Queensland Passes New Laws to Ensure Independent of Forensic Testing

How the death of Shandee Blackburn led to the establishment of Forensic Science Queensland, and a Forensic Science Advisory Council.

Queensland Minister for Health, Mental Health and Ambulance Services and Minister for Women, Shannon Fentiman is seen during a press conference at Parliament House in Brisbane, Australia on Oct. 11, 2023. AAP Image/Darren England

Queensland is poised to establish a new, independent forensic testing service, accompanied by an oversight body consisting of representatives from the justice sector.

This initiative follows the exposure of significant deficiencies at the state-run lab, potentially impacting 40,000 past cases.

New laws—supported by the Labor government, the Liberal National opposition, and the Greens—establish a framework for a new Forensic Science Queensland.

This structure will include an independent director, a government office for the director, and the Forensic Science Queensland Advisory Council composed of 11 members.

The person appointed as director must have a tertiary qualification in a relevant scientific discipline, and at least 10 years of practical experience in forensics.

The advisory council will consist members from various sectors, including law enforcement, prosecutors, victim support, independent forensic scientists, and lawyers in private legal practice.

This legislation makes Queensland the first state with a dedicated statutory framework governing the provision of forensic services.

Announcing the passage of the legislation, Queensland health minister Shannon Fentiman said DNA testing and analysis was “a fundamental part of the criminal justice system” and described the legislation as “an incredibly positive step towards restoring public confidence in Queensland’s forensic services.”

One Unsolved Murder Sparks a Chain of Events

In February 2013, 23-year-old Shandee Blackburn was walking home from work in Mackay, Queensland, in the early hours of the morning when she was attacked and stabbed more than 20 times.

After an 18-month investigation, police eventually charged her former boyfriend John Peros with her murder. However, after a 12-day trial with more than a dozen witnesses in 2017, a jury took just two hours to find him not guilty.

Since then, no one has been found guilty of her murder.

During an inquest in 2020, coroner David O'Connell ruled there was ample evidence that showed Mr. Peros had a motive to attack Ms. Blackburn, that a vehicle seen driving away from the scene in the minutes after the attack was owned by Mr. Peros, and ruled out several other persons of interest in the case—including one who claimed to have committed the murder.

Queensland Magistrate and Coroner David O'Connell Courtesy of Macrossan & Amiet Solicitors

“Miss Blackburn died due to injuries sustained during an incident involving violence with Mr. John Peros, who used a bladed instrument,” Mr. O'Connell concluded.

Whistleblower and forensic biologist Kirsty Wright who, speaking to the media in 2021, described the original prosecution case as a “forensic train wreck.”

“What I’ve found is quite unbelievable,” she said.

“Critical errors that may have prevented the offender from Shandee’s murder from being identified. An example is a DNA swab that was collected from a fresh pool of blood from the gutter where Shandee was killed, and the laboratory could not obtain a DNA sample from that sample.

“If a laboratory cannot get a DNA profile from a fresh pool of blood, how can it get a DNA profile from trace evidence that could assist the police in resolving this matter?”

Senior lecturer in Forensic Biology, Kirsty Wright Courtesy of Griffith University

Incorrect testing at the laboratory as part of the investigation linked the wrong people to crime scene samples taken from Ms. Blackburn’s clothing.

“For even one incorrect result to be released from a laboratory is inexcusable, but in this case, there were 17,” Ms. Wright said.

“All of the samples need to be retested by another laboratory and I believe that there has to be a public inquiry.

“I don’t believe other cases may have been spared these issues ... and what we’re seeing with Shandee’s case may be the tip of a very large iceberg.”

Two Inquiries Found Over 100,000 Flaws

Ms. Wright’s prediction proved to be correct. An initial inquiry in 2022 saw concerns raised about the state-run forensic lab, and retesting of samples was ordered.

However, that was stopped when it was revealed the retests may also be faulty, and another inquiry was ordered in 2023. These revelations found that nearly 40,000 cases had been affected by failures at the lab, with more than 100,000 samples needing re-testing. Two senior staff members were stood down as a result.

Inspector David Neville, manager of the Queensland police service’s DNA unit, told the inquiry that police had lost faith in the results that were being delivered, and had begun to routinely ask for further testing on major crimes.

Police had compiled a spreadsheet detailing the results of samples from January 2021 that showed they had requested further testing on 393 samples, with 33 percent of the results subsequently returning a usable profile.

The inquiries identified an automated DNA extraction method used from 2007 to 2016 known as Project 13.

They found the project to be “fundamentally flawed” as it routinely failed to test samples under a certain threshold, labelling DNA as “insufficient” or saying none could be detected.

Ms. Fentiman underscored the urgency of addressing these deficiencies.

“It was never scientifically validated. The DNA lab really did away with scientifically sound methodology—they sacrificed that for speed. There was a complete lack of accountability and scientific methodology—there was no quality assurance in place,” she said.

“All of Dr. Kirsty Wright’s concerns about Project 13 were valid,” Ms. Fentiman said.

Speaking in Parliament this week, she praised the family of Shandee Blackburn and Ms. Wright for their advocacy.

“The bill was developed in response to the 2022 Commission of Inquiry,” she told parliament. “The purpose of these dedicated efforts [in parliament] is to ensure that we have a top class [forensic service system]. The bill will implement a model of forensic service delivery that no other Australian jurisdiction has.”

Mr. Peros has maintained his innocence and no one has ever been found guilty of Ms. Blackburn’s murder.