Constable Briana Palmer breaks down during inquest grilling into John Fredrick Schulte’s death

A Townsville police officer broke down on the stand while being questioned about alleged deficiencies in reporting a DV incident during an inquest into the death of John Schulte.

A Townsville police officer broke down on the stand while being questioned about alleged deficiencies in reporting a domestic violence incident during day two of the coronial inquest into the suicide death of John Fredrick Schulte.

The inquest is investigating three reports Samantha Schulte made to police in the lead-up to her estranged husband’s suicide on Christmas Day, 2018, during a police siege at his Oonoonba home.

The court heard there were issues about what information was entered into the police system, with vital pieces of information not included that could have escalated police action in response to multiple complaints made by Ms Schulte.

On November 30, 2018, Constable Briana Rae Palmer and her partner Constable Sharon Molyneaux went to Mr Schulte’s workplace for a welfare check after he texted his estranged wife saying, “Please tell the boys I love them and I am sorry about what I am about to do”, prompting her to call triple-0.

He told police he thought they were there because “I threatened to shoot her and then shoot myself”, in relation to a text message he sent Mrs Schulte on September 8.

The officers didn’t ask any follow up questions.

He also said he intended to date other women.

Ms Palmer accepted his explanation saying “he spoke to me about his future plans and how much he loved his kids and things like that”.

Despite there being underlying issues between the couple, nothing triggered their suspicions that DV was an underlying factor, and they treated it as a self-harm call-out.

The officers recommended Mr Schulte reach out to support agencies to seek help and also discussed the guns that he kept at their property and the need for him to relocate them.

On December 17, Ms Palmer and her partner James Clark responded to Mrs Schulte’s complaint that her husband had defied their arrangement and showed up unannounced at her house to get clothes, when he verbally abused her, before leaving.

Counsel assisting the coroner Claire Grant said police viewed several text messages but what they “viewed did not constitute a DV application to be taken out”.

It was determined the incident should be classified as a less severe “DV other”, where Mr Schulte could keep his weapons.

At the station Constable Briana Rae Palmer said her partner filled out the paperwork about the incident, which Ms Grant said neglected to include several domestic violence risk factors.

One was the allegation that Mrs Schulte had been assaulted by her husband a few years earlier. As a result of the oversights, the three officers were required to participate in a local management resolution plan for “failing to investigate and identifying apparent risk of domestic violence and criminal allegation”.

The inquest continues.

CATCH UP ON DAY 1 OF THE INQUEST:

>> Samantha Schulte gives evidence on day one of John Fredrick Schulte coronial inquest

Originally published as Constable Briana Palmer breaks down during inquest grilling into John Fredrick Schulte’s death