AAP General News (Australia)
04-11-2011
VIC:Bridge dad rants after life sentence
By Daniel Fogarty
MELBOURNE, April 11 AAP - The murder of toddler Darcey Freeman, whose father threw
her to her death off Melbourne's West Gate Bridge, has been described by a judge as an
attack on the institution of the family.
As he sentenced Arthur Phillip Freeman to life in jail, Justice Paul Coghlan said his
crime could not have been more horrible.
"Your crime is a most fundamental breach of trust and it is an attack on the institution
of the family which is so dear to the community," Justice Coghlan said.
The sentence, which carried a 32-year minimum, prompted a bizarre reaction from Freeman
who launched into a rant against his former in-laws.
But his reaction did nothing to detract from the scathing words of Justice Coghlan.
Freeman, the judge said, used Darcey to hurt his former wife Peta Barnes "as profoundly
as possible".
Justice Coghlan described Freeman as a self-centred murderer who chose a murder site
that would have the most dramatic impact.
Freeman remained silent and expressionless as Justice Coghlan described him throwing
Darcey from the bridge.
"This was the killing of an innocent child," he said.
"The throwing of your four-year-old daughter from a bridge more than 58 metres above
the ground could not be more horrible.
"What Darcey's last thoughts might have been does not bear thinking about and her death
must have been a painful and protracted one."
After the sentence was delivered, Freeman, who had remained silent during his trial
and throughout Monday's sentencing, announced he wished to make a statement.
He then started making accusations against a member of his ex-wife's family.
Freeman was restrained by guards and pulled from the court dock.
The Barnes family, who had shown little emotion as the sentence was delivered, appeared
amused by the outburst.
They were among about 100 people crammed into the Victorian Supreme Court room for the sentence.
In an unusual and telling reflection of the impact of Darcy's murder, members of the
jury who rejected Freeman's defence that he was "mad not bad" returned to court to hear
the sentence.
The wider effect of the crime on Melbourne was highlighted by the live broadcast on
television and radio of Justice Coghlan's sentencing address.
Justice Coghlan said many people would believe that Freeman deserved to be locked away forever.
But he said the complex sentencing process required him to consider many factors.
"Whatever happens, you will spend what may be regarded by many as the best years of
your life in prison," he said.
"I do not regard you as being beyond redemption."
But Justice Coghlan also said Freeman was remorseless.
"Your behaviour through the whole of this period of your life was self-centred, with
a strong tendency to blame others," he said.
"You are yet to say sorry to anyone for what you have done."
On Monday, as he did throughout the trial, Freeman wore a dark suit.
A small tuft of hair stuck up on the top of his bald head, with unkempt, long strands
at the back.
His hair, combined with his thick beard, were a stark contrast to the short-haired,
clean-shaven man captured on CCTV footage the day he murdered his daughter.
Minutes before the murder on January 29, 2009, Freeman telephoned Ms Barnes and told
her to "say goodbye to your children".
He parked his four-wheel drive in the left-hand emergency lane of the bridge, coaxed
Darcey out the car and picked her up.
Freeman then carried the child in his arms to the edge of the bridge and threw her over the edge.
His oldest son Ben, six, and youngest son Jack, two, watched the murder from the car.
"The community only hopes Jack will be too young to remember," Justice Coghlan said.
Freeman, 37, will be 67 when he is eligible for release in January 2041.
AAP df/mn/mh/mn/nb
KEYWORD: FREEMAN WRAP (PIX AVAILABLE)
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