Family murders under review?

ALL domestic violence homicides that occurred over the past five years are set to be reviewed by a new body announced by the NSW Government.

Just days after another violent husband chose to murder his wife then kill himself rather than let her leave the relationship - bringing the death toll from domestic murders in the state for the past 18 months to at least 30 - the Government abandoned its long-held resistance to a homicide review.

"We've decided to bring forward a detailed examination of domestic violence-related homicide as a matter of urgency," said the Minister for Women, Verity Firth.

[As long as it includes all domestic violence-related homicide? That means the Government itself (Military) (Police) (Prisons) and Men, Women, Youth and Children?]

The review will examine the 108 deaths that occurred over the past five years, identify common risk factors, any gaps in the treatment of victims and recommend any changes to practices and procedures that would contribute to a reduction in domestic homicides, she said.

"Ultimately what this is all about is changing the way we do things, if there is a systemic problem, if there are risk factors we can identify, if there are gaps in services - this process will also help us inform the Government's consideration about having an ongoing, formal, domestic homicide review process," Ms Firth said.

The announcement follows the allegations by the Sydney Morning Herald that domestic violence homicides make up the majority of murders committed each year and that deaths in NSW remained unacceptably high - at least 184 over the past eight years.

It also [allegedly] revealed a system unable to protect women and children from violent men, of apprehended violence orders not enforced and danger signs that were ignored. [But revealed nothing about whether the same system could be unable to protect Men, Women, Youth and Children holistically, from violent Governments, Military, Police, Prisons, Men, Women, Youth, of apprehended violence orders not enforce and danger signs that were ignored? Or was it just the way the article was worded by SMH?]

[More women perpetrating domestic violence: statistics

In the 12 months to September 2003 police recorded 4918 women as persons of interest for perpetrating domestic violence. By 2006-07 that had risen to 6056, figures from the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research show.

Of the women arrested for domestic violence-related assault in the five years to last September only 32 per cent of the cases reached court, compared with 56 per cent of cases involving men, statistics show.

The bureau's director, Don Weatherburn, said the increase was likely to have been driven by more than one factor. Others could include an increase in binge drinking, or more men who were willing to admit they are victims.

"It's possible that people are becoming less tolerant of violence by females than they used to be," he said. More women are also being arrested for assault not related to domestic violence, which some attribute to a rise in alcohol abuse. Others say women can be as violent as men, and that in more than half of violent partnerships partners struck each other.]

The director of the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, Don Weatherburn, will head the expert advisory group, while other panel members will include Betty Green, the co-ordinator of the NSW Domestic Violence Coalition, and the chairwoman of the Premier's Council on the Prevention of Violence Against Women, Lesley Laing, as well as representatives of NSW Police and the departments of the Attorney-General, Heath and Community Services.

"Considering the proportion of homicides each year that are domestic it is well worth doing - we pay far more attention to stranger homicides than domestic even though domestic homicide is far more of a problem," Dr Weatherburn said.

Ms Green described its establishment as "the beginning of a long overdue process".

"I am pleased that we are moving towards a domestic violence homicide review and I believe it is certainly the right thing to do."

Ms Green said the death of Melissa Cook this week, shot dead by her estranged husband John Kudrytch, raised serious questions about whether police and other services were responding appropriately to warning signs that indicate a woman's life may be in danger.

"It is much broader than questions over how a man with an apprehended violence order had a gun - she was in the process of separating from him, he had threatened to harm her, there had been attempted strangulation, he had threatened to kill himself; these are all indicators that there was a lethal risk here."

Ms Green didn't say anything about Psychic spirit sex murder accomplice jailed or On a dusty morning, our tiny Lake Angel finds peace or even Teens who killed taxi driver jailed and what about Payouts for families of abused soldiers then perhaps she could look at The day police just went too far Then how about say, Girls gone wild Then what about say, Court overcrowding 'inviting violence' It just depends on the old memory stick and how you want some articles to come across? AFGHANISTAN: End the slaughter Or say, Soldier killed during Rudd's surprise visit or even, Ministerial Cover Up at LB Prison Hospital. How about Young at risk of homicide.

