The triple-murder case against Darryl Young has entered its third week, with a forensic scientist, a forensic pathologist and a Detective Sergeant giving evidence on Monday.<\/p>\n
Young, 63, is charged with the shooting deaths of Merv and Maree Schwarz and Graham Tighe on August 4, 2022 at the front gate of his Shannonvale property.<\/p>\n
He has pleaded not guilty to three counts of murder.<\/p>\n
FOLLOW MONDAY\u2019S BLOG BELOW<\/p>\n
He has also pleaded not guilty to the attempted murder of Graham\u2019s brother Ross Tighe, who has previously told the court he fled the scene after watching Young allegedly shoot Merv in the head.<\/p>\n
On Monday a forensic scientist gave evidence about why seven gunshot residue kits taken weren\u2019t analysed, while a forensic pathologist told a court that autopsy results showed the gunshot wound to Graham Tighe\u2019s torso may have paralysed him before the fatal shot to his head.<\/p>\n
The jury also heard on Monday that there is no fingerprint evidence linking Darryl Young to the alleged murders of Merv and Maree Schwarz and Graham Tighe.<\/p>\n
The trial resumes on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
WHY GUNSHOT RESIDUE KITS WEREN\u2019T ANALYSED<\/p>\n
2:18PM: A forensic scientist has given evidence about why seven gunshot residue kits taken after three people were gunned down at the front of Darryl Young\u2019s property weren\u2019t analysed.<\/p>\n
Queensland Police Service forensic scientist Lucy Maxwell told the court GSR samples were taken from the hands of Young, his son Derek Young, a relative Sharon Young, Merv and Maree Schwarz, Graham Tighe and the inside of a Nissan Navara at Shannonvale.<\/p>\n
Ms Maxwell told the court any GSR kit collected needed to meet certain criteria before it was analysed.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome of the factors that we look at\u2026 if the kit has been collected from a person, is whether that person is a firearms licence holder,\u201d Ms Maxwell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also look at the time of collection, so whether the kit has been collected within six hours.\u201d<\/p>\n
The court heard the majority of gunshot residue was lost in the first two hours and \u201call is lost within four hours\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe also look at whether that kit has been collected from a person that has had contact with specialist police such as the Special Emergency Response Team,\u201d Ms Maxwell said.<\/p>\n
The court heard in relation to Young, Derek and Sharon, all three were firearms licence holders, had contact with SERT officers and the kits had been collected outside of six hours.<\/p>\n
Ms Maxwell said as a result it was decided not to analyse the kits.<\/p>\n
The jury also heard the kits collected from Merv, Maree and Graham were not analysed because they were all firearms licence holders.<\/p>\n
Ms Maxwell said the samples from the steering wheel and handbrake within the Nissan Navara were not analysed because there had been information that one of the six people had been in contact with the vehicle and \u201cwe would expect to find a background population of gunshot residue particles present\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cLicensed firearm holders are known to have a background population of particles on their hands\u2026 and they can also transfer those particles to their vehicles,\u201d Ms Maxwell said.<\/p>\n
Young\u2019s barrister Eric Engwirda said a negative test would have been significant also, in relation to the vehicle.<\/p>\n
\u201cNot necessarily. The transfer of particles\u2026 will depend on how much gunshot residue is present on say a person\u2019s hands, timeframe and the contact that they had,\u201d Ms Maxwell said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re to assume that a person drove a car immediately after firing a firearm and that the car then remained otherwise undisturbed for two or three days before the swabs were taken. In those circumstances you would expect to have a positive test for gunshot residue?\u201d Mr Engwrida asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s possible if there\u2019s been gunshot residues deposited on somebody\u2019s hands and they\u2019ve transferred them to a vehicle.<\/p>\n
Ms Maxwell said this was called \u201csecondary transfer, and we don\u2019t typically analyse for secondary transfer\u201d.<\/p>\n
VICTIM LIKELY PARALYSED BEFORE FATAL HEAD SHOT, AUTOPSY REVEALS<\/p>\n
