GUILTY Australia - Jill Meagher, 29, Melbourne, 22 Sep 2012 #1

DNA Solves
DNA Solves
DNA Solves
Status
Not open for further replies.
This refers to some discussion a few pages back - the idea that 'she should have let someone walk her home' You all know, I assume, that women are far more likely to be assaulted by someone they know than by a stranger. Therefore statistically a woman is in more danger being accompanied by a male acquaintance than she is alone. I would never let a man I didn't really know and trust walk me home, because that is LESS SAFE. And the more he insisted, the less I would trust him.

As the police said, it's an area they would generally consider safe. Thousands of women walk from the many bars in that area to the train station to their home every weekend, and have done for years and years, and almost none of them have come to any harm. Driving, especially on Friday nights when there are drunk drivers on the road, kills heaps of people every year, and nobody stops driving because of that. The murder rate us much lower than the road toll. It's safer to walk than drive/get a taxi.

So on the balance of probability, she did the most sensible thing by walking home alone. Unfortunately it doesn't matter how sensible you are, bad things can still happen.

(please note that i signed up using my usual username and only just realised it might seem inappropriate. Just a coincidence I promise)

:welcome:

You brought up a point I often make... When people say a situation is dangerous... I often bring up the fact that driving/riding on freeways is more dangerous than most any everyday situation I can compare it to.

Probability is definitely not on my side while driving, as compared to walking by my house.

sorry for the lecture... But I try keep situations in perspective. A moving car can be a lethal weapon, and proves to be too many times.

JMO
 
(which its unlikely given its advertised closing time was 1am?)

Jill was a regular of Bar Etiquette (her husband talks about how the staff are devastated because they all knew her)

It is very, very normal for a regular of a bar in brunswick to stay well past the 'official' closing time.

In fact on a Friday night, I'd be very surprised to see Bar Etiquette close on the dot. Maybe only if the bartenders were in a really bad mood.

So that part doesn't seem strange.

I usually don't make phonecalls in a bar though, it's too noisy, and it's a little impolite. I'd normally step just outside. I don't know if Jill did that, but it's what I do.
 
I would like to know exactly where TW (the work colleague) left Jill. Was it in the bar or in the street? I think it would be pretty strange to leave her in the bar alone, at that time of night.

Was Jill on her phone when TW left her, or did she call her brother after he left? Did he see Jill take off down the street, or did she see him get into his taxi then wave goodbye? Would the taxi have a record of the time he was picked up?

So many questions ...
 
somebody random may have found her bag discarded nearby, hidden, and thoughtfully put it out in the open so whoever lost it would find it easily if they came looking for it. that would explain why the contents remained untouched. her phone was probably taken by the perp.
another far fetched scenario could be she has taken off with somebody else and is miles away?

I appreciate you thinking outside the box!
 
The phonecall she made is odd, out of context, and too damn coincidental for my liking.

The official line is she was "worried" about her father.

At 2am???????

Nup. No way.

Now the phone is missing too...along with all the "contacts" it held.
 
She would also have had a bag, quite possibly an umbrella too - anyone who knows Melbourne in the springtime (heck any time) knows it is prone to four seasons in one day, literally.

lol Melbourne weather isn't that bad, I've lived here most of my life and rarely carry an umbrella. I had more use for an umbrella in Qld.
 
I think it would be pretty strange to leave her in the bar alone, at that time of night.

AGain, Jill was a Bar Etiquette regular, so she wasn't "alone" - she knew the staff. I'm a bartender in the area (not BE) and it's not at all strange for regulars to stay on their own and chat. It's normal and sociable.
 
LOL that made me smile, it is the same in America (drive different side of the road but on the other side of the car). As an Aussie living in America I often check myself for being on the correct side of the road by ensuring I am closest to the double yellow lines

Oh nooooo! :doh:

this is confusing me more than the purse, wallet, backpack, handbag, ET al discussion! :crazy:
 
The phonecall she made is odd, out of context, and too damn coincidental for my liking.

The official line is she was "worried" about her father.

At 2am???????

Nup. No way.

Now the phone is missing too...along with all the "contacts" it held.

Totally agree. Natural that she's worried about her father but why make the call so late and after a few drinks while you're still in a bar? Even the brother said he ended the call because he didn't want to wake family members up.
 
I am not knocking the victim here at all, but if she knocked off at 5pm, which the phonecall to her husband implied, then that is nearly 7 hours of drinking.

That is a big night by anyone's standards.

At the end of a big night you decide to call your brother because you're worried about your father? Not at anytime THROUGH the seven hours of fun?

Ohhhkayyyy......
 
The what????

Joking aside, the media in Australia can be very dodgy indeed and I wouldn't put it past some lazy journo to just shove a stock file photo in the story.

But maybe she had TWO bags...

Maybe she had a briefcase or gym bag, and a handbag.

To be fair the media is not THAT dodgy that they would use a stock photo and label it as Jill's bag. I know stock photos are used but that is usually labelled very clearly as a stock photo and used to show greater detail - which is certainly not the case here

She worked in radio - unless she was in sales there would be no need for a briefcase, and we know she wasn't in sales.

