Lindy Chamberlain
In 1982, Lindy Chamberlain was convicted of killing her nine-week old daughter, Azaria, two years earlier on a camping trip to Ayres Rock (now known as Uluru). The case captivated the nation and at the time was one of the most publicised murder trials the country had ever seen. Everyone had an opinion and, the popular opinion was against Lindy. Lindy and her husband, Michael, maintained that Azaria had been taken by a dingo while the prosecution presented a case that was circumstantial and relied on forensic evidence. Lindy was found guilty of murder and given a life sentence while her husband was found guilty of being an accessory after the fact and received an eighteen month suspended sentence.
The reality was that the the forensic evidence was seriously flawed and the Chamberlains were acquitted in 1988. Later, in 2012, a further inquest found that Azaria had been taken and killed by a dingo.
The Shameful Tale of What Happened to Lindy Chamberlain
Probably the most infamous case in Australia, certainly the case that has received the most publicity, which revealed the fragility of the criminal justice system, is the Chamberlain case. On 17 August 1980 Azaria Chamberlain went missing from a camp site at Ayres Rock (Uluru) in the Northern Territory. Azaria
Media Reports – Lindy Chamberlain
The media has followed the case since its inception. While the earlier reports were demonising, the later scientific evidence has raised the obvious question – did the court get it wrong? This question is not only raised in the Australian media, but media outlets in other countries have taken an
Royal Commission of Inquiry into Chamberlain Convictions
A copy of the Royal Commission Report is available below. You will need to download it and read the pdf file. Royal Commission of Inquiry into Chamberlain Convictions, Report, Commonwealth Parliamentary Papers (1987), volume 15, paper 192