The Queensland government says its youth crime laws are helping "keep the community safe" amid calls for change after two teenagers allegedly murdered a mother after breaking into her home.
Two 17-year-old boys have faced court over the stabbing murder of 41-year-old British-born Emma Lovell and attempted murder of her husband Lee after allegedly breaking into their North Lakes home late on Boxing Day night.
A 16-year-old boy and an 18-year-old male who were arrested with the 17-year-olds and questioned about the killing have been charged with stealing over an unrelated incident and released on bail.
Detectives are still trying to work out where the weapon used to stab Ms Lovell came from, and why the four boys, the two charged with murder being from Zillmere and Holland Park, were in the North Lakes at the time.
The opposition Liberal National Party is calling for the wholesale review of youth crime laws, and for breach of bail to be made a crime in a bid to deter serious, repeat child offenders.
The Lovell family have also said they "hope that some change comes from this so that others don't have to go through what we are living through".
Police Minister Mark Ryan has rejected calls for any immediate shakeup, saying scrapping the presumption of bail for serious child offenders in May 2021 had doubled the number of them spending time behind bars.
"It's my firm belief that that helps keep the community safe," Mr Ryan told reporters on Wednesday.
"It's one way of disrupting the offending of particular offenders. So it would be naive of anyone to think that governments or parliaments would never change laws again, but certainly, the government has toughened laws in recent times."
Assistant Police Commissioner Cheryl Scanlon said there were 80,000 more 10 to 17-year-olds in the state than there were a decade ago, but the number of young people in the justice system had fallen by 4000.
She said despite that "quite remarkable" change, children involved in burglaries, robberies and stealing cars were getting more attention than adults.
"It becomes more polarised, particularly because it is a focus of the media, and because young people gravitate to social media to publicise that," Ms Scanlon said.
Ms Lovell's family and friends in the UK are comforting her 43-year husband and two daughters.
Briton Clare Louise Angel said it didn't seem real after their two families had been FaceTiming the opening of Christmas presents sent to each other.
"Lee Lovell, our family will never be the same. Still in shock. Sending so much love to you and the girls," she wrote on Facebook.
Fellow Brit Christina Lofthouse said it was devastating to know her friend of 30 years, to whom she talked every day, would no longer be the first person who messaged her in the morning or the one who told her to "get my backside to bed" at night.
"We were already planning the next trip to Australia to spend much loved time with you and your beautiful daughters and Lee who I have known for almost as long," she wrote on Facebook.
"I promise you Emmie that I will look after your daughters and always be there for them for everything they need or want. I will be here for Lee too as he navigates a world without you.
"The world is a little darker right now but the sky at night is brighter, till we meet again Emmie, sleep tight my love."
