‘Mercy killing’ profiled by Australian Story

Australian Story has a major 2-part story on Monday night -the kind of subject that is usually the domain of more profile current affairs shows.

It concerns the case of two elderly women, both of whom had cancer, who were convicted last year over the euthanasia drug killing of former Qantas pilot Graeme Wylie, 74, in 2006.

Wylie, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, a fate which led to 74­ year ­old Caren Jenning travelling to Mexico and smuggling a bottle of poison into Australia.

Wylie’s partner Shirley Justins was convicted for manslaughter and Jennings for accessory before the fact to manslaughter.

But was it in an act of mercy or murder?

In an exclusive interview with Australian Story, Shirley Justins – now serving 22 months of weekend detention – tells her side of the story. In this first episode, Justins returns to the scene of the crime and walks through the extraordinary events leading up to Wylie’s death.

Australian Story also spoke with Caren Jenning in what was to become her only interview following her conviction, just two days before her own suicide by Nembutal -the same drug that killed Mr Wylie.

Part one screens 8pm Monday on ABC1.