Unsolved murder of Maria James in 1980 under spotlight as fresh inquest begins in Melbourne
A fresh inquest into the unsolved murder of mother Maria James has started in Melbourne, 41 years after she was stabbed to death inside her home.
The 38-year-old was stabbed 68 times in the bedroom of her home, which was attached to a Thornbury second-hand book store where she lived with her sons Mark and Adam, who were 13 and 11 at the time.
James’s former husband had phoned the shop shortly before she was killed and heard her speaking loudly and a scream before rushing over. He arrived 15 minutes later and discovered her body.
No one has even been charged for the June 1980 murder and it remains under investigation by Victoria Police’s cold case unit.
Her murder was the subject of an inquest two years after her death, which found she was murdered by an unknown person.
The case was reopened two years ago, after changes in the law, fresh evidence and admissions from police about their bungled investigation.
The new inquest, which started on Monday, will be broken into two parts, the first examining the cause and circumstances of James’s death and the identity of the person who caused her death.
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Secondly, it will examine the adequacy of the 1980-1982 police investigation, including evidence management, and lessons and changes to police practices since then.
Over the three-week inquest, 37 witnesses will give evidence, including witnesses near the scene on 17 June 1980.
More than 3,600 pages of evidence have been provided to the deputy state coroner, Caitlin English, including photos of the original crime scene, handwritten notes by police, suspect interviews and witness statements.
The counsel assisting Sharon Lacy’s opening statement detailed the history of the case, including six main suspects identified by Leigh Prados, a homicide detective.
Lacy said only one of these suspects is alive today, a man who worked around the corner from James’s book store and is accused of having an affair with her at the time she was murdered.
Detectives believed they had a DNA profile of her killer from a bloody pillowcase, which was used to rule out some suspects. But the pillowcase actually came from a different crime scene.
Lacy said “14 years of potential progress” in the investigation had been lost due to this error, which was only discovered in 2017, by which time several people of interest had died.
Other evidence, including James’s blood-stained clothes, have long been missing from the exhibits held by police.
In June this year a quilted bedspread with blood stains was recovered.
However, Lacy said on Monday “there is presently, no forensic material that may assist in identifying the offender”.