Bridge killer 'in control'
The Age
Tuesday March 22, 2011
ARTHUR Freeman knew what he was doing when he threw his four-year-old daughter off the West Gate Bridge, a court has heard.Forensic psychiatrist Douglas Bell testified in Victoria's Supreme Court that Freeman would not have been able to complete tasks as complex as lifting Darcey over the railing of the bridge had he been in a "dissociated" mental state.Dr Bell, who has interviewed Freeman three times, said the fact Freeman spoke to a friend for almost 15 minutes during the drive from Aireys Inlet, and received calls from his ex-wife, in which he told her to "Say goodbye to the children", suggested he was aware of what was going on around him. So did observations of him on the bridge. "Mr Freeman parks his car in the far left emergency lane and puts his hazard lights on. He opens the door of his car, reaches in, and pulls Darcey from her seat. He holds her firmly and walks her to the bridge, then lifts her above the high side rail and throws her over."He then returns to his car, starts it, and drives off into the traffic . . . His son asks him if he can hop in the front. Mr Freeman replies, 'Yes,' pulls over again, and once Ben has moved into the front seat again drives off. This is a complex and protracted sequence of goal-directed behaviours that are not compatible with a state of mind in which the behaviour is not conscious or voluntary."Freeman, 37, has pleaded not guilty to murder on the grounds of mental impairment.
© 2011 The Age