Friends of Gold Coast mother Teresa Bradford are demanding a review of Queensland's bail system after she was murdered by her estranged husband two weeks after he was released over an earlier attack on her.

David Bradford, 52, took his own life after killing his estranged wife Teresa, 40, while their children were at their Gold Coast home yesterday.

Just two weeks ago, Bradford was was granted bail over a violent November attack on his wife, despite police pleading in court to keep him in custody because of the threat he posed to himself and others.

Bradford's death is the fifth case of a woman allegedly being murdered by her partner on the Gold Coast in 16 months.

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Friends of Bradford are supporting a Change.org petition, demanding a full review of Queensland's bail processes and a presumption against bail for violent offenders.

So far more than 1400 people have signed the petition, which will be handed to Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath.

"This could have been avoided if the perpetrator had remained in custody, either in jail or in a facility for those with a mental illness," the petition says.

"When violent and dangerous people are being granted bail, we are clearly not safe and our legal system is falling all of us."

"She was my customer at work, I have seen how scared she was for her life," Sandra Saillard posted as she signed the petition.

Macey Dahili, who went to university with Bradford, wrote: "She was an amazing woman and didn't deserve this! The system sucks and they need to review their laws and realise how dumb they are".

Women who had never met Bradford used the petition to talk about their own experiences under a system they say has left them at risk.

"If you have been in a domestic violence situation you would understand why we need these changes. I've lived through it as a child and seen my best friend and her family beaten senseless by a man who was let out on bail on DV and assault charges. He served 12 months in prison and we fear for our lives and our children's lives every day. It's hell," one Gympie woman wrote.

D'Ath, Queensland's Attorney-General, has already promised to investigate the circumstances behind the decision to grant David Bradford bail.


Gold Coast Centre Against Sexual Violence director Di McLeod said Queensland's legal system isn't providing adequate protection to victims of domestic violence.

"Clearly things need to change there," McLeod said.

"There's a presumption against the granting of bail where there's a history or threat of domestic violence in most Australian jurisdictions. There's not in Queensland. There's no specific provisions in the bail act that cater specifically for domestic violence cases."

McLeod says history shows domestic violence offenders regularly breach court- imposed conditions and re-offend.

Bradford was granted bail by the court on January 12.

Bradford's lawyer Mark Donnelly told the Courier-Mail there were "no indications whatsoever that he would do what he did".

"He had accepted the relationship had irretrievably broken down and was accepting of the very restrictive bail conditions that had been imposed, including having no contact with his partner," Donnelly, of Krosen and Co. Lawyers, said.

A family friend said the relationship broke down after Bradford suffered a series of strokes.