In a “unusual” case involving the death of a police officer in an alleged hit-and-run, a lady was charged with murder and then released on bond.
On June 26, 2021, at around three in the morning, Senior Constable David Masters was struck and killed by a suspected stolen automobile on the Bruce Highway in Burpengary, north of Brisbane.
Police were not aggressively chasing the car, and the officer had just used a tyre deflation device.
According to the Crown, Skye Anne Wallis was the driver of the vehicle carrying Kari O’Brien.
Following Masters’ death, both ladies were taken into custody on murder charges, and in May, they are scheduled to appear at a committal hearing.
O’Brien’s bail request was granted on Friday after Brisbane Supreme Court Judge Catherine Muir determined that there is little chance of a murder conviction.
Justice Muir stated that she had a good chance of defending herself against the allegations, thus it was likely that she would be detained for five years until the trial.
The court heard testimony in support of Wallis’s crown case, which holds her accountable for the killing because she recklessly ignored human life while driving the car in a dangerous manner at the officer.
In opposition to the bail request, prosecutors will contend that O’Brien and Wallis shared a common goal of using a car illegally to evade capture and that the offense was a likely outcome.
It is also alleged that O’Brien encouraged Wallis to flee from the police a few hours prior to Masters being hit.
Michael Lehane, the prosecutor, informed the court that there had been hours of high-risk police evasion at very high speeds.
He claimed that following the incident in which the women visited Wallis’ mother’s home, O’Brien did not distance herself.
“We have, on the evidence of Michelle Wallis, the applicant saying: ‘I think we just killed a copper’,” Lehane stated.
O’Brien will “almost certainly” be arguing during the committal hearing that there is not enough evidence for her case to go to trial, according to O’Brien’s attorney Christopher Wilson.
According to Justice Muir, there was a substantial discrepancy in the defense and prosecution’s arguments regarding the strength of the case against O’Brien.
“I accept the facts are unusual and … my initial assessment is the prospects of the Crown obtaining a conviction for murder cannot be regarded as particularly high.”
O’Brien has battled an addiction to methylamphetamine, and the judge called her criminal background “disappointing” due to her brief incarceration.
According to Justice Muir, when there are a good chance of acquittal, the danger of a murder suspect running away does not seem as great.
Living with her mother, who will furnish a $30,000 surety, and abstaining from alcohol, drugs, firearms, and communication with witnesses are among O’Brien’s bail requirements.
Brisbane Magistrates Court has set aside five days for the committal hearing beginning on May 27.
