The story of how one person’s evil act changed a country forever

Little Martin entered the world with surprising ease. A calm beginning that stood in stark contrast to the chaos that would later define his life.

Martin John Bryant, weighing just six pounds (2.7 kilograms), was born on May 7, 1967, in Australia, after a labor that lasted barely two hours.

It was quick, uncomplicated, almost effortless. His father wasn’t anxiously pacing a hallway or waiting elsewhere, as many men of that era did. Instead, he stayed by his wife’s side throughout the birth.

The pregnancy itself had been just as smooth. His mother, Carleen, experienced none of the usual discomforts, no morning sickness, no swelling. She later described it as being “all baby and no fluid,” and she continued working at her job in a chocolate factory until just weeks before delivery.