User:CesFranCa11/OLES2129/draft

This is the draft page for Mount Isa Murders

Associated WikiProjects:

My article would most appropriately fit in the overarching Australian Crime project as the crime was committed in Northern Queensland, Australia.

Wikipedia:WikiProject Australian Crime

Description of proposed page content:

The Mount Isa Murders took place 12 km from the small North Queensland town at Spear Creek. A passing local came across three bodies in the Spear Creek bushland. The trio, Karen Edwards (23), Tim Thompson (31) and Gordon Twaddle (21) and their Doberman, Tristie were last seen leaving a Caravan Park in Mount Isa accompanied by another unidentified man on Thursday October 5th, 1978. This unidentified man was thought to have been a suspect, with sightings of both him and his vehicle a number of times around the time of the murders. Mysteriously, the man nor his vehicle were ever found and the case remains unsolved to this day. Police have reopened the case, urging anyone with information to come forward.

This is my proposal for the following WP:N, WP:V, WP:NPV

Justification of Article Choice

Given the information provided in the notability, validity and neutral point of view guidelines, this article will comply in the following ways:


 * The information that will be included in this article will be from reputable sources, namely journalistic publications with a reputation for employing experienced and professional journalists and for fact checking. These include the ABC, Northwestern Star and _____. This means that the content in this article will be valid.
 * This topic is notable for a number of reasons: there are a multitude of published pieces and significant coverage that provide direct and detailed insights into the Mount Isa cold case. This means that no original research will be required to extract the necessary content. Despite this being a cold case, it has recently been reopened in the hopes of finding new leads. This makes the case particularly notable. In the case of mentioning living persons, this will be done only in relation to police chiefs who are making appeals and statements, and will be completely free of emotional language.
 * Given that the nature of the sources is objectively written and reported on, this will allow for a neutral point of view to be clearly adhered to. Despite the emotional nature of murder cases, the sources present the information impartially, which means this article will be presented accordingly and with ease.

 Justification of Sources 

A feature of all these articles is that they contain live police appeals and the number to contact to repeat on any leads. Police are urging anyone with information to come forward. The significance and current relevance of this case and these articles makes these especially notable and valuable in presenting the facts of this case and well as reporting on the ongoing position of the case. Despite these sources all being of the same nature (news paper articles) they are reliable pieces of journalistic writing published by reputable sources and local papers. Given the nature of this topic - a relatively recent crime - it can be expected that the sources would be news articles.

SOURCE ONE: Cold Case of Trio Shot in Mount Isa - ABC source

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-23/cold-case-of-trio-shot-in-mount-isa-bush-prompts-fresh-appeal/10932808


 * This article outlines the occurrences in the murder case; the victims' names, cause of deaths and some history of Mount Isa, as well as evidence that was found. It will be used in the Overview or introductory section of this article to outline the general events that took place and to establish the progression of the case at the time. It was published by the Australian Broadcasting Network (ABC), a reputable source known for fact checking and reporting honestly and without bias. The article presents no contentious information about any living persons and only presents factual information in a non emotional, neutral manner. This is a recent source, having been published on 23rd March 2019, contributing to its notability. Although news sources often contain a combination of factual and opinion pieces, it can be concluded that this article is does not contain content associated with the latter, it merely reports on events of the past and informs of events currently occurring. The information in this piece also corresponds with other reports of the crime. The author, Lucy Murray has written a number of articles for the ABC and is the journalist for Queensland, implying she has experience in her field and in the area.

SOURCE TWO: Fifty New Leads In Spear Creek Murder Cold Case

https://www.northweststar.com.au/story/5985298/fifty-new-leads-in-spear-creek-murder-cold-case/


 * This article will be used in the "Reopening the Case" section, where I will outline the current police appeals and the new leads discovered. It was published on April 1, 2019 is extremely up to date as it is so recent. It includes brand new leads in the case, a detailed timeline which is extremely useful factual information to include in this page. This provides insight into the movements of the victims prior to their murder, and how these events helped police It is a local newsource (from Mount Isa). It's location and proximity to the murders, the on going investigation and police sources makes it a notable and reliable source. This source also outline the police appeals and demonstrates their dedication to finding and convicting the right suspect in this case. The author of this article is Lucy Murray, an experienced journalist and published author who has been part of the Mount Isa community since 1992, allowing her to gain insights into and information about the murders and the sentiments of locals who experienced this case during the 70s.

