Rex
explained to the police from his hospital bed that a young woman
office assistant, Jean Jennings, had worked at the Show Society from
before his arrival until 2 years later when she'd resigned to move to
Brisbane. She returned in August of 1952 and wanted her old job back.
That wasn't possible because a new girl had been employed and 'had
given every satisfaction'.
Despite
finding a job with a solicitor, a year later she was still agitating
for her original position. On the night of the 8th
June 1953 Rex had come out from work to find her sitting in his car
upset. He had taken her driving hoping to calm her down and during
the drive, she had shot him in the chest.
Shot
and wounded, Rex grappled the gun from Jean and threw it out of the
car. He then hailed a passing taxi, asking the driver to take the
girl home. He checked out his wound in the light from his headlights,
drove home, spoke to his wife and finally called a doctor. Rex was
tough.
Jean
told the taxi driver she would walk. She searched round, found the
gun, walked home to her parents house, hid the gun under the
mattress, and went to bed.
She
woke at 2.30am when she heard the police coming up the front stairs.
She put on a dressing gown and took them into the kitchen, gave them
the revolver and calmly admitted to shooting the mayor. She had just
finished explaining the events of the night when her mother came into
the room. “What's up Jean? Are you in trouble?” At first
she didn't answer. Detective Senior-Sergeant Cook told Jean her
mother would have to be told and Jean relented. “I shot Rex
tonight...” Soon after, in a burst of melodramatic faux
Shakespearian contrition, she gushed:
I suspect she'd
read too many romance novels.
Jean
alleged that her and Rex had been conducting an affair since he'd
arrived in Rockhampton. When a preliminary court hearing was convened
at his hospital bedside, Rex denied it.
0 comments:
Post a Comment