The Greenough Family Massacre was the axe murders of Karen MacKenzie (31) and her three children, Daniel (16), Amara (7), and Katrina (5), at their remote rural property in

Greenough, Western Australia Greenough is a historical settlement situated in a floodplain (the Greenough Flats) 400 kilometres north of Perth, Western Australia and 24 kilometres south of Geraldton on the Brand Highway. The settlement's historical buildings are mostly ...

, on 21 February 1993. They were killed by farm hand William Patrick "Bill" Mitchell, an acquaintance of MacKenzie. The crime has been called "one of the worst crimes in Western Australia" and details of the murders were withheld from the public as they were deemed too gruesome and horrific. The case was so heinous that "cries for the return of the death penalty could be heard echoing around the State".

Crime

On the day of the crime, Mitchell had been spending the day getting high on a mixture of

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

alcohol Alcohol most commonly refers to: * Alcohol (chemistry), an organic compound in which a hydroxyl group is bound to a carbon atom * Alcohol (drug), an intoxicant found in alcoholic drinks Alcohol may also refer to: Chemicals * Ethanol, one of sev ...

, and

amphetamines Substituted amphetamines are a class of compounds based upon the amphetamine structure; it includes all derivative compounds which are formed by replacing, or substituting, one or more hydrogen atoms in the amphetamine core structure with sub ...

. The trouble began with the sound of a car arriving at the MacKenzie home. Daniel went out to see who it was and was confronted by Mitchell. Mitchell, wielding an

axe An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has many for ...

, killed Daniel and headed for the house, where he found MacKenzie asleep in the lounge room. After attacking her with the axe and killing her, he then raped her. Amara and Katrina were asleep in their bedrooms when Mitchell turned his attention to them.

Investigation and trial

Police and forensic investigators scoured the murder scene and collected evidence. In the meantime, the funeral for the four victims was held on 5 March 1993, attended by Mitchell. It was five weeks before Mitchell, an acquaintance of MacKenzie, was arrested on either 28 or 29 March. Mitchell pleaded guilty to four counts of wilful murder and four counts of sexual assault. A hand lotion used by the killer was a key piece of evidence. Mitchell was convicted of the murders in 1995 at the age of 24 and was sentenced to four concurrent terms of

life imprisonment Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...

, with a

non-parole period Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

of 20 years. According to the television series

Crime Investigation Australia ''Crime Investigation Australia'' is an Australian true-crime series that first premiered on pay TV Foxtel's Crime & Investigation Network in August 2005. The series was also rebroadcast on Free to air Nine Network, and made its debut there on ...

, a judge ruled that the exact way in which Daniel, Amara, and Katrina were killed was to be

sealed Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to impr ...

.CIA: The Greenough Family Massacre , Crime & Investigation Network
Mitchell is currently

incarcerated A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correcti ...

Bunbury Regional Prison Bunbury Regional Prison is a multi-security prison located in College Grove, a southern suburb of Bunbury, Western Australia. It opened in February 1971, and the minimum-security block was commissioned in 1982. Self-care units were added in 19 ...

in Western Australia. Due to a public outcry against the sentence, a Crown appeal ordered the non-parole period to be revoked. There followed a series of Supreme and High Court appeals, including a ruling that Mitchell would never be released. An appeal overturned the non-release ruling and reinstated his 20-year non-parole period, and he consequently became eligible for parole in 2013, with a three-year review in 2016. In September 2013, Mitchell was refused parole. Attorney General Michael Mischin stated that his decision to refuse parole was based upon the gravity of the crime and the safety of the community. He became eligible for parole again in October 2016, and was refused parole again. As required by statute, his next review by the board was due in September 2019. In 2018 due to new McGowan government law which delays parole consideration for mass murderers and serial killers for a period of 6 years, Mitchell was no longer eligible for parole in 2019.

References

{{Reflist Mass murder in 1993 1993 crimes in Australia February 1993 events in Australia February 1993 crimes Massacres in 1993 Axe murder People murdered in Western Australia 1993 murders in Australia