Former Jetstar training pilot Greg Lynn, 59, has made a reappearance in court following a landmark decision by Victoria’s Court of Appeal to overturn his murder conviction. The appellate court ruled in December that a “substantial miscarriage of justice” had occurred during Lynn’s 2024 trial for the death of 73-year-old Carol Clay, ordering a complete retrial for the high-profile case.
The judicial panel, consisting of three appeal judges, upheld Lynn’s appeal on two critical grounds. They found the trial prosecutor had violated fundamental fair trial principles through an improper character attack on the defendant and mishandling of ballistic evidence presented by police specialist Paul Griffiths. This decision nullifies Lynn’s previous 32-year sentence imposed just over a year ago.
The case stems from the mysterious disappearance of elderly campers Carol Clay and Russell Hill in March 2020 within Victoria’s remote Wonnangatta Valley. Lynn was charged twenty months after the couple vanished following an extensive police investigation. Notably, the original jury had acquitted Lynn of murdering Mr. Hill while convicting him of Ms. Clay’s murder.
Throughout his initial trial, Lynn maintained his innocence regarding murder charges, presenting an alternative account of accidental deaths followed by panicked attempts to avoid wrongful blame. The Court of Appeal judges emphasized that while ordering a retrial, they found “no reason to think that the fundamental unfairness which permeated the first trial will carry over to the new trial.”
Lynn has been remanded in custody and is scheduled to return to court in late July for proceedings related to the retrial. The judicial panel underscored the “powerful public interest in ensuring that a fair trial is held for alleged wrongdoing of this high order” in their rationale for ordering a new trial.