Family of Emma Lovell flees Australia ahead of anniversary

The husband and daughters of a woman stabbed to death on Boxing Day last year will spend Christmas with family overseas, as he reveals why he has had to take a step back from being a public advocate for victims of crime.

The grieving family of a woman stabbed to death on Boxing Day last year are fleeing Queensland to be with family in the UK ahead of Christmas and the heartbreaking first anniversary.

Lee Lovell said he couldn’t bear to mark the milestones at the North Lakes home where his wife Emma, 41, was fatally stabbed in the chest after the couple disturbed two young intruders who had broken in on December 26, 2022.

In a new interview with The Courier-Mail, he also revealed he had taken a step back from his involvement with Queensland advocacy group Voice For Victims.

He said the decision was because he did not want to be the “poster boy” for the state’s crime crisis, and to allow other victims to share their stories more publicly.

Mr Lovell and his daughters Scarlett and Kassie once held Christmas as one of their most precious family times.

But this year it is a period full of dread amid still ongoing court proceedings.

“I just wanted to run away … and I just thought England would be the best place to go, we’ve got family there,” Mr Lovell said.

Lee Lovell (centre) with daughters Kassie, 14, and Scarlett, 16. Picture: Steve Pohlner

“Christmas this year is a bit of a weird thing for me. I do want to be happy, and I do want I want to get involved in Christmas and I want the kids to be happy.

“Then part of me just wants to sort of, bury my head and wake up in January and just forget everything over Christmas.

“I’m not really looking forward to it.

“Just because I’m feeling pretty down and miserable about it I shouldn’t stop (my daughters) from being happy about it either.”

A typical Christmas for the Lovell family was going out for breakfast on Christmas Eve, then cooking mince pies, Dutch doughnuts and playing some games.

“It was just such a happy time for our family and I suppose I want to remember those times but then I don’t really want to remember two days later what came after that,” Mr Lovell said.

“To me it happened not that long ago.”

For Scarlett, Christmas evoked precious memories with her mother.

“It was always fun,” she said.

“You’d see us all dancing around the kitchen with a tonne of Christmas decorations and Christmas food going.

Lee Lovell and future wife Emma on a backpacking holiday in 2002 at Brisbane’s Mt Coot-tha

“It’s always the best because a Christmas song can come on and mum would start dancing and singing to the song.

“It would always be so funny.”

But this year the mere sight of Christmas lights and one house they would drive past as a family had made her sad.

“One of the main memories I think of now is when I see that house or Christmas lights it just reminds me of what happened and it’s a bit sad,” she said.

“It’s a bit hard to get the whole experience (of Christmas).

“It’s not the same without having mum and dad.

“It’s not bad having one parent.

“But growing up with two … it’s just going be very different without having them both for Christmas any more.”

Mr Lovell said he hoped that once he and his girls got to the UK, their family would help get everyone in the Christmas spirit.

But once they return to Queensland next month, there is still another heavy burden lingering over his head.

The scene where Emma Lovell was fatally stabbed at her North Lakes home

Mr Lovell said he wants his wife’s court case to be done as soon as possible.

Two boys, both 17, have been charged with Mrs Lovell’s murder.

“I don’t know what the (court case) is going to bring or if the outcome is going to eventuate from that and I’m sure it’s not going to be what I want it to be in relation to justice,” he said.

“But it would be nice to have that sort of done and dusted and then I can finish that section of my life and push forward for something else.”

After his wife was killed on Boxing Day last year, Mr Lovell wanted to advocate for change, particularly around support for victims after his own struggles.

But after a public protest in August and a secret meeting organised by then premier Annastacia Palaszczuk drew negative attention, he felt like he needed to pull back.

“I didn’t want to be some poster boy for it,” Mr Lovell said.

“What happened to us was very extreme but it’s not just about me, it’s about a lot of other people.

“I didn’t want to be front and centre and involved in that every time.

Lee Lovell and future wife Emma on a backpacking holiday in 2002 at K’gari (then Fraser Island

“The last rally it was good to see other people out their putting their voice to it and sharing their stories.”

Ms Palaszczuk held a surprise meeting with Mr Lovell in August, after he was initially told he would be meeting with a lawyer and while other victims of crime who marched on parliament claim they were snubbed.

Mr Lovell said despite controversy surrounding the meeting, it had helped provide more immediate assistance to his family.

“It was nice to sit down and chat to her,” he said.

“It actually turned out quite good.”

During the meeting he voiced his concerns that the Victim Assist Queensland program at the time didn’t provide any help for his family when they flew down to help when Emma died.

“I said I was annoyed that they were prepared to help Emma’s side of the family but what about the support for my side of the family,” he said.

“Within a short time after that victims assist got in contact was like, ‘send us the invoice and, and we’ll pay it.”

In November, major increases in assistance to victims of crime was passed through parliament with the maximum financial assistance for primary victims rising from up to $75,000 to up to 120,000.

Emma Lovell was fatally stabbed in a Boxing Day home invasion last year.