Stuart Schulze tells of horror about Porsche driver’s actions
The husband of policewoman Lynette Taylor was “shattered” by a Porsche driver’s “dog’s act” during her final moments — but it can’t taint the memory of his beloved wife.
Victoria
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Stuart Schulze struggles to describe his reaction on learning how Richard Pusey filmed his wife’s final moments.
“I was shattered. It’s a dog’s act,’’ he said.
“It is incomprehensible.
“People should be afforded decency. He destroyed all of that.
“It’s just a destruction of dignity.”
Pusey — pulled over for speeding in his Porsche — had gone to urinate on the verge of the Eastern Freeway when truckie Mohinder Singh ploughed into four police including Leading Senior Constable Lynette Taylor.
Instead of helping he filmed the officers and took photos on his phone, describing the scene as “amazing” and declaring “that is f--king justice” in repugnant commentary.
SEE STUART’S PLEA FOR A NEW LAW AND SIGN THE PETITION
Schulze, a former cop who worked on the frontline his entire career, was aghast.
“Lots of things go through your mind,’’ he said.
“I did 20 years in the police force and I understand vehicular collision scenes.
“When you see the footage and the sheets and tarps they have draped everywhere you know what is under them. You know what it means.
“Then you find out that Lynette was pinned on the Porsche so you know which one of those tarps is your beloved.”
It was just before 9am on April 22, 2020 when Mr Schulze bid Senior Constable Taylor farewell.
The 60-year-old had been with the force’s Road Policing Drug and Alcohol section, known as RPDAS, for almost a decade and was due to work the day shift until about 6pm.
“I kissed her goodbye at the house,’’ Mr Schulze said.
Mr Schulze, now a fire prevention maintenance technician, returned from work about 5pm.
Unaware of events on the Eastern Freeway because he rarely watches the TV news he phoned his wife about 7.30pm wondering why she wasn’t yet home.
“I hadn’t heard from her. She usually rings if she is running late,’’ he said.
“I rang her phone and it just went straight through to the answering service. I rang it a couple of times.
“About 8.30pm a friend of ours who is in the police force rang and said: ‘How’s Lynette going?’. I said: ‘I don’t know she’s not home yet’. He said: ‘Oh’.
“He hadn’t watched the news either and he had a call from a mate of his who said: ‘Have you heard the news on the Eastern Freeway? There’s been four coppers killed and they say it’s a female from RPDAS’.”
Increasingly worried, Mr Schulze phoned several of his wife’s workmates without success.
About 10pm, from the darkness, three police appeared in the driveway.
“I knew why they were there immediately,’’ Mr Schulze said.
“Time just sort of disappeared.”
Every time Mr Schulze hears media reports describing how Pusey filmed a “dying policewoman” he has the same reaction.
“There is only one,’’ he said.
“It’s always a danger of the job and I always knew the dangers.
“But it’s just unfortunate this occurred as well.”
Senior Constable Taylor’s determination to stand up for what was right compelled Mr Schulze to push for outraging public decency to be made an offence under the Crimes Act.
“She wouldn’t have been holding me back,’’ he said.
“She stood up for people who were a bit hard done by. She would always step up and say something.
“She was an advocate for people who were less fortunate or had been hard done by.
“She was her own boss and did her thing the way she wanted it done.”
The pair had been building their dream retirement home at Loch Sport in East Gippsland — their favourite spot watching the sunset from the deck.
It’s a ritual Mr Schulze now carries out alone.
The good Samaritans who rendered assistance in the crash’s aftermath, including a taxi driver who performed a one-man “community guard” on the roadside at Senior Constable Taylor’s funeral, have not shattered his faith in the community.
Some things, he says, Richard Pusey will never be able to take away.
“That’s why I never refer to him by name. I’ll just say the Porsche driver,’’ Mr Schulze said.
“I don’t want to waste my breath. Why give him any more oxygen than he needs. Don’t give them the notoriety they think they need or want.”
Mr Schulze is urging Victorians to sign an online petition backing his push for reform.
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