Kylie Lang: What happened to Lovell family could happen to any of us
OPINION: The tragic death of mother-of-two Emma Lovell in a home invasion on Boxing Day sends a frightening message to every Queenslander, writes Kylie Lang.
Opinion
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The most alarming realisation as we try to absorb the shock and horror visited upon the Lovell family is that it could happen to any of us.
Not even people living in homes akin to fortresses are immune as heartless young criminals become a law unto their own.
Emma Lovell, a devoted mum of two girls, was fatally stabbed while defending her home and her family on Boxing Day.
Two teens, one who was on bail for a matter involving a break-in and receiving stolen property, have been charged with murder.
Mrs Lovell’s husband Lee was seriously injured in the attack, and now faces a life sentence of raising their children alone.
On the one hand, it is an unfathomable human catastrophe. On the other, it delivers a frightening message that no family is safe.
Youth crime has been allowed to become entrenched by a government that has failed to deliver any meaningful policies to tackle what can only be termed an epidemic.
Sure, we’ve heard all the fancy rhetoric – including after Wallabies legend Toutai Kefu and his family were injured in an August 2021 home invasion – but decisive action from our so-called leaders has been notably absent.
Instead, good people are left to their own devices trying to keep their families safe – often with disastrous consequences.
People a street away from me were broken into by youths with box cutters earlier this year.
Their house has full security, very high fences and two large dogs. None of this mattered.
The juvenile grubs were known to police – of course they were – and while the terrified family escaped injury they have been left emotionally scarred.
None of this is acceptable in a state like Queensland.
As we shake our heads at the horror unfolding around us, you just have to wonder who will be next.
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