Dad of four kids killed in head-on collision shares poignant statement
The devastated QLD father of four children killed in a head-on collision has issued a heartbreaking statement about their deaths.
A heartbroken father has told an inquest that he is “no longer the same man” after losing his family in a fiery head-on collision.
Friday was the final day of public hearings into the deaths of Charmaine McLeod, 35, and her children Aaleyn, 6, Matilda, 5, Wyatt, 4, and Zaidok, 2, on May 27, 2019, on the Bunya Highway at Kingaroy, northwest of Brisbane.
The inquest in Brisbane heard Ms McLeod’s former partner and father of the children, James McLeod, read a moving victim impact statement about the devastating loss.
The distraught dad said he had always dreamt of becoming a father and had been left gutted to “have my kids ripped away from me”.
“I am no longer the man I was. I’ve been diagnosed with PTSD and complicated grief,” he said, according to the Courier-Mail.
“I just feel like I don’t have a purpose any more. I loved being a dad, and it was the one thing I was really good at.
“I can’t be a passenger in a car any more. It gives me so much anxiety when I see an oncoming truck … terrified the truck is going to hit me.”
As pictures and videos of the children were displayed in the courtroom, Mr McLeod said he remembered his children as “always so full of life” before describing their personalities.
“Aaleyn – Ally was a natural born leader would often bring all the kids together … she was kind and generous and liked to share,” he said about his oldest child.
“Matilda – Maddie was my little troublemaker. She was fun, outgoing, creative and adventurous. She loved making new friends.
“Wyatt – Wyatt, my first boy, was kind, gentle and sensitive. Wyatt easily made friends and got along with everyone.
“Zaidok – Zaidok was my baby, he was always getting into stuff, was always full of beans and was always happy. Zaidok really looked up to his siblings.”
The loving father told the court that he was devastated that their lives were cut “way too short”.
“They are never going to have the opportunity to grow up and experience the rest of their firsts like every kid should be able to experience,” he said.
“We will never get to know the people that they were meant to become in this life.
“I hope that this inquest can help Your Honour to make findings and recommendations to
ensure that something like this never happens again.”
Ms McLeod and her children were killed in a fiery highway crash in 2019 after their car collided with an oncoming truck.
First responders at the time described the crash as among the worst they had ever seen.
Police confirmed their Nissan station wagon was travelling south on the Bunya Highway at Mannuem, near Kumbia, at about 7.20pm when it attempted to overtake a truck it had been following.
In the process of overtaking, the car collided with another oncoming truck.
The truck flipped in the collision, and both vehicles burst into flames.
Ms McLeod and three of her children died at the scene, while Aaleyn died en route to Brisbane Hospital.
The truck driver was injured during the crash.
The coroner heard during the three-week inquest that Ms McLeod experienced complex mental health issues, including diagnoses of schizophrenia and borderline personality disorder.
People suffering from these conditions can struggle to control their emotions, anger and feelings of abandonment. At the same time, it can cause an exaggerated response when things do not go their way.
“While Charmaine had many mental health issues, the deaths of her and her four children are not so simply dismissed as suicide due to her mental health, nor is it as simple as saying it was a murder-suicide or that she acted in a premeditated or vicious manner as suggested by some,” counsel assisting Kylie Hillard said in her opening statement to the inquest.
A friend of Ms McLeod told the court that the mother had previously spoken of driving into a tree or truck so her estranged husband could not have the children.
Police had interviewed the long-term friend following the deaths.
The inquest also heard that a detective had asked the woman whether Ms McLeod had ever threatened to harm the children.
“She did tell me it took all her willpower when she was in the car with the children not to drive into a tree and kill them all so that then James couldn’t have them either,” the woman said, according to the Courier-Mail.
The woman claimed Ms McLeod made the comment sometime in 2016.
She told the officer that this prompted her to call the Department of Child Safety. While she didn’t relay the tree comment, she said “those kids are in grave danger, you need to get around there”.
The friend told detectives that Ms McLeod had also said she would “like to drive into a truck, but I wouldn’t do that to the driver. That’s too selfish”.
Their barrister Rebekah Bassano read a statement from Charmaine McLeod’s family.
“Overnight, our lives were changed. We went from having five grandchildren to just one,” the statement read.
“The deaths of Charmaine, Aaleyn, Matilda, Wyatt, and Zaidokl has had a profound impact on us as each individually, and our family as a whole.
“We miss Charmaine and the children deeply. We miss the enjoyment of showering them with gifts for birthdays, Christmas and other anniversaries.
“Each day, we wear masks to hide our grief and depression, our sorrow and guilt.
“We have found it difficult to sit and listen to the evidence of this inquest … it breaks our heart to hear what people thought of Charmaine at the time that she was genuinely seeking help for her and her children.
“We are grateful, though, for the thorough investigation into these tragic deaths, and we are hopeful for change in the future.
“Through this process, we have hoped to give Charmaine a voice.”
The inquest has now finished hearing oral evidence.
Over the following months, the parties will make written submissions to Coroner Kerrie O’Callaghan before she delivers her findings.