Expert ‘95 per cent' certain Amy Wensley didn't kill herself

Perth Now

12-05-2025

A biomechanics expert says he wants a criminal trial where witnesses can be cross-examined about Amy Wensley's death because he is '95 per cent' certain she did not take her own life.
Speaking to investigative journalists Liam Bartlett and Alison Sandy in the latest episode of The Truth About Amy, University of WA applied anatomy and biomechanics professor Dr Timothy Ackland said he believed the 24-year-old 'did not kill herself'.
'In science we're always dealing with probabilities, we test hypotheses,' he said.
'There are some limitations to our tests and those have to be acknowledged and that's why we never say with 100 per cent certainty that A equals B.
'If you asked me for a percentage, I would say (with) 95 per cent confidence . . . that my suggestion that she did not kill herself is true.' A biomechanics expert says he wants a criminal trial where witnesses can be cross-examined about Amy Wensley's death because he is '95 per cent' certain she did not take her own life. Credit: Unknown / Facebook
Ms Wensley was found dead in her Serpentine bedroom in 2014 with a fatal shotgun blast to the head.
Her and her two young daughters' belongings were found inside her car, indicating she was planning on leaving her partner, David Simmons.
And despite police initially treating the death as suspicious, detectives later deemed it a suicide and cleaned the bedroom, destroying any forensic evidence.
Ms Wensley's friends and family reject the idea she took her own life.
Dr Ackland — who analysed the biomechanics of Ms Wensley's death — said there were 'about 20 things' in relation to the death which looked 'unusual and extraordinary'. UWA applied anatomy and biomechanics professor Dr Timothy Ackland believes Amy Wensley 'did not kill herself'. Credit: Supplied
'There was so much inconsistency in the witness statements and in what people had said had occurred and the evidence,' he said.
'The whole thing from the start did not ring true. Not much of the witness statements information made sense to me.
'The only thing that made sense was the report of the attending uniformed officers who were the first people on the scene apart from those witnesses.'
Amy's mother, Nancy Kirk, has revealed she phoned her daughter and listened to her as she hysterically sobbed on the day she died. Amy had claimed that Mr Simmons had 'grabbed me by the throat and thrown me on the ground' during an argument.
The argument — which was heard and seen by witnesses — happened just moments before the fatal shot was fired.
Mr Simmons has vehemently denied any suggestions that he was holding the gun when it went off.
A coronial inquest in 2021 was unable to determine how Ms Wensley died.
'I have considered all of the available evidence . . . and I have concluded that there is not enough evidence for me to make a formal finding as to how Amy died,' Deputy Coroner Sarah Linton said at the time.
'I regret that I am unable to provide all of the answers that Amy's family are seeking, but I am required to base my findings on the evidence, and there are too many unknowns in this case.'
Dr Ackland said he felt 'troubled' by Ms Wensley's death and said he wanted the witnesses to be 'cross-examined and interrogated' at a criminal trial. Amy Wensley. Credit: Unknown / Supplied
'There is a lot of politics around this . . . the longer this goes on, it troubles me more and more that I believe that an injustice has been done, and it's part of the reason why I'm sitting here today,' he said.
'I just get the feeling that the evidence hasn't been weighted in the best way possible to get Amy justice.
'I think it can progress if those various players who were witnesses on the scene have an opportunity to present themselves and be cross-examined and interrogated.'
Anyone with information can email [e-mail] or leave an anonymous tip at www.thetruthaboutamy.org
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