Last but not least people should look here for the reason the Sydney Morning Herald wants to condemn only men and violence, Zionists are a power group in Australia, particularly listings, 2). 6). 11). 12).

Updated: Mon 8:27am (AEDT)

Critical incident – North Parramatta

Sunday, 21 Dec 2008 05:32am

A critical incident investigation team has been formed following a shooting incident at North Parramatta.

About 1:30am police attended Iron Street following reports a female had threatened a male with a knife.

Upon arrival the woman allegedly threatened police with the knife.

Capsicum spray was used in an attempt to subdue her.

The female continued to threaten police and a female officer discharged a number of gunshots.

A 48-year-old woman sustained serious injury and has been taken to Westmead Hospital where she is undergoing surgery.

A 23-year-old male is being treated for a laceration to the neck.

A critical incident investigation team comprising officers from the Gladesville Local Area Command is investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Quote: So there is more to this story than meets the eye? If the government is serious about preventing violence or domestic violence then the government has to lead by some form of example - and if anyone looks into the links posted here then one can see holistically (at the root the cause of domestic violence in the community) that this problem of domestic violence has to include the Military, Police, Prisons from the Top Down and then the Community including women as a well as men and youths.

If it were as simple as 'lets just hit all the men over the head' and that'll fix the problem then that would be too easy and it wouldn't work. Because men per se are not the only perpetrators of violence in the community. Then we have the influence of TV murder and killing on every channel. Why is that? So when some person feels revengeful they have been well programed about what they can do 'subliminally' because they seen it on TV. Now we have women and girls boxing? Sport also teaches violence. There ought to be no violence taught or perpetuated in sport.

Yes we do have a violence epidemic in Australia with many root causes that have to be taken into account (altogether) to prevent that violence but if you take the SMH view that it is only men then the problem will continue to perpetuate, the community will continue to be divided, and families continually being broken down. Once a family is divided then they are easily able to be manipulated by 'big brother' and I think behind it all... that is what some evil people want? Always a scapegoat, always a victim and a victim industry - for leeches to suck your blood money. Don't let them do it, violence can be prevented as long as people decide to lead by example and spell out the real causes and dangers.

Related:

Police defend shooting knife-wielding woman
Police were called to North Parramatta just after 1.30am after reports of a woman threatening a man with a knife.

Gun laws fail safety test: Greens
THE latest domestic violence murder-suicide in Sydney should cause the Premier, Nathan Rees, to change gun laws immediately so that women [people] at risk from their estranged partners are better protected, the Greens MP Lee Rhiannon said.

Husband killer gets four years jail
Guilty of manslaughter ... Danielle Stewart has been sentenced to at least four years in jail for stabbing her husband Chaim Kimel to death.

Anti-violence plan for children
A Federal Government agency is developing a plan for anti-violence education programs for children.

Bligh won't budge on smacking code
The Queensland Government says it will not change a controversial section of the criminal code that allows "reasonable force" to be used when disciplining children.

Police arrest a father over access dispute?
In a media report yesterday the ABC reported (see article below), that the police arrested a man over the abduction of children. But were these his children?

Domestic murders hit 10-year high
But when we write our article then we may need to leave out say, the statistics in relation to women who commit 'domestic murders'? That's if we are going to succeed changing public opinon that it's only the men. Another fact is that women don't commit domestic murders? Of course this is just a guess?

Kiddy criminals, 8, let off with warnings
ONE murder last year by a 10-year-old, although details of the crime are not available.

Mayor seeks 'truth' over Mulrunji death
The Mayor of Palm Island, off north Queensland, says there are still too many unanswered questions about the 2004 death in custody of Mulrunji Doomadgee and the events that followed his death.

Torched man's killers get 24 years
Two people have each been sentenced to a minimum of 24 years in jail for burning a man to death in a hotel car park in Adelaide.

Psychiatric care for woman who killed
A Sydney woman charged with the stabbing murder of her father and sister has been found not guilty by reason of mental illness.

Lindstrom's murder plot sentence extended Swedish model
Charlotte Lindstrom's jail sentence for plotting the murder of two witnesses in a drug trial has been extended by at least another year.

