4 LIVES STOLEN 'THEY DESERVED TO BE SAFE'

THE DEATHS OF HANNAH CLARKE AND HER THREE CHILDREN HAVE RAISED QUESTIONS ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PROCEDURES IN AUSTRALIA

- Lauren Irvine

One look at Hannah Clarke’s Facebook profile shows how much she loved her three children. Her page is filled with smiling photos of daughters, Aaliyah, 6, and Laianah, 4, and cheeky 3-year-old son, Trey. On the website for Integr8 gym, where Hannah was a fitness trainer, she is described as “an enthusiastic, passionate mother of three” and that “developing the physical abilities of children is where her true passion lies”. But despite how much she loved her children, Hannah, 32, couldn’t protect them – or herself – from domestic violence.

Last year, Hannah made the courageous decision to walk away from her abusive estranged husband Rowan Baxter, taking the three children with her. She moved in with her parents so they could provide a support network, but it wasn’t enough to save them. On February 19, Hannah’s partner of more than 10 years and the father of her three children took the lives of his entire family in the most horrific way.

That morning, Hannah strapped her kids into their family car ready for their daily school run, when Baxter, 42, reportedly jumped into the passenger seat, doused the vehicle with petrol and set it alight, killing his three children, before stabbing himself to death. Hannah managed to escape the burning car as neighbours desperately tried to save her, but she later died from severe burns.

The tragic murder-suicide has shocked the world and now friends and family of Hannah are speaking up about the ongoing abuse she faced at the hands of her husband – even after she had the courage to leave him. A friend of Hannah’s, domestic violence worker Manja Whaley, wrote an open letter on Facebook to her late friend, detailing Hannah’s fear.