SOURCE 3: Man Jailed over Mount Isa Double Murder

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-04-25/man-jailed-over-mount-isa-double- murder/3971958


 * This article will be used in the "History" section where I will detail the crime history of the area - there have been a number of other violent crimes committed in Mount Isa and surroundings. The article provides valuable information about these other murders, some of which were even once linked to the Mount Isa cold case. This helps to present the history of Mount Isa and places the cold case and other murders in the context of the history of the area. Once again, the ABC is a reputable source known for fact checking and presenting unbiased information.

SOURCE 4: Families plead with killer

https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/a-lot-of-people-know-who-did-it-families-plead-with-killer-20190323-p516ut.html


 * This article is very valuable in providing information into the Police Investigation (to be included in the corresponding section of this article). There are details about the case as it unfolded at the time as well as what was known about the killer at the time and the man under suspicion for the murders. It also outlines the crime scene, how the bodies were found, the clothes they were wearing, the location of their belongings and dog, and how people had seen and come into contact with the suspected killer. Direct quotes from the Chief Superintendent on the reopened case will be included as this is highly significant to the "Reopened Case section". Again, the source is notable, does not sensationalise the case and presents information objectively and from a neutral point of view. It contains notable information and is written by a reliable experienced journalist Lydia Lynch. It is also a recent article, published on March 23, 2019.

SOURCE 5: Detective Senior Constable Deborah Wilson

https://www.justice.qld.gov.au/corporate/events-seminars/law-week/justice-journeys/staff-profiles/detective-senior-constable-deborah-wilson


 * This source will be included in the "Reopening the case" section as it provides clear and detailed procedure of the case's reopening; that is the process of reevaluating old evidence and testimony from witnesses to draw out any new conclusions or leads, and appealing to the public to provide any further details i.e. identity and location of the suspect at the time, the whereabouts of his vehicle, and any new potential suspects. It is published on a Queensland government website, a highly reputable source, and has direct quotes from police officers involved in the investigation. Given that these people are still living, any information disclosed involving their comments and/or names will be done so without opinion, original research, or positive/negative language, so as to comply with the neutral point of view guidelines

History
The Mount Isa area has a long history of murders and unsolved crimes. In 2009, an 82 year old man was found murdered in his Mount Isa home, and long with his wife (71) who was seriously injured. She sustained significant head injuries and placed in an induced coma at Mount Isa Base Hospital. She later died in hospital. The suspect Donald Tommy George was sentenced to life in prison in 2012, with a mandatory non-parole period of 20 years.

Victims
Karen Edwards, Tim Thomson and Gordon Twaddle were found shot dead at 10 kilometers north of Mount Isa in north-west Queensland at Spear Creek in October of 1978. The body of Edwards was discovered by local resident Stan Harris while on a walk with his greyhounds. He found the body sprawled against a tree 12 km from Mount Isa at Spear Creek. The following morning, police found the bodies of Thompson and Twaddle similarly positioned. All three bodies were left to decompose in the open.

Timeline of Events
September 30, 1978

Edwards arrived in Alice Springs where she met up with Thompson and Twaddle before driving North on Monday October 2, 1978

October 2, 1978

The trio stopped at Aileron where they camped overnight in the Northern Territory

October 3, 1978

etc....

Police appeals
An appeal by police made on __ March urged anyone with information regarding the murders to come forward. All articles written on the case contain the same appeal and phone number to contact police, leading to almost 50 leads in the span of a week. Police revealed that while some of these contained information they already had, there was some new leads. The investigation is ongoing.