Mother sentenced over her children's murders
A Victorian woman convicted of murdering her two sons has been sentenced to 24 years in a psychiatric hospital.

Psychic spirit sex murder accomplice jailed
A woman who helped her de facto husband after he murdered her best friend will spend at least 18 months in jail.

Woman jailed for 24 years for murdering teenage friend
Two Perth women have been sentenced to strict security life imprisonment, with a 24-year minimum, for what a judge has described as the evil and sexually perverse murder of a teenage girl.

Mother who threw baby convicted of manslaughter
A young mother has been found not guilty of murdering her baby daughter, despite admitting she caused the infant's fatal injuries.

On a dusty morning, our tiny Lake Angel finds peace
Two-year-old Dean James Shillingsworth was laid to rest in his father's home town of Brewarrina yesterday, a fortnight after his body was found dumped in a Sydney lake.

Mother found guilty of daughter's murder
A woman has broken down in the South Australian Supreme Court as a jury unanimously found her guilty of murdering her young daughter.

Teens to serve 15 years for 'gruesome' murder of friend
Two teenage girls have been sentenced to life imprisonment in Western Australia for murdering their 15-year-old friend who they then buried in a shallow grave in the south-west town of Collie.

Teens who killed taxi driver jailed
Two teenage girls who killed a taxi driver in western Sydney in January last year, have been jailed for at least three-and-a-half years.

Lawyers struggle to explain teenage murder motives
Lawyers for two teenagers have told the Perth Children's Court experts have been unable to determine why the girls turned into murderers.

Payouts for families of abused soldiers
The families of four young soldiers [diggers] who took their lives after suffering abuse in the army hope that government compensation is a step toward changing Australia's military justice system.

Day police just went too far
A man who challenged the right of police to remain in his home - only to be sprayed with capsicum spray, handcuffed and locked in a cell wearing only boxer shorts - has won his case in the High Court.

Girls gone wild
Women are drinking more and behaving more aggressively. Sonia Harford asks why. Not long ago, the women in Victorian prisons were there largely because of drug or property-related crimes. But that picture is slowly changing, with a rising number of women being convicted for assault and other violent crimes. Police statistics show that the rate of women arrested for crimes against the person - including homicide, rape, sexual assault, robbery and assault - increased from 2005 to 2007.

Court overcrowding 'inviting violence'
The Federal Government has been told that overcrowding at Newcastle Family Court is creating a volatile situation that invites acts of violence.

AFGHANISTAN: End the slaughter
An Afghan woman who lost family members weeps after air strikes on Friday in Azizabad district of Shindand August 23, 2008. An UN investigation suggested that 60 children were killed in the airstrike. Australian troops are not restoring peace in Afghanistan but working for oil company profits, amongst other things.

AFGHANISTAN: End the slaughter
On 22 August, 95 civilians were killed by NATO forces, 60 among them
were children. Yesterday 1 September another 70 civilians suffered the
same fate.

Casualties in Afghanistan:
Afghan troops killed: 8,587 Afghan troops seriously injured: 25,761
Afghan civilians killed: 3,485 Afghan civilians seriously injured:
6,273 U.S. troops killed: 534 U.S. troops seriously injured: 1,602
Other coalition troops killed: 402 Other coalition troops seriously
injured: 1,206 Contractors killed: 75 Contractors seriously injured:
2,428 Journalists killed: 6 Journalists seriously injured: unknown
Total killed in Afghanistan: 13,089 Total injured in Afghanistan: 37,270

Casualties in Iraq:
Iraqi troops killed: 30,000 Iraqi troops seriously injured: 90,000
Iraqi civilians killed: 658,227 Iraqi civilians seriously injured:
1,184,809 U.S. troops killed: 4,193 U.S. troops seriously injured:
30,634 Other coalition troops killed: 314 Other coalition troops
seriously injured: 942 Contractors killed: 917 Contractors seriously
injured: 10,569 Journalists killed: 159 Journalists seriously injured:
unknown Total killed in Iraq: 693,810 Total injured in Iraq: 1,316,954

War criminal Howard wants crackdown on school violence?
Discipline is not achieved by cracking down but by teaching better lessons that include self awarness, empathy towards others and insight into offending behaviour. Once more Howard couldn't possibly teach those lessons because he himself lacks all of the above. That's why he asked for a 'crackdown'.

