Exhuming the Truth

In this episode of Exhuming the Truth, we examine the devastating murder of Shandee Blackburn and the extraordinary failures that followed in the pursuit of justice.

What should have been a straightforward forensic investigation instead became one of Australia’s most confronting examples of systemic forensic failure. Shandee’s case exposed serious deficiencies within the Queensland DNA laboratory, raising national concerns about testing standards, quality assurance, contamination risks, and the handling of critical biological evidence.

We break down the timeline of Shandee’s murder, the investigation that followed, the controversial forensic issues uncovered during the case, and how those failures ultimately triggered widespread scrutiny of forensic practices in Queensland. We also explore the broader implications for the criminal justice system and what happens when the science intended to secure justice instead undermines it.

This episode is not only about the tragic loss of a young woman, but about how one case forced an entire forensic system into the spotlight and ignited urgent calls for reform.
Listener discretion is advised due to discussion of violence, homicide, and systemic justice failures.

In this episode of Exhuming the Truth, Asha breaks down CNN’s investigation into a global online “rape academy” network and explores how digital spaces can facilitate real-world sexual violence.
Drawing on the Dominique Pelicot case in France and institutional findings in Australia, this episode examines how abuse is enabled through systems, culture, and silence.
Content warning: sexual violence.

This episode also contains an audio excerpt from ABC WA Regional Drive radio station with Annie Gaffney from 21-04-2026.

In the United States, you can watch a trial unfold in real time—witnesses, evidence, and verdicts broadcast to millions through networks like my favourite, Court TV.
But in Australia, courtrooms remain largely closed to cameras.

So why the difference?
In this episode of Exhuming the Truth, we break down the key distinctions between the U.S. and Australian criminal justice systems—from televised trials and jury dynamics to sentencing laws and the role of media in shaping public perception.

We explore how high-profile cases, like the defamation trial between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, have blurred the line between justice and entertainment—and why that level of exposure is unlikely to happen in Australia.

But beyond the surface, this episode asks a deeper question...
Does justice work better when the public can see everything…
or when the system protects the process, even if we can’t?
This is a conversation about transparency, fairness, and the evolving relationship between media and the law.

Where is Luke Hazelwood? Part Two: Geography, What We Know, and What We Still Need

In Part Two of our investigation into the disappearance of Luke Hazelwood, we move beyond the timeline and begin examining the geography surrounding the case. Location matters in missing persons investigations. Terrain, access points, transport routes, and environmental factors can all shape what may have happened and where someone might be.

In this episode of Exhuming the Truth, we break down the landscape connected to Luke’s last known movements and discuss what the geography may reveal about possible scenarios. We explore what we know so far, what questions remain unanswered, and the critical information still needed to move this case forward.

Using a forensic and investigative lens, we analyse the known facts, consider how geography influences search strategy, and discuss why community awareness and information sharing remain essential in cases like this.

Someone, somewhere, may hold the missing piece.

The Digital Evidence

In Part Two of our look into the disappearnce of Theo Hayez, we take a forensic deep dive into the digital trail he left behind.
Theo vanished from Byron Bay in My 2019 after leaving the nightclub Cheeky Monkey's . What followed has been described as a questionable series of phone movements toward the remote headland of Cape Byron.
But, when we look into the digital forensics, it paints a far more complicated picture of what actually happened that night.

In this episode, we talk about Theo's Google Maps navigational data, the digital timeline from device activity, why the "lighthouse theory" and the "drowning theory" don't clock, what the coastal topography has to challenge about what authorities conclude and the digital indicators that suggest Theo may not have been alone.

Was Theo Hayez really alone that night?