Arthur Freeman Essay

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Case Study Report ARTHUR PHILLIP FREEMAN INTRODUCTION On January 29th of 2009, Arthur Phillip Freeman murdered his four year old daughter, Darcey Freeman, by throwing her off the West Gate Bridge in Melbourne. Freeman was a father of three, being Benjamin (born 1 February 2000); Darcey (born 11 February 2004); and Jackson (born 24 February 2006). At the time of the offence, he was 35 years of age and recently divorced from Peta Barnes, who was Darcey’s mother, (Austlii, 2011, 15th April, 2012). It was meant to be Darcey’s first day of school, and had been organised for Freeman to pick up his children from his parents house in Aireys Inlet, and to meet Barnes, the mother of the children, at St Joseph’s Primary School in Hawthorn. Instead, he drove the children to the highest point on the West Gate Bridge, led Darcey over to the parapet of the bridge, lifted her up and threw her over the edge of the bridge to her death in the water more than 50 metres below, (Austlii, 2011, 15th April, 2012). On April 11th of 2011, Supreme Court Justice Paul Coghlan sentenced Arthur Phillip Freeman to life in jail with a non-parole period of 32 years for the murder of his daughter, (Matt Schulz, Nathan Mawby, 2001, 15th April, 2012). THE CRIME The crime was conducted in the state of Victoria, and falls under the Crime Act 1900, under Section 18, where it states, “Murder shall be taken to have been committed where the act of the accused, or thing by him or her omitted to be done, causing the death charged, was done or omitted with reckless indifference to human life, or with intent to kill or inflict grievous bodily harm upon some person”, (Austlii, 15th April, 2012). In regards to Freeman, his actions caused the death of his daughter. Most crimes have two components: mens rea (or intent) and actus reus (action). Both intent and action are normally required to find a person

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