What really happened in 1984? What was the true story behind my friend Mel’s sudden and tragic death? In Chapter 15 of my book Spirit Being Human – Discovering Resilience After Trauma (2023), I share the shock and horror of this trauma. My next book will delve deeper into what happened, but the third book—still unwritten—I hope will finally reveal the whole truth.
Please note that my stories are based on actual events; names and locations have been changed to protect the identities of those involved.
One day she was there; the next day, she was gone. All that’s left is a fragmented memory of my best friend Carrie’s big sister, Melinda White. Will we ever truly know what happened to our dear Mel? Forty-one years is a long time to be left questioning.
When it happened, life as we knew it flipped upside down. A world of shock, horror, anger, and grief forced us, as teenagers, into a stark adult reality: the horror of a homicide. With no warning or guidance, we were left to process this tragedy alone. How were we, as teens, to come to terms with the rape and murder of our beloved sister and friend?
Mel was only seventeen. Just that week, she’d been to the Granite Island Police Station to apply for her driver’s license. Usually, she’d be seen riding her big white racing bike with butterfly handles around the island, but her mother, Shaz, had agreed to let her start using the family car to learn to drive.
Carrie, Mel, and I often spent afternoons in Mel’s bedroom, dancing to songs she’d recorded off the radio on her cassette player. Meanwhile, Shaz would be downstairs painting, always working on something new. That year, she’d designed a set of greeting cards featuring a portrait of her whole family—including their dog Lydia and pet goat Sadie. Shaz sold these cards, along with other artwork, to tourists at the island markets.
Carrie and I were only fifteen when the murder happened. Her family left the island shortly after to start a new life in the small town of Maybury. Somehow, Carrie continued her Grade 11 studies despite her unimaginable loss. Mel had planned to take singing lessons once they settled into their new property.
Then began the manhunt for Mel’s killer. The police seemed close to finding him, just a week after the crime. But how could Carrie and I—navigating high school, working part-time, and dealing with our own trauma—possibly grasp the complexities of the investigation, the law, or the Queensland Police Force?
Fast forward forty-one years, and much has changed in Queensland, especially in the realms of crime and corruption. Recently, I began researching Mel’s case. The more I uncover, the more shocked I am by what lies in the state archives—or what’s missing. I’ve contacted the Office of the Information Commissioner and the Queensland Police Service, yet the truth remains elusive.
Carrie and I want answers. We want to hold the Queensland Police Service and the state accountable for the disturbing lack of records on Mel’s case.
In 1984, someone was arrested and charged with Melinda White’s murder. Statistics show that 80-90% of murder victims know their killer, and in this case, it was true. The accused was someone we knew—a fact that stirred emotions we never fully understood. Yet only eight months later, he was acquitted.
To fully grasp the gravity of this case, you must understand who led the Queensland Police Force in 1984: the notorious Commissioner Terence M. Lewis. In 1991, Lewis was convicted on 15 counts of corruption and one count of forgery, resulting in a 25-year prison sentence. He died in 2023.
The bribery and corruption in the Queensland Police Service were rife back in 1984. To fully understand just how bad it was please read Three Crooked Kings by prize-winning Australian novelist and journalist Matthew Condon, and his following two books will no doubt be read soon after – Jacks and Jokers: The Crooked Kings, Book 2 and All Fall Down: Three Crooked Kings, Book 3. You can buy them at matthewcondon.com.au
Carrie and I will keep digging until we uncover the truth… for Melinda.