The Wire

Two and a half years after an Indigenous man was killed in a car accident , a coronial inquest began in the mining town of Mount Isa in Queensland. The driver of the car, an elderly Caucasian woman, was dragged from the vehicle and severely beaten by onlookers. Neither the driver, nor her attackers, were charged. Queensland Police have claimed that the lack of prosecutions and delay of the inquest is justified, because of insufficient witnesses and evidence. But the controversial circumstances of the case, and subsequent media sympathy for the white driver, have raised questions about the portrayal of complex race issues in Australia. Throughout the police investigation, the driver of the car Hazel Annas, gave many television interviews. She claimed that though there was sufficient evidence for police to prosecute her attackers, they chose not to because it had become “a racial issue.” She is now being sued by the deceased mans family. Ed Knowles, is a journalist with Channel 10 and Mob FM in Mount Isa. He’s been covering the case since 2002. He set the scene for Alma Mistry.