1:48PM: A forensic pathologist told a court the gunshot wound to Graham Tighe\u2019s body fractured part of his spine and may have impacted his ability to move his legs.<\/p>\n
Dr Rebecca Williams performed autopsies on Merv and Maree Schwarz and Graham Tighe between four and five days after the three were allegedly shot dead by neighbour Darryl Young at the front gate of his Shannonvale property.<\/p>\n
The autopsies included both external and internal examinations on the trio, including that the wound to Graham\u2019s torso likely happened first and fractured part of his spine.<\/p>\n
Crown prosecutor David Nardone asked if that injury could have \u201cimpacted on Graham Tighe\u2019s ability to walk or move his legs\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes, that\u2019s possible that he might have been impaired by that injury, physically impaired so that his legs weren\u2019t able to move. That\u2019s possible,\u201d Dr Williams said.<\/p>\n
The court heard all three suffered life-ending gunshot wounds to the head, with Graham and Maree also suffering gunshot wounds to their torsos.<\/p>\n
The court also heard none of the wounds showed signs of powder tattooing, stippling or muzzle impressions.<\/p>\n
Mr Nardone asked about the range of fire for each of the gunshot wounds.<\/p>\n
Dr Williams said she determined Merv had been shot in the head at a distance of more than two feet.<\/p>\n
The court heard Dr Williams also determined the torso wounds to Maree and Graham appeared to be \u201cdistance\u201d range gunshots rather than close range.<\/p>\n
She was not able to determine the range in relation to the head wounds to Maree and Graham.<\/p>\n
NO FINGERPRINTS TO LINK YOUNG TO ALLEGED MURDER, COURT HEARS<\/p>\n
11:10AM: The jury has heard there is no fingerprint evidence linking Darryl Young to the alleged murders of Merv and Maree Schwarz and Graham Tighe.<\/p>\n
Bowen Detective Sergeant Anita Portage gave evidence on Monday she had attended Shannonvale station on August 4, 2022 after Young had allegedly gunned down his neighbours.<\/p>\n
Young\u2019s barrister Eric Engwirda questioned Detective Portage about evidence collected from the scene including fingerprint and DNA samples.<\/p>\n
\u201cWas there any fingerprints that connected the defendant (Young) to this offence out of the fingerprint or DNA evidence?\u201d Mr Engwirda asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo the actual shooting, no,\u201d Detective Portage said.<\/p>\n
Mr Engwirda asked how long the drive from the front gate to the homestead took.<\/p>\n
Detective Portage said it would be about 20 minutes as an estimate.<\/p>\n
The court heard there had been security at the homestead until the evening of August 6, when it was removed.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe crime scene was actually declared for the property of Shannonvale, the whole property, and there was security on that property being at the front gate where we had a crime scene guard and that\u2019s where the log was,\u201d Detective Portage told the court.<\/p>\n
Mr Engwirda asked if that was the only point of entry to the property \u201cthat you were aware of\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d Detective Portage said.<\/p>\n
She told the court she had not since been made aware of any other entry points to Shannonvale.<\/p>\n
The court heard there had been a police forensic search on the property on August 6, and then an investigative search on August 8.<\/p>\n
\u201cDid you have any concerns that the house had not been secured for a day and a half by the time the investigation search was conducted?\u201d Mr Engwirda asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo I did not,\u201d Detective Portage said.<\/p>\n
In reexamination Crown prosecutor David Nardone asked Detective Portage about her drive from the front gate to the homestead.<\/p>\n
