Three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer vanished from Fairy Meadow beach at Wollongong in 1970. A teenager later told police he had abducted and killed her. Decades on, he was charged with murder—but the case ended when a judge ruled that his police interview could not be used at trial. He pleaded not guilty, and no jury reached a verdict. After a tireless campaign for justice by Cheryl's family, the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions agreed to review the court ruling but recently upheld the decision to exclude the confession of the alleged killer. It was a devastating blow but the family fights on. They are now demanding an independent review of this decision and why evidence from new witnesses has not been investigated by police. In this From the Desk, Adam Shand asks how a family finds answers when the evidence at the heart of a case cannot be heard in court.

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Victoria, with the support of her new partner, Grant, reports that the father of her children has raped and sexually assaulted her. Victoria summons the courage to go through the three-year process that led to his conviction and a 13-year prison sentence. Another woman is inspired to bring charges against the perpetrator for crimes committed against her. Victoria has waived her right to anonymity to tell this story in the hope of encouraging other women to liberate themselves from abusive partners.

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Jeff Maher had a stellar career as an investigator, including a 15-year stint as a detective senior sergeant in the Victoria Police homicide squad. His crew worked on some of the most high-profile murder cases in the state’s history, which included locking up a serial killer. Peter Dupas. Jeff also worked in arson and explosives investigations. In this revealing interview, he discusses investigative methods and how he dealt with the stresses of working on horrific murder cases and dealing with the loved ones while maintaining a laser focus on professionalism. He also talks about giving back at the end of his career, training detectives at the Victoria Police Academy and a new role helping to train police in Cambodia investigating homicide and child protection cases.

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