Hannah Clarke, 31, was leaving her parents’ Brisbane home on 19 February 2020 to take her children to school when Baxter, 42, jumped into the car. He splashed fuel and set it alight before stabbing himself and dying nearby. The bodies of Aaliyah, six, Laianah, four, and Trey, three, were found in the vehicle; Clarke died in hospital.
Two months earlier, Baxter grabbed his middle child, Laianah, at an access visit and took her interstate. Police initially treated the matter as a custody dispute because no formal parenting orders were in place.
This body-worn camera footage released to Guardian Australia by the coroner shows two male police officers who served Baxter with the order telling him how to challenge it in court.
“Talk to your friends about, you know, someone who might be willing to provide a reference,” one officer says.
The other adds: “To say you are a good dad and … don’t need any conditions.”
The footage also shows one of the officers agreeing with a comment from Baxter that women can make domestic violence allegations “for anything”. The camera is then turned off while officers are still speaking to Baxter, in an apparent breach of protocol.
The footage was played at inquest but the coronial findings make no mention of the officers’ comments.
In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. Other international helplines can be found via _www.befrienders.org
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