Ex-officer tells murder trial his mother urged him to quit the force

Lamarre-Condon told his mother he was not feeling OK because of work

In the days before the alleged murders

Beau Lamarre-Condon, the former police officer standing trial accused of the murders of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies, told the jury his mother urged him to leave the police force during a conversation in the days before the alleged murders.

Lamarre-Condon is continuing to give evidence in the double murder trial. According to the Guardian’s live coverage of the proceedings, he described the conversation with his mother as the pair drove to pick up a hire car.

He told the court he and his mother went to Hertz to collect the rental after her own vehicle began leaking and was dropped at a mechanic. The two had picked up the car in the days before the alleged murders, and spoke during the drive.

“I put my phone on airplane mode, which I normally do when having private conversations. My mum could tell something wasn’t right,” Lamarre-Condon told the court.

He said he explained to her that work was behind how he was feeling. “I had told her that I just essentially wasn’t feeling OK because of work,” he said.

Lamarre-Condon said his mother understood what he was describing. “My mum understands this because she was a police officer. She’s been through similar experiences,” he told the jury.

In his account, the exchange ended with advice about his career. “The conversation in the car on the way was just not feeling OK and she was just trying to tell me it was time to leave the police force,” he said.

The Guardian’s live report noted that his voice began to waver as he gave the evidence.

Lamarre-Condon, a former police officer, is standing trial accused of murdering Baird and Davies. His account of the hire car pickup, the private conversation and his mother’s advice formed part of his continuing evidence before the jury.