Rick Thorburn sentenced for the murder of schoolgirl Tiahleigh Palmer

RICK Thorburn has been sentenced for his foster daughter’s murder, in a crime described as “cold, calculated and callous”.

MORE than two years after Tiahleigh Palmer was killed and left on the banks of the Pimpama River, her foster father Rick Thorburn has been sentenced.

Thorburn will spend the rest of his life in prison for murdering the 12-year-old. He will need to serve 20 years in prison before being eligible for parole on September 12, 2036.

In sentencing Thorburn, Justice David Boddice told the court the foster dad’s actions were “cold, calculating and callous” and his conduct had been “truly appalling”.

“You murdered this defenceless child who relied on you for protection,” he said.

Justice Boddice told the court Thorburn’s difficult upbringing, including the death of his mother when he was nine, and subsequent depression didn’t excuse her brutal murder.

According to the Courier Mail, Justice Boddice said the way Thorburn left Tiahleigh’s body on the riverbank showed he had no respect for her, not even in death.

Foster father Rick Thorburn was arrested and charged in September 2016. Picture: Jack Tran

Speaking outside Brisbane Supreme Court, Tiahleigh’s mum Cindy Palmer said Thorburn’s sentence meant the end of her battle to get justice for her daughter.

“Today’s outcome marks the end of a long and painful fight for Tiahleigh but as her mother no sentence will ever be enough.

“Tiahleigh was a beautiful girl who had her entire life to look forward to. Rick Thorburn took that away from me, from our family and most importantly, from Tiahleigh,” she added.

Prominent child safety advocate Hetty Johnston said the prospect of Thorburn ever leaving jail was incomprehensible and upsetting.

Ms Johnston, the founder of Bravehearts, has criticised the 20-year non-parole period as too lenient when it came to the murder of children, calling on the state government to legislate a minimum life sentence.

“I’m really quite upset that parole could ever be a possibility for this man,” she told the ABC.

“There is no way a man who could knowingly, cold-blooded, calculatingly kill a little girl and leave a body to rot on the river bank should ever, ever be able to re-enter society.

“It’s incomprehensible. Anyone who kills an innocent child should never have any expectation they should see the outside of a jail ever again. “We need to fix it so it’s really clear.”

At the beginning of his sentencing hearing, Thorburn wiped away tears as the judge asked him what plea he would be entering.

The pale, visibly thinner 57-year-old entered a formal guilty plea to murdering Tiahleigh, interfering with a corpse, attempting to pervert the course of justice and perjury.

Running through the facts of the case, Queen’s Counsel Carl Heaton told the court Thorburn played the role of “concerned parent” after the 12-year-old failed to come home from school in October 2015.

Thorburn was “shaking” when he filed a missing person’s report on October 30, 2015 — despite having already killed her.

Mr Heaton told the court Thorburn’s son Trent, 18, had a conversation with a cousin on Facebook and said he was worried he had had sex with Tia and was worried she was pregnant.

That same day, Tiahleigh complained to Rick’s wife Julene of stomach pains.

Julene gave her a Nurofen and put her to bed. Hours later, she was murdered and the Nurofen played a key role in determining the date of her death, October 29, 2015.

Sometime between 8pm and 10pm on October 29, Thorburn murdered the 12-year-old, the court was told.

Going through the facts of the case, Mr Heaton told the court one of Rick’s sons was told by their father “Tia is no longer with us, I hope you understand what that means”.

The court heard Thorburn came home at 11pm the next night, covered in mud and dirt, and told his family “it’s done”.

The court heard the family maintained a lie about Tiahleigh running away before her body, unclothed but for her underpants, was found in the river.

An autopsy was conducted but due to the state of her body a cause of death was never determined, the court heard. The only noticeable injury was a bruise on her skull.

Thorburn kept his head down and his arms folded as Mr Heaton went through the facts of the case.

Thorburn’s lawyer Greg McGuire then told the court his client said “not a day goes by that I’m not haunted by what I’ve done”.

The foster father sobbed on the stand as Mr McGuire told the court he hadn’t spoken to his wife and children since his arrest.

The court heard Thorburn is in protective custody in prison and his only human contact is with medical staff.

Thorburn, who was 55 when he murdered Tiahleigh, has spent 619 days in custody.

Justice Boddice told the court Thorburn’s criminal history was “largely relevant” to the murder case.

Tiahleigh’s mother Cindy Palmer also submitted a victim impact statement to be read on the day of his sentencing.

Cindy Palmer speaks outside Brisbane’s Supreme Court. Picture: Darren England

Thorburn was the last of his family to be in court over the murder, which gripped Australia.

Tiahleigh, 12, had been living with the Thorburns for 10 months when they reported her missing on October 30, 2015.

