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Harsh wait (Townsville Bulletin: Editorial 13 September 2005) AS if the Jones family had not been through enough . . . the suspected death of their son and brother in 1982 is still having repercussions for the family, 23 years on, as they continue to struggle to come to terms with his loss. The family battled for 20 years to secure a coronial inquest into Tony's disappearance, but must now face even more red tape due to an anomaly in Queensland legislation which means a death certificate can't be issued because the coroner failed to indicate a specific place of death. While those with the power to change laws appear sincerely concerned for the Jones family's plight, they must quickly understand that laws affect real people. Any further delay after such a long and sad process for the Jones family must be minimised. Red tape anguish By Hayley Seeney 13sep05 Townsville Bulletin THE family of a man who went missing in Townsville 23 years ago are battling red tape to get a death certificate from the Queensland Government. Anthony (Tony) John Jones was last heard from when he called his Perth-based father from a phone box in Rosslea in early November, 1982. Tony, 20, was never seen or heard from again. He had been hitchhiking around the country and was due to meet his brother, Tim, in Mount Isa later that month. Tony's brother, Brian, said the family had battled for 20 years to secure a coronial inquest into his brother's disappearance. Mr Jones said he was now saddened to find an 'anomaly' in legislation was standing in the way of his family obtaining a death certificate. "This anomaly in the legislation is yet another example of the low profile given to missing persons in this country," he said. Mr Jones said he was prompted to act by a New South Wales case where a death certificate was issued after a coronial inquest. He said he had hoped it would give his father, now 80, a symbolic act of closure. "But I hadn't figured on the Queensland red tape," Mr Jones said. A spokesman for the Attorney General's office said the office was aware of the issue. "We have been looking at it and are checking where it's up to," the spokesman said. "The Attorney General (Linda Lavarch) has asked for a briefing on this matter. "We are aware of the sensitivity and heartache with these sorts of matters ... obviously it's traumatic. "This person (Mr Jones) has a very reasonable request." An inquest into Tony's disappearance was held in 2002. Mr Jones said he had contacted the registrar-general's office seeking Tony's death certificate. But he was told a certificate could not be issued because the coroner in 2002 did not specify a location of Tony's suspected death. "In short, I tried to get a certificate of my brother's death on the basis of Coroner Fisher's finding in 2002 that Tony had 'died on or about 3 November, 1982, at the hands of a person or persons unknown'," Mr Jones said. "But now the registrar-general's office won't register the death because, in spite of the finding of death, the Births, Deaths and Marriage Registration Act of 2003 does not permit registration because the coroner did not state that Tony died in Queensland. "So we have a peculiar situation in which there's a finding of death, but the death can't be registered." An email from the registrar-general's office stated that steps were being taken to have the law amended to remove the anomaly. Tony Jones' disappearance is one of the North's cold-case investigations. A reward of $250,000 for information about his disappearance came into effect late last year. Tony's disappearance and suspected murder prompted his brother Brian Jones to join forces with the National Institute of Criminology and organise National Missing Person's Week. The week was launched in Townsville in 1988 with a tree planting and special Mass… Tony's father, Kevin, told the Bulletin in 2003 he had always believed Tony had been murdered by a serial killer. Anyone with information about Tony Jones' disappearance or murder should contact police on 4759 9777 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333000. Government to amend death law (Townsville Bulletin, 14 Sep 2005) THE State Government will amend the law to make it easier for families of missing people to obtain a death certificate. The announcement came yesterday after the family of missing man Anthony (Tony) John Jones stumbled across an anomaly in the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2003 that prevented them from obtaining a death certificate. Tony's brother Brian Jones applied to the registrar-general for Tony's death certificate in August. However, he was told because the coroner in the 2002 inquest into Tony's death did not explicitly state that Tony went missing in Queensland a certificate could not be issued. The Queensland Attorney General and Minister for Justice Linda Lavarch yesterday said she proposed introducing new legislation before the end of the year to change the law. ``The new law will allow a registrar to register the death of a person who went missing in Queensland if the death is not registered elsewhere and a Queensland court or Queensland Coroner has found the name of the person, approximate date of death and that the person is deceased but cannot determine the place of death,'' Ms Lavarch said. ``The Jones family has suffered enough. They should not suffer further by not being able to get a death certificate for their son.'' Mr Jones said he was pleased to hear of the Government's move but would not be satisfied until he saw some action. Search brings back painful memories (Townsville Bulletin, Fri 16 Sept 2005) By Hayley Seeney THE Ellacott family's desperate search for their missing mother and wife brought back painful memories for another family who traipsed the same streets looking for their missing brother and son in the early 1980s. Tony Jones disappeared without a trace from the Townsville region. He was last heard from when he telephoned his family on November 3, 1982 from a phone box at Rosslea. Tony's brother Brian said he was able to empathise with the Ellacott family in their search for Kathy. ''The strange thing is when we first went to Townsville searching we thought Tony might have been injured somehow and was holding on until we got there,'' Mr Jones said. ''From reading about the Ellacotts, I sensed the same desperation. Like us, they knew something was terribly wrong and were quick to take action. ''Unfortunately, our desperation was frustrated by the lackadaisical attitude of the police and we just felt his (Tony's) life slipping away.'' Mr Jones, who extended his concern for the family during the search for Mrs Ellacott, said his family -- like the Ellacotts -- launched a massive search when Tony disappeared. ''Among the things we did in the first week or so was target the newspapers and radio, church groups. Flyers were circulated through the St Vincent de Paul groups between Townsville and Mount Isa, and we did a doorknock in Rosslea,'' Mr Jones said. ''We even requested an air search but that was over the top. We also kept surveillance of a service station where he was likely to have hitched a ride, and we drove out to Charters Towers scouring the roadside scrub. ''Years later, with (friend) Ray Wacura's help, we went to the Fullerton River with metal detectors following an anonymous letter saying he'd (Tony) been buried out there. But of course, found nothing.'' Tony Jones' disappearance prompted Mr Jones to establish National Missing Persons Week in Townsville in 1988. It still runs today. Mr Jones this week secured a small victory by having the Attorney-General Linda Lavarch agree to change the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 2003 which will clear the way for the family to obtain a death certificate for Tony. NB: Following legislative changes, a death certificate for Tony Jones was issued in January 2006 |
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