For forty years, we never had access to all the facts surrounding the horrific murder of our dear island sister and friend, Melinda White. To this day, Carrie and I are still trying to uncover what really happened on New Year’s Eve at the Mala Bay Cabaret in 1984 on Granite Island. As one of Carrie and Mel’s best friends from our island days, I am more driven than ever to find some closure for the White family.
Over the years, I have witnessed the family’s struggle with the effects of trauma from an unresolved murder case. Mel was only seventeen when she was brutally assaulted and raped. The family was left in the dark—there was no coronial inquiry or appeal. After the acquittal of the perpetrator, the whole case just faded away as other cases took the spotlight.
The main three departments I need to communicate with to access our 40-year-old restricted case files are the QPS (Queensland Police Service), OIC (Office of the Information Commissioner), and the QSA (Queensland State Archives). Out of these three government agencies, the OIC has remained compassionate, thorough, helpful, and insightful.
Today, I was disappointed to forward an email from the State Archives to the OIC, explaining that we have hit another roadblock. The remaining police files, those that haven’t been lost, are restricted until 2049. Now, the court transcripts for the murder case are also unavailable because the perpetrator was seventeen at the time of the murder. There are special rules around minors and protecting their rights.
But what about the forty years of hell the family has endured because nothing was done?
The emotions that fester when a family member is suddenly murdered are well-documented now. An unresolved murder can have profound and long-lasting negative effects on a family, including intense grief, disrupted relationships, persistent anxiety, difficulty moving forward, feelings of powerlessness, social isolation, and a constant sense of unfinished business. These often lead to significant mental health concerns for all family members involved. This crime remains unsolved, with a failed prosecution, and the case files conveniently lost and locked away to protect the guilty minor.
The current state premier often talks about “adult crime, adult time” in the news, addressing the surge in youth crime. But no one takes it seriously unless someone dies at the hands of a minor—then it becomes an important issue.
Sadly, we are still unable to find closure, create a timeline of events, or understand Mel’s last few hours on this planet. Carrie and I must keep pushing back until we have the full story, and until the state of Queensland shows complete compassion and understanding.
Our next steps involve contacting our local members. Following that, we will inform the media that a review has occurred, revealing a complete lack of accountability and transparency on behalf of the QPS, and even worse, a disregard for the facts by the State. The family deserves to be heard, apologised to, and compensated for the devastating mishandling of this murder case.