 In a case that divided the nation and inspired the film A Cry in the Dark, the baby's mother, Lindy Chamberlain, was convicted and jailed for life after a jury refused to believe her claim that a dingo stole her baby from a tent near Uluru, or Ayers Rock, in 1980. Northern Territory coroner Elizabeth Morris has cited new information from the Chamberlains' counsel about dingo attacks as a reason for reopening the inquiry, the Sun-Herald newspaper said on Sunday. The case inspired the 1988 hit film "A Cry in the Dark", starring Meryl Streep and Sam Neill, along with books, a TV mini-series and even an opera, and was followed closely by foreign media, making it a global cause celebre. Lindy Chamberlain was convicted of murdering Azaria and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1982, while her then-husband Michael was given a suspended sentence after being found guilty of being an accessory after the fact. A third inquest in 1995 recorded an open finding, in a case that continues to fascinate the Australian public. Morris, the coroner, said she was reopening the inquiry "largely in relation to information provided by your (the Chamberlains') counsel about dingo attacks since the death of Azaria". The newspaper said the information was understood to include an account of attacks by dingoes on children at Fraser Island in Queensland state, which included a fatal attack on a nine-year-old boy in 2001. An initial inquest in 1981 found that a dingo took the baby, but a second inquest in 1982 found that Lindy Chamberlain should be tried for murder and that her husband Michael should be charged as an accessory. The new inquest is due to begin on February 24.
– A fresh turn in the spotlight for an infamous, three-decade-old case: Australia will conduct a fourth inquest into the death of Azaria Chamberlain, who disappeared in 1980 in the Australian outback; her mother famously said that a dingo took the nine-week-old child from their tent. Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton was found guilty of murder in 1982 and sentenced to life in prison; that conviction was later overturned after a piece of Azaria's clothing was found near a dingo den, notes the AFP; the child's body was never found. The Australian reports that the case is being reopened because new information about recent dingo attacks was given to the Northern Territory coroner by the Chamberlains' lawyers. Among the included incidents, as noted by the Telegraph: a 9-year-old boy was mauled to death in 2001 by two dingoes, and a four-year-old girl was harmed in 2007. The new inquest will begin on Feb. 24.