‘Insidious, Abusive, and Deadly’: Queensland Criminalises Coercive Control

“Call the police; he’s going to kill me. He’s poured petrol on me.” These were Hannah Clarke’s chilling words on the day her ex-partner killed her and their three children in 2020 by dousing them in petrol and setting their car on fire, after enduring years of his abuse. The question that Ms. Clarke’s parents, family, and friends have asked since that day is, “Why?” Four years on, Queensland has responded, becoming the second Australian state to criminalise coercive control. The new law creates a separate crime for the form of abuse, with a maximum prison sentence of 14 years for a person found guilty of manipulative behaviour designed to intimidate and isolate a victim, as was the case for Ms. Clarke....