Book Review

Bowraville

Written by Dan Box

Published 2019

Dan Box was an Australian journalist. Australian was owned by Murdoch, so I didn’t read anything from them. I was a late reader about the Bowraville murders.

There were three Bowraville murders, all children, in 1990. In 1991 *James Hide was arrested and charged with the murder of the third person who was killed. Nine days later the clothing of the first victim were found in the local river, and ten days later the second victim’s body was found. Hide’s lawyers asked for the charges to be heard separately and the court judge agreed. None of the families could understand why. The jury sat in the Grafton court in 1994, heard the first murder case, and found Hide not guilty. In that case the other two murders would not be heard.

*name has been changed

The police inspector, Gary Jubelin, wanted to keep on inspecting, and was given approval by his commander. By 2003 Jubelin took his information to the coroner and asked him to hold an inquest which would help the police to take Hide back to court. In 2004 the coroner said he could not make a decision, and sent a letter to the state director of public prosecutions, Nicholas Cowdery, asking him to make a decision. By May 2005 the DPP had agreed with him, and sent the murders back to court.

It was February 2006, 16 years after the murders, that it would end up, all three together, in court. Hide still did not answer any questions – he did not have to prove nothing. Once again he was found not guilty.

For the next few years Leonie Deroux, one of the family, wrote letters to local politicians, the state governor, the Ombudsman, newspapers, senators, ministers, the federal opposition and the Prime Minister eventually. She asked her local MP for assistance with a change of the ‘double jeopardy’ legislation.

Box met up with Gary Jubelin in 2014 and was told about the murders. Jubelin wanted him to write about them, the families, what has happened and what should happen. Box took this on. He didn’t get to meet the Aboriginal families until 2016, but had spoken to them by phone before that. He visited Bowraville, went to where two of the bodies had been found, joined the families in court, wrote podcasts and wrote articles for the Australian. He spoke to Gabrielle Upton, the NSW attorney general, and finally, after a final request from her to the Court of Criminal Appeal, the trial went back to court on 29 November 2017 – 27 years after the murders. It took the three judges nine months to make their own decision – there will not be a retrial.

This, for me, means that this country – or, at least, NSW – have not decided to rewrite the double jeopardy legislation and hear all three murders in one court. I can’t think why they have done this; my condolence and support go to the Aboriginal families who must be the first families in this country who suffer this ridiculous ‘law’.

Dan Box had learned, at this trial, that he had to change the name of the man who had been charged – he is now known, in this book, as James Hide. He is still out of jail, but for me, he is guilty. How many others who have read or will read this book think that too?

Box did so well, preparing his journalism and his writing. I would hope that he and the police and the Aboriginal families will get on with their lives, but I know that won’t happen.