and upholds our way of llfe When Lhey fall elLher by noL
comprehenslvely lnvesLlgaLlng a deaLh or noL conslderlng all Lhe evldence around a
deaLh Lhen Lhe sysLem falls and our soclal fabrlc ls endangered kaLhleen lolblgg
deserved supporL from our soclal sysLem followlng Lhe deaLhs of Caleb and aLrlck
When LhaL was noL forLhcomlng she was enLlLled Lo a falr and equlLable Lrlal ln
revlew of Lhe case's evldence lL appears LhaL Lhls dld noL occur and LhaL Lhere was
a mlscarrlage of [usLlce

Parrlson helps
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Bibliograpby
Ceesche ! (2007 november 28) lqq Iott wos oo omoteot seotb 8eLrleved Aprll 17
2010 from wwwmornlngheraldcomau wwwmornlngheraldcomau/folblgg[urorsleuLh
Lawrence u 8 (2003) uoexpecteJ ueotbs lo lofoocy Sydney nSW Chlld ueaLh 8evlew
1eam
Lee C (2003 May 13) cose oqolost lqq vety sboky 8eLrleved Aprll 16 2010 from
AA AusLrallan naLlonal news Wlre wwwwlrecom
Lee C (2003 May 8) oty lolsb t lqq 1tlo xpecteJ 8eLrleved Aprll 17 2010 from
wwwmornlngheraldcomau wwwmornlngheraldcomau/earlyflnlshfolblggLrlal
MaLLhew 8enns and Lamon u (2004 november 21) 1be Mst noteJ wmeo Alve
8eLrleved Aprll 17 2010 from SunPeraldcomau wwwsunheraldcomau
nA (nd) N5w cblJ klet kotbeeo lqq joleJ ft 40 yeots 8eLrleved Aprll 16 2010
from enoLes wwwenoLescom
Wllllams C (2003) lJ et kotbeeo lqq oyslt my klJs 8eLrleved Aprll 13 2010 from
enoLes wwwenoLescom
Wlre A A (nd) cblJ klet kotbeeo lqqs cose lo cott oqolo 8eLrleved Aprll 17
2010 from AusLralla/new Zealand 8eferencer CenLre wwwenoLescom