August 17, 1980 Nine-week-old Azaria Chamberlain disappears while she and her parents were tent camping in Australia. Her parents claimed their baby had been taken from their tent by a dingo. Her body was never found. Her mother, Lindy Chamberlain, was tried and convicted for murder and sentenced to life in prison. Azaria’s father, Michael Chamberlain, was convicted as an accessory after the fact and given an 18-month suspended sentence. Lindy was released after a piece of Azaria’s clothing was found near a dingo lair in 1986. She had spent more than three years in prison. In 1988, all convictions against Lindy and Michael Chamberlain were overturned. Lindy Chamberlain was paid $1.3 million for false imprisonment; however, this was less than one third of their legal expenses. In 2012, 32 years after Azaria’s death, the Chamberlains’ version of events was officially supported by a coroner.
MILITARY HISTORY SOCIETY OF ROCHESTER
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