Molly Ticehurst’s parents fought for 870 days to see her killer jailed. Their courage may help save other women

With his shock of white hair and tattoed arms, mine worker Tony Ticehurst seems the epitome of a hardened rural bloke.

But behind this exterior is a devoted and soft-hearted father, painfully articulate under the immense weight of grief.

It has been more than two years since the youngest of his three children, 28-year-old Molly, was murdered by her abusive ex-boyfriend in the central western NSW town of Forbes.

Daniel Billings was on bail when he broke into Molly’s bedroom and killed her in a frenzied stabbing attack just before midnight on 21 April 2024.

He was enraged because she had reported sexual assault allegations to police a fortnight earlier, after his campaign of threats, violence and abuse.

The charges of rape were ultimately dropped when Billings pleaded guilty to murder. On Friday he was sentenced to 28 years’ jail. He will serve at least 20 years, which will make him 49 when eligible for parole.

Molly, a bubbly young mum and childcare educator, had a close and warm relationship with her parents. After injury forced her dad to quit work as a coal colliery truck driver, she regularly helped him around the house, hanging out his washing on the Hills Hoist he could no longer reach.

Molly’s parents were separated. She was her mother Kate Shaw’s only child and “entire world”. Photos of them together show them in peals of laughter.

When Billings started threatening to break into Molly’s house and kill her after she ended their relationship in late 2023, her parents tried to protect her. They encouraged her to go to police and hoped she might bolster her security by making use of the NSW government’s Staying Home Leaving Violence initiative.

While this program failed to respond in time, her dad changed her locks and installed lengths of dowel in her window frames, while her mum slept over when she felt frightened.

When their worst fears were realised, the family found itself at the centre of the nation’s battle against domestic violence.

In the thick of the maelstrom, Tony encouraged calm.

“Let’s not think of him or have vengeance in our hearts,” he wrote online, on the eve of her funeral. “Instead, think of the good memories Molly gave us.”

Many of Forbes’ 6,000 residents gathered on a local football oval dotted with balloons for the funeral. Tony told those gathered of his immense pride.

“Molly didn’t have to leave us to grow her angel wings – they came with her as standard equipment,” he said. “Every parent would like to see their child change the world, but not at this cost.”

‘She matters’

The court case stalled for more than 500 days as Billings’ lawyers negotiated with prosecutors. Through two frigid country winters and a sweltering summer, Tony and Kate appeared at every court mention.

Behind the scenes, Molly’s tormented dad sometimes called the local state MP, Phil Donato, at night to seek comfort and counsel. The former police prosecutor often took the Ticehurst family’s concerns to the NSW government.

“That’s the fabric of these country communities. When people are doing it tough, the community rallies together,” Donato said after one delay.

“Molly was such a well-known and highly regarded young woman, loved by everyone who knew her and they were immensely disappointed with the system failing her.”

On 3 November 2025, Tony ran out of diplomacy. Shaken and teary, he approached reporters outside Forbes court after yet another deferral.

“It seems to me that in life, the system let Molly down and in death continues the same route,” he said. “Instead of getting closure, all we get is anxiety, sadness and heartache.”

Nine days later, they finally heard Billings admit his crime.

After the plea, Tony walked out into Victoria park under the soft spring sunshine to spontaneous applause from locals.

Many wore shirts bearing Molly’s face and two words, “She matters”.

The family came face-to-face with Billings in the NSW supreme court in Orange almost a year later, on 3 September.

As Billings took his place in an elevated dock in the middle of the room, he glanced only briefly at his victim’s parents.

He did not look at them again during a two-day sentencing, instead leaning to stare at the floor as details of his extreme violence were aired.

Tony told the court he envisaged Billings’ journey from Parkes to Forbes under the cover of darkness to murder his daughter. A phone video played to the hearing showed Billings cheerfully singing along to Johnny Cash’s The Man Comes Around while driving.

“I hope every night Molly’s screams keep you awake and the hairs on your arm stand up at the terror,” Tony told Billings, referencing the song lyrics.

Sadness, heartbreak and sleepless nights had become the norm for Kate, her victim impact statement said.

“Molly’s life was taken far too soon in a violent, malicious manner for no reason other than selfishness,” she said.

The courtroom, filled with about 50 relatives, friends and supporters of the Ticehurst family, was heavy with sadness. After more than 870 days, their bravery, patience and advocacy have come to something.

Their advocacy has ushered in tighter NSW bail laws and closer monitoring of those accused of domestic violence. It has raised awareness of the red flags for intimate-partner homicide along with the unique risks faced by rural women.

The family has called on the premier, Chris Minns, to release an investigation into her interactions with the Staying Home Leaving Violence scheme.

Although there is much more to do, including better funding for in-demand rural support services, Pia Birac, the deputy chief executive of Domestic Violence NSW, says Molly’s legacy will endure.

“Her story is a powerful reminder of what’s at stake when our systems fail to keep women safe,” she says. “It’s prompted national reflection, renewed scrutiny to responses to domestic and family violence.