The Murder of Allison Baden-Clay


Book Description

How did a father with no criminal history come to be on trial for the brutal murder of his wife? It began with a phone call to Brisbane police on 20 April 2012. Allison, wife of real estate agent Gerard Baden-Clay, was missing. When investigating officers arrived at the family home, in one of the city’s wealthiest suburbs, a neatly dressed Gerard was about to send the couple’s three daughters off to school. Scratches on his face were shaving cuts, he told them. Police weren’t so sure and opened one of Australia’s most high-profile investigations. Ten days after Gerard reported Allison’s disappearance, the body of the former beauty queen was discovered on a creek bank 14 kilometres from home. The Murder of Allison Baden-Clay is written by the investigative journalist who covered the case from the start. It weaves together exclusive interviews and police and court records to explain how an upstanding family man with no criminal history received a life sentence for murder. It's a story of love, lust, image, ambition and marriage. It’s also a story about everyday choices and their consequences.




Why Did They Do It?


Book Description

The cases that stunned Australia - and left us all with one question: Why did they do it? Peter Caruso bludgeoned his wife to death after almost fifty years of happy marriage. John Myles Sharpe killed his pregnant wife and their young daughter with a speargun. Katherine Knight stabbed and skinned her partner with the intention of serving his cooked carcass to his children. These and other crimes, committed by people described as average, ordinary, normal... In Why Did They Do It?, respected journalist Cheryl Critchley teams with esteemed psychologist Professor Helen McGrath to meticulously dissect the crimes, the evidence, the testimony, the confessions, and the overwhelming diagnostic evidence to analyse the minds and motivations behind crimes that shocked the nation.




I Catch Killers


Book Description

THE #1 TRUE CRIME BESTSELLER. Serial killings, child abductions, organised crime hits and domestic murders. This is the memoir of a homicide detective. WINNER OF 2021 DANGER PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION Here I am: tall and broad, shaved head, had my nose broken three times fighting. Black suit, white shirt, the big city homicide detective. I've led investigations into serial killings, child abductions, organised crime hits and domestic murders. But beneath the suit, I've got an Om symbol in the shape of a Buddha tattooed on my right bicep. It balances the tattoo on my left ribs: Better to die on your feet than live on your knees. That's how I choose to live my life. As a cop, I got paid to catch killers and I learned what doing it can cost you. It cost me marriages and friendships. It cost me my reputation. They tell you not to let a case get personal, but I think it has to. Each one has taken a piece out of me and added a piece, until there's only pieces. I catch killers - it's what I do. It's who I am. Gary Jubelin was one of Australia's most celebrated detectives, leading investigations into the disappearance of preschooler William Tyrrell, the serial killing of three Aboriginal children in Bowraville and the brutal gangland murder of Terry Falconer. During his 34-year career, Detective Chief Inspector Jubelin also ran the crime scene following the Lindt Cafe siege, investigated the death of Caroline Byrne and recovered the body of Matthew Leveson. Jubelin retired from the force in 2019. This is his story.




Where is Daniel?


Book Description

On 7 December 2003 Daniel Morcombe disappeared on the Sunshine Coast, while waiting for a bus. For Bruce and Denise Morcombe - the parents of Daniel - and his brothers, Bradley and Dean, it was apparent within hours that something was very wrong. In the first few days following Daniel's disappearance, Bruce and Denise made a promise to their son that they would never ever stop looking for him, and bring who was responsible to justice. 'We will never give up.' As the nightmare of hours became days then weeks, and months and years, the family mobilised to become the moral force behind the longest criminal investigation in Australia's history. Where is Daniel? covers the decade-long investigation into the disappearance of Daniel and the extraordinary courage, dignity, persistence and fortitude Bruce and Denise displayed under unbearable circumstances. This determination also applied to Bruce and Denise's desire to mine something positive from the darkest of experiences. They started the Daniel Morcombe Foundation in 2005, to teach children about safety, and have since visited hundreds of schools around Australia. They've established Australia's largest annual child safety day-of-action, 'Day for Daniel', and utilised the funds raised to support other children who have been the victims of abuse. Over a decade later, with Daniel's killer brought to justice thanks to an amazing covert police sting, this is the family's story. Where is Daniel? is a testament to the enduring power of love between parents and their child, and the strength and bonds of family to survive.




