But she questioned the lack of support for young officers in rural stations, describing how her son had attended multiple code 2 jobs at 10.30am that day, hours before his shift was due to start.
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“This is indicative of the under resourcing of rural stations. Officers are always on call and always expected to respond,” Mrs Arnold said.
McCrow’s mother, Judy, said her daughter had become a much loved and respected member of the Tara community, despite her concerns about such a move.
“In fact, she wasn’t keen to go and we weren’t either, because we’d heard stories about the large number of people with guns in that community,” Mrs McCrow said.
The inquest heard how footage from McCrow’s body worn camera showed the dying officer providing critical information for police – and also repeatedly telling her family she loved them.
Mrs Arnold said while the family knew who had pulled the trigger and killed Matt, “systemic failings and negligence on behalf of many others sent him to Wains Road”.
“What could have been done to prevent Matt and Rachel’s deaths? Were policies and procedures adhered to regarding interstate missing person reports?
“We know Matt and Rachel were diligent officers, they did all relevant checks before attending, but you can’t find information when it hasn’t been entered into the system.”
The inquest heard how the officers were unable to use their radios to call for back-up due to blackspots, and had incorrect information on which channels to use.
“Better communications must be readily available to all police officers. Trying to find the best radio channel should not be a decision that officers need to make, or having to put up with communication that we have heard is ‘patchy at best’,” Ms Arnold said.
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Ms Arnold said while the QPS had announced the rollout of new vests in January 2022 for added protection for officers, Matt and Rachel never received theirs.
“We will always wonder – if they had been issued with such equipment, and were wearing it, would it have made a difference?”
The inquest had been told the new vests would not have stopped the bullets used by the Trains, who could fire from a greater distance than the officers could with their handguns.
Ms McCrow said her daughter fired every single bullet – 15 shots – from her police-issued Glock.
She criticised the information transferred between NSW and Queensland police before the incident, and the lack of proper communication on the day.
“Police have too many vital decisions to make and choosing the correct radio frequency shouldn’t be one of them,” she said.
“Immediate attention must also be paid to ensure training, particularly around firearms, is effective.
“Police officers who are part of an active armed offender situation should not have a ‘fear of missing’ as a reason for not firing their weapon even when other’s lives are in immediate danger.
“Police officers should not only be accountable when use of force options are used, but also accountable when they don’t and others nearby are in immediate danger.”
Corey Richards, Alan Dare’s stepson, spoke briefly, saying he wished to grieve in peace and be left alone. But he told coroner Ryan there needed to be changes.
Ryan is scheduled to hand down his findings at a later date.