Thorburn claimed he had dropped the 12-year-old off near Marsden State High School in the Queensland city of Logan on the morning of October 30.

But when he returned to pick her up that afternoon, she never showed.

A week later, a fisherman found Tiahleigh’s semi-naked, partially decomposed body on the edge of Pimpama River. It is still not known how she died.

It took police 11 months to gather strong enough evidence to charge the entire Thorburn family in relation to the 12-year-old’s murder.

Rick, his sons Josh and Trent and his wife Julene were all arrested in September 2016.

Police alleged Thorburn killed Tiahleigh in order to cover up his son Trent’s sexually abusive relationship with the 12-year-old.

Tiahleigh Palmer was 12 when she died.

Almost immediately after he was charged, Thorburn attempted to end his own life by overdosing on pills while in jail.

He was placed in an induced coma in Brisbane’s Alexandra Hospital for a number of days but was eventually sent back to prison.

In March, Thorburn indicated he would plead guilty to murdering Tiahleigh and a judge scheduled his sentencing for May 25.

He was facing a life sentence for the murder.

Thorburn also pleaded guilty to a charge of perjury relating to alleged lies he told about her disappearance and interfering with a corpse.

In 2015, few suspected the Thorburn family could be behind Tiahleigh’s death.

At his foster daughter’s funeral, Rick was one of the six pallbearers wearing a bright purple shirt bearing the words “Tiahleigh RIP”.

In March, hours after Thorburn indicated he would plead guilty to all charges, Tiahleigh’s mother Cindy Palmer said she hoped the father’s sentence would finally be the end of the painful case.

“My beautiful daughter Tiahleigh deserves justice. I hope it comes on May 25th. Thank you, everyone ... I have lots to say, but right now, I will let the police and court do their job. Tia, I love you,” she told the ABC.

Thorburn’s two sons and wife were also jailed in connection to her murder.

Rick Thorburn with his son Josh, wife Julene and other son Trent.

Trent, who admitted to having sex with his foster sister, was jailed in September 2017 for a maximum four years after pleading guilty at the Beenleigh District Court to four charges, including incest.

With time served, after spending 16 months in prison, he was released on parole on January 19, 2018.

His mother Julene spent six months behind bars after pleading guilty to perjury and attempting to pervert the course of justice in November 2017. She was released earlier this month.

The Thorburns’ eldest son Joshua, was sentenced to three months in jail in July 2017 after pleading guilty to the same charges as his mother.

On the day of Joshua’s release, Tiahleigh’s biological mother Cindy slammed his freedom on her Facebook page #Justice4Tiahleigh.

“It has been brought to my attention that … Josh Thorburn will be saying goodbye to his old life in prison and will (today) be let out to move on with and live a fulfilling life,” Ms Palmer wrote.

“He will be able to put this whole thing behind him and go on with his life. Just another kick in the face to show you how much more rights/protection and leniency criminals have these days,” she added.

KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN TIAHLEIGH’S CASE

Oct. 30, 2015: Tiahleigh’s foster father Rick Thorburn says he dropped the 12-year-old at Marsden State High School. It was the last time she was seen alive.

Nov. 5, 2015: Three fishermen find a girl’s body on the banks of the Pimpama River on the Gold Coast. It’s later confirmed to be Tiahleigh.

Nov. 14, 2015: Tiahleigh is remembered as a “beautifully imperfect” girl at her Gold Coast funeral, where Thorburn was a pallbearer.

Feb. 15, 2016: Police offer a $250,000 reward for information to solve the schoolgirl’s murder.

March 14, 2016: Biological mother Cindy Palmer makes a public appeal to help find her daughter’s killer.

Sept 20, 2016: Rick Thorburn is charged with Tiahleigh’s murder. Foster mother Julene and their sons Trent and Joshua are also arrested. Trent is charged with incest, perjury and attempting to pervert the course of justice. Julene and Joshua are charged with perjury and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Sept 21, 2016: Rick Thorburn fails to face court after a reported overdose.

Sept 23, 2016: Detectives say the foster family’s home is a primary crime scene.

June 28, 2017: Rick Thorburn is committed to stand trial for murder.

July 27, 2017: Josh Thorburn is sentenced to 15 months’ jail after admitting to perjury and attempting to pervert the course of justice.

Sept 14, 2017: Trent Thorburn is sentenced to four years’ jail after admitting he had sex with Tiahleigh.

Nov. 3, 2017: Julene Thorburn is sentenced to 18 months’ jail for perjury and attempting to pervert the course of justice, with the sentence suspended after six months.

Jan 19, 2018: Trent Thorburn is released on parole after 16 months behind bars.

Feb. 16, 2018: Rick Thorburn seeks a judge-only trial due to publicity surrounding the case.

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— With wires.