The court clerk, her magistrate fiance and the tragedy that followed

Published: July 9, 2021, 7 p.m.

Good Weekend senior writer Melissa Fyfe discusses the story of 23-year-old Victorian court clerk Ashleigh Petrie, who died in late 2019 after news of her engagement to Rodney Higgins, a magistrate 45 years her senior, made front page news. A few weeks later, when away in East Gippsland with Higgins for the night, Petrie ran in front of a car. By gaining the trust of Petrie’s mother and brother, tracking down the driver of the car that hit Petrie, and overcoming numerous legal hurdles, Fyfe was able to paint a picture of Petrie's life and untimely death.

Warning: this episode contains graphic content.

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