The Society Murders


Book Description

The story of the 'society murders' that rocked a family, a class and a city to its very core.




The Vanishing Criminal


Book Description

In 2000, Australia had the highest rate of burglary, the highest rate of contact crime (assault, sexual assault and robbery) and the second highest rate of motor vehicle theft among the 25 countries included in the international crime victim survey, which takes in the United States, the United Kingdom and most western European countries. Then in 2001, Australian crime statistics began to decline. By 2018, rates of the most common forms of crime had fallen between 40 and 80 percent and were lower than they’d been in twenty or in some cases thirty years. Australia is not the only country to have experienced this social trend. In The Vanishing Criminal Don Weatherburn and Sara Rahman set out to explain the dramatic fall in crime, rigorously but accessibly comparing competing theories against the available evidence. Their conclusions will surprise many and reshape the terms for discussion of these questions well into the future.




Conviction


Book Description

Juan Martinez, the fiery prosecutor who convicted notorious murderess Jodi Arias for the disturbing killing of Travis Alexander, speaks for the first time about the shocking investigation and sensational trial that captivated the nation. Through two trials, America watched with baited breath as Juan Martinez fought relentlessly to convict Jodi Arias of Murder One for viciously stabbing her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander to death. What emerged was a story wrought with sex, manipulation, and deceit that stunned the public at every turn. Arias, always playing the wronged and innocent woman, changed her story continually as her bizarre behavior surrounding the crime and its aftermath came to light. Unwavering, Arias and her defense team continued to play off the salacious details of the case, until she was finally found guilty and—controversially—sentenced to life behind bars. Now, speaking openly for the first time, prosecutor Juan Martinez will unearth new details from the investigation that were never revealed at trial, exploring key facts from the case and the pieces of evidence he chose to keep close to the vest. Throughout the trials, his bullish and unfaltering prosecution strategy was both commended and criticized, and in his book, Martinez will illuminate the unique tactics he utilized in this case and how they lead to a successful conviction, and-for the first time-discuss how he felt losing the death penalty sentence he’d pursued for years. Going beyond the news reports, Martinez will explore the truth behind the multiple facades of Jodi Arias. Sparring with her from across the stand, Martinez came to know Arias like no one else could, dissecting what it took for a seemingly normal girl to become a deluded, cunning, and unrepentant murderer. With new stories from behind the scenes of the trial and Martinez’s own take on his defendant, the book takes you inside the mind of Jodi Arias like never before. Complete with 16 pages of photos from the case and trial, this book is the definitive account of the case that shocked America.




The Jaidyn Leskie Murder


Book Description

the disappearance of Jaidyn Leskie has captivated the nation for a decade. Babysitter Greg Domaszewicz was charged with killing the child, his girlfriend's son, and throwing the body in a lake. One court acquitted him of the crime and another said he had disposed of the body: so who did kill Jaidyn? this new, updated edition contains interviews with Jaidyn's parents, Domaszewicz's former lover and friends, and the full statements of prisoners who claimed Greg had confessed to the crime. Author Michael Gleeson was granted extensive access to police files to help pull together the threads of a tangled story and navigate a path through the maze of possibilities that came to light during the case.




Remembering Anita Cobby


Book Description

John Cobby finally tells his story, 30 years after the murder of his wife, Anita. On 4 February 1986, John Cobby's life imploded. He was driving up the coast looking for his missing wife, Anita, when over the radio he heard: 'The body of a naked woman has been found in a paddock in western Sydney.' . . . As details emerged of the rape and murder of the gentle nurse and former beauty queen, outrage engulfed Australia. Five men were caught and, amid unprecedented security, jailed for life. For young reporter Mark Morri, the case was a baptism of fire. Told to 'find the husband', he despaired: Cobby had changed his name and disappeared. But the Daily Mirror found him, and Morri's interviews sold like hotcakes. For nearly 30 years, Morri and Cobby kept in touch. In this book John finally opens up, recounting how he and Anita fell in love, suffered the pain of miscarriage and then went travelling. He also explains why they were apart at the time of the murder. Weaving in chilling material from the autopsy and police files, and interviews with detectives who hunted down the killers, Mark Morri explores the ripple effects of the murder that still shocks a nation.




World Atlas of Seagrasses


Book Description

Seagrasses are a vital and widespread but often overlooked coastal marine habitat. This volume provides a global survey of their distribution and conservation status.