NOT HER FAULT

There was a poor, troubled, and abused woman in this city who was stabbed and beaten by her de facto husband for more than decade before one attack killed her.

Her insanely jealous partner, Robert Barrett, was originally sentenced to 25 years jail for her murder – after one of the worst cases of systematic  domestic violence ever – but is now facing a re-trial on a lesser charge of ‘reckless murder’.

And one of the saddest things here is that a young woman is not here to protect herself or her reputation as she is almost pictured as if somehow it was her fault.

The Herald Sun runs the headline Why Did She Stay? Over a photo of an attractive young woman carrying a bouquet of flowers.  And the paper said: ‘Jennifer Brodhurst kept on returning to a cruel de facto who brutally bashed her in a decade of terror’.

You can almost hear the sub-text: Stupid dumb woman, letting herself be turned into a human punching bag, kept going back, what did she expect?

Nobody can explain the complexities of why a woman in love will go back and turn the other cheek to have it as bruised and battered as the other one.

But over ten years Jennifer Brodhurst did try to get away. She made umpteen cries for help and nobody really listened. And she died.

Between 1992 and 2003, when she was spending so much time in emergency rooms and medical centres, she sought crisis accommodation at least nine times.

Repeatedly she fronted up with facial injuries. She had black eyes. She had an infected stab wound to her thigh. She told authorities of her fears. Police saw her injuries. In March 2001 she had Barrett charged with assault but withdrew the complaint. In March 2003 she was granted an interim intervention order. Two months later she was dead.

After the fatal beating Barrett did not call an ambulance for 12 hours. Jennifer had suffered from dehydration, kidney failure, fractures and bleeding on the brain.

Barrett told Police ‘Sorry. It was jealousy. I didn’t mean it. Just like last time I thought she’d get better’.

He deserved his 25 years for murder. The lesser charge of ‘reckless murder’ means he had no intent to cause Jennifer’s death or cause serious injury, but should have foreseen that he would.

Barrett was a drug addicted, cruel, insanely jealous control freak. He does not deserve a lesser sentence.

Whatever it is, I hope he didn’t ever take out Australian citizenship when his family brought him here from England as a child. That way we can deport him and Jennifer Brodhurst will have got justice from the grave.

Tuesday, April 15, 2008

© Copyright Derryn Hinch 2008