As you know I am in the media (we've been down this road lol) and worked in radio in Australia.
 
Oh nooooo! :doh:

this is confusing me more than the purse, wallet, backpack, handbag, ET al discussion! :crazy:

I would be petrified to drive in the states, I'm quite sure I'd write myself off the first day.
 
Personally, I think the photo of the bag on a bench, is erroneous. It appears to be a photo of a camera bag or similar. Do we know who took this photo? It could simply be a photo taken by media, accidentally of a police camera bag. It appears to a photo of the park bench seats on Hope Street *outside* the entrance to the laneway.
 
To be fair the media is not THAT dodgy that they would use a stock photo and label it as Jill's bag. I know stock photos are used but that is usually labelled very clearly as a stock photo and used to show greater detail - which is certainly not the case here

She worked in radio - unless she was in sales there would be no need for a briefcase, and we know she wasn't in sales.

As you know I am in the media (we've been down this road lol) and worked in radio in Australia.

You have more faith than I!

So what is your theory on the shape-shifting/floating bag?
 
lol Melbourne weather isn't that bad, I've lived here most of my life and rarely carry an umbrella. I had more use for an umbrella in Qld.

Haha maybe not for an Irish woman.

I'm from Adelaide and it NEVER rains here.

And of course we love slagging off Melbourne's weather...but I do seem to recall showers on Friday, all the same?
 
AGain, Jill was a Bar Etiquette regular, so she wasn't "alone" - she knew the staff. I'm a bartender in the area (not BE) and it's not at all strange for regulars to stay on their own and chat. It's normal and sociable.

Fantastic - a local ! I LOVE locals lol is it fair to say the norm after closing is for people to gather outside and continue chatting about weekend plans, waiting for cab ... just general chit-chat after a night out? the back ground noises may well have been patrons gathered outside.
 
Fantastic - a local ! I LOVE locals lol is it fair to say the norm after closing is for people to gather outside and continue chatting about weekend plans, waiting for cab ... just general chit-chat after a night out? the back ground noises may well have been patrons gathered outside.

I imagine Sydney street would be as busy as a train station, on a Friday night. Most places would still be open.

She could well have been speaking on the phone when she was accosted. Someone may have been waiting in that alley for her.
 
The phonecall she made is odd, out of context, and too damn coincidental for my liking.

The official line is she was "worried" about her father.

At 2am???????

Nup. No way.

Now the phone is missing too...along with all the "contacts" it held.

With regard to her phone call and worried statements, many people will become more emotional when they drink.

Maybe she was this way...had been drinking a fair amount, began thinking about her father and his recent illness. Maybe she was worrying enough that she decided to give a call, not regarding the time. Maybe she was somewhat drunk and really didn't have a whole lot to say, other than that she was worried. I am not a drinker, but have been around my fair share of people who are and have occasionally been on the receiving end of similar type phone calls...being woken up by a friend in the middle of the night out of misperceived thoughts that I was upset with them or to be told sentiments that would rarely be spoken when they were sober.

IMO, this may have been the case with Jill, though, admittedly, it is unclear how much she had had to drink when she called her brother.
 
Totally agree. Natural that she's worried about her father but why make the call so late and after a few drinks while you're still in a bar? Even the brother said he ended the call because he didn't want to wake family members up.

No, her brother said he walked downstairs to not wake his father (who we know recently had a stroke). Jill was asking about her father's health and her brother said she was concerned. There has been no mention that her brother or mother found it unusual for her to call at that hour. Perth is 2 hours behind Sydney, she was no doubt aware that her brother was up at that hour.

If she was calling her mother I would find that unusual, but this is her brother - my brother and I call each other at any time of night, if I don't answer he knows I am asleep (and usually sends a text to ask me lol)
 
Jill was a regular of Bar Etiquette (her husband talks about how the staff are devastated because they all knew her)

It is very, very normal for a regular of a bar in brunswick to stay well past the 'official' closing time.

In fact on a Friday night, I'd be very surprised to see Bar Etiquette close on the dot. Maybe only if the bartenders were in a really bad mood.

So that part doesn't seem strange.

I usually don't make phonecalls in a bar though, it's too noisy, and it's a little impolite. I'd normally step just outside. I don't know if Jill did that, but it's what I do.

It sounds like you are familiar with Bar Etiquette. I have a strange question - where are the toilets located? Are they downstairs in a somewhat creepy area and possibly shared by other buildings with access to the outside, or even upstairs with access to the roof.

Visiting the "ladies room" is usually the last place I go, when leaving restaurants etc, and sometimes, they are dark and dingy along side rooms with mops etc. (or maybe it's just the class of place I frequent :) )

I'm trying to figure out if someone saw her by herself and followed her. A long shot, I know.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Staff online

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
106
Guests online
1,624
Total visitors
1,730

Forum statistics

Threads
599,571
Messages
18,096,942
Members
230,883
Latest member
nemonic13
Back
Top