She said it had been dark and was \u201cquite a rough road\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were driving carefully not having been on that road before,\u201d Detective Portage said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The triple-murder case against Darryl Young has entered its third week, with a forensic scientist, a forensic pathologist…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":79474,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[122370,62574,122373,122403,52113,122361,122367,43339,113555,32730,42369,122415,38106,39842,122396,52223,122421,122360,122430,122435,122380,40365,122371,122389,122413,36958,122368,122366,91561,122378,122410,22,41755,21,122376,109522,109726,122369,122397,122420,4579,122412,122409,38242,4578,1109,91513,12660,122406,10485,122379,122418,122432,122384,122411,91573,91684,122416,122408,122402,122393,122434,42373,122372,80915,122425,122405,122427,122359,122433,122428,6050,122423,122385,122424,91685,122394,93687,122356,100134,122388,37045,122429,122362,122407,122381,122399,122363,3121,122358,122431,229,122355,38756,122374,122364,122390,122419,41699,122392,42780,112518,122377,101531,64426,100141,46523,50632,39856,122426,122391,122352,47838,97667,122404,40679,122357,46814,44630,122386,122395,43431,63731,122401,37168,122354,122365,122414,122387,122382,37332,36556,122422,78438,122353,42251,84372,48140,74718,122400,84987,122383,72725,37443,122375,122398,122417,41770,71572],"class_list":["post-79473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-victim-likely-paralysed-before-fatal-head-shot","tag-s-ability","tag-s-barrister-eric-engwirda","tag-s-blog-belowhe","tag-s-body","tag-s-brother-ross-tighe","tag-s-hands","tag-s-property","tag-s-torso","tag-32730","tag-42369","tag-a-background-population","tag-a-car","tag-a-court","tag-a-detective-sergeant","tag-a-firearm","tag-a-firearms-licence-holder","tag-a-forensic-pathologist","tag-a-forensic-scientist","tag-a-negative-test","tag-a-nissan-navara","tag-a-person","tag-a-positive-test","tag-a-queensland-triple-murder-trial","tag-a-relative-sharon-young","tag-a-result","tag-a-vehicle-ms-maxwell","tag-all-firearms-licence-holders-ms","tag-all-three","tag-analysed218pm","tag-any-gsr-kit","tag-au","tag-august-4","tag-austrlia","tag-autopsies","tag-autopsy","tag-autopsy-results","tag-autopsy-reveals148pm","tag-bogie-triple-murder-trial","tag-both-external-and-internal-examinations","tag-brisbane-news","tag-certain-criteria","tag-collection","tag-contact","tag-courier-mail-news","tag-court","tag-darryl-young","tag-deaths","tag-derek-and-sharon","tag-evidence","tag-fatal-head-shot","tag-firearms-licence-holders","tag-four-and-five-days","tag-four-hours","tag-fractured-part","tag-graham","tag-graham-tighe","tag-gsr-samples","tag-gunshot-residue","tag-gunshot-residue-kits","tag-gunshot-residue-particles","tag-gunshot-residues","tag-his-ability","tag-his-head-the-jury","tag-his-legs","tag-his-legs-dr","tag-his-shannonvale-property-he","tag-his-shannonvale-property-the-autopsies","tag-his-son-derek-young","tag-his-spine","tag-his-spine-crown-prosecutor-david-nardone","tag-information","tag-its-third-week","tag-licensed-firearm-holders","tag-maree-and-graham","tag-maree-schwarz","tag-maxwell","tag-merv","tag-merv-and","tag-merv-and-maree-schwarz-and-graham-tighe","tag-merv-and-maree-schwarz-and-graham-tighe-the-trial-resumes","tag-monday","tag-mr-engwrida","tag-ms-maxwell","tag-ms-maxwell-said-young","tag-murder-follow-monday","tag-neighbour-darryl-young","tag-no-fingerprint-evidence","tag-part","tag-particles","tag-police-service-forensic-scientist-lucy-maxwell","tag-queensland-news","tag-rebecca-williams","tag-relation","tag-secondary-transfer","tag-sert-officers","tag-seven-gunshot-residue-kits","tag-shannonvale-ms-maxwell","tag-six-hours","tag-six-hours-ms","tag-specialist-police","tag-that-injury","tag-that-kit","tag-that-person","tag-the-alleged-murders","tag-the-attempted-murder","tag-the-car","tag-the-contact","tag-the-court","tag-the-factors","tag-the-fatal-shot","tag-the-first-two-hours","tag-the-front","tag-the-front-gate","tag-the-gunshot","tag-the-hands","tag-the-head-on","tag-the-inside","tag-the-kit","tag-the-kits","tag-the-kits-the-jury","tag-the-majority","tag-the-nissan-navara","tag-the-samples","tag-the-scene","tag-the-shooting-deaths","tag-the-six-people","tag-the-special-emergency-response-team","tag-the-steering-wheel-and-handbrake","tag-the-swabs","tag-the-three","tag-the-time","tag-the-transfer","tag-the-trio","tag-the-triple-murder-case","tag-the-vehicle","tag-the-wound","tag-their-hands","tag-their-vehicles","tag-third-week","tag-those-circumstances","tag-those-particles","tag-three-counts","tag-three-people","tag-timeframe","tag-tuesday-why","tag-two-or-three-days","tag-victim","tag-young"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79473"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79473\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/79474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/australia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}