History Focus

On October 29, 1982 a Darwin Court finds Lindy Chamberlain guilty of the murder of her child. She was sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labor. The case is known as The "Dingo Baby Murder Mystery."

In August of 1980 the Chamberlain family took camping trip to Ayers Rock (now known by its aboriginal name Uluru) in the Northern Territory of Australia. Their daughter, Azaria, vanished from her parents' tent on the night of August 17. The mother, Lindy Chamberlain, reported seeing her nine-week-old baby Azaria taken by a dingo, a wild Australian dog. The baby's body was never recovered.

In February, 1981, the Northern Territory coroner handed down a verdict, based on forensic evidence from the Chamberlain's blood-stained car and other objects, that a dingo snatched Azaria.
The parents, Lindy and Michael Chamberlain, were not thought to be responsible for the death of the missing child.

Seven months later the Territory's chief minister announced he had ordered police to reopen the case. That led to a supreme court quashing the coroner's findings and in February, 1982, Lindy was ordered to stand trial for murder. Her husband Michael was charged as an accessory after the fact. Based upon bloodstains on the baby's jumpsuit, expert witnesses concluded Chamberlain had cut her child's throat with scissors. On October 29, 1982, Lindy was found guilty of murdering Azaria and sentenced to life imprisonment. The father, a seventh Day Adventist minister, was released on a good behavior bond. Lindy went to jail.

In February, 1986, there was a major development -- Azaria's dirty and bloodied jacket was found near Ayers Rock. A royal commission later ruled that a jury would not have convicted Lindy if the jacket had been available and Lindy's conviction was quashed. Five days later the Northern Territory government remitted Lindy's life sentence and released her from jail. After serving three years in jail Lindy was free. Lindy was no longer burdened with a life sentence, but the question of what happened to baby Azaria was not adequately answered.

Lindy has since divorced her husband, and is now married to American Rick Creighton. The couple live in Seattle, Washington and run a publishing company specializing in health books. Closure eludes Lindy. Seventeen years later, after three inquests, two appeals and a feature film "A Cry in the Dark," the cause of death of Azaria is still undetermined. A coroner's inquiry in 1995 could not provide a definitive cause for Azaria's death. Coroner John Lowndes said, "The only finding I can record is an open one." Lowndes said "on the balance of probabilities" Lindy did not kill her daughter, but there was not enough evidence to say a dingo took Azaria, whose body was never found. He conceded the verdict would continue to fuel speculation about what really happened.

"We are pleased that the coroner has gone one step further in clearing our names," said Azaria's mother, Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton. "We can't say we are pleased with the open finding and we are reviewing that at the moment. So this may not be the end of the case and you may be hearing from us again," she said. The Chamberlands have asked the Northern Territory coroner for a final ruling that a dingo took their baby and that they be officially cleared of any involvement in Azaria's disappearance. Although Lindy is not satisfied with the coroner's report she says, "you must channel your anger into positive energy and use it to work for you."

Sources:
Reuter Information | NANDO | TIME Magazine | On This Day