Australians support tough stance on alcohol

A new report released today show Australians support a tough stance on alcohol.

The report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows that when it comes to drugs, Australians are most concerned about alcohol.

Half of all recent drinkers say they have curbed their alcohol consumption, mostly for health reasons.

The report shows a decline in the number of smokers, and even those who continue to smoke, are cutting back.

Marijuana and meth-amphetamine use is also down, but the use of cocaine and tranquillisers for non-medical reasons has increased.

Most Australians say they support policies which aim to reduce alcohol.

Related:

Alcohol ads must go: Della Bosca
THE NSW Health Minister, John Della Bosca, will seek tougher restrictions on alcohol advertising at a meeting of health ministers today as NSW hospital figures revealed a huge rise in the number of drunk young people being treated in emergency departments.

Alcohol-related hospital visits rise
Alcohol-related hospital visits rocket, with young women the worst.

Brumby confronts booze culture on streets
Victorian Premier John Brumby has toured some of Melbourne's most notorious nightlife strips as his government plots its next move against rising alcoholism and street violence.

Message on a bottle for binge drinkers
BOTTLES of alcoholic drinks could soon carry graphic pictures warning of the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption as part of the Federal Government's latest series of measures to cut down on under-age and binge drinking.

Alliance tackles drunken violence
THE TOLL of alcohol-related violence has reached the point where one in five Australians now say they have been directly affected or know someone who has been affected by this type of violence, a new survey shows.

Binge drinking teens: 'two deaths a week'
South Australia's Drug and Alcohol Service says there are about two deaths a week in Australia involving young people who have been binge-drinking.

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging
The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

Farmer jailed 16 years for wife's murder

A NSW farmer who shot his wife and buried her with lime to deter wild pigs from disturbing the body has been jailed for at least 16 years for her murder.

Laurence Bede O'Connor told police he had had "a gutful" of Flordelizza O'Connor and shot her as she descended a ladder after repairing a leak on the roof of their property.

Acting Justice Timothy Studdert noted O'Connor resented the "expressed assertion" by his wife that she was "the boss" and told police "she used to yell and scream and screech".

The now 65-year-old admitted to the manslaughter of Flordelizza O'Connor, 47, on the basis of provocation in July last year at their property, called Quandalli, near Tooraweenah, in the state's central western slopes.

But in October, a NSW Supreme Court jury sitting at Dubbo found him guilty of the more serious charge of murder.

In sentencing him last Friday, the judge described the shooting as "callous" and "cowardly".

But he accepted O'Connor was remorseful and concluded he had suffered some loss of self control at the time of the murder.

Two months after the shooting, he confessed his crime and showed police where he had buried her body, in a relatively isolated location on the property.

O'Connor said he placed her body in the bucket scoop of a tractor and placed lime on her body when he buried it.

He told police his wife had been on the roof when she said she had taken his car keys, his wallet, his cheque and deposit books, and had burnt his tobacco.

He unsuccessfully searched for his keys and later told police he had had a "gutful" of his wife doing these things, which he claimed had been going on for years and getting worse.

"There was a loaded .22 rifle kept on the verandah, placed there for shooting birds that raided the strawberries and this was the gun the offender used," the judge noted.

As she descended, he placed the gun against his wife's spine and fired without warning, firing a second shot at her temple when she fell on to the concrete and was moaning.

The judge said the marriage was happy at the outset but stresses developed and increased when their two children left home.

O'Connor, an alcoholic, had resented his wife's wish to participate in decisions about the property, most of which was leased out but which she wanted them to work themselves.

In setting a maximum sentence of 21 years, Justice Studdert said O'Connor shot his unsuspecting victim twice at close range with intent to kill.

The earliest date he will be eligible for parole is September 6, 2023.

Alcohol ads must go: Della Bosca

THE NSW Health Minister, John Della Bosca, will seek tougher restrictions on alcohol advertising at a meeting of health ministers today as NSW hospital figures revealed a huge rise in the number of drunk young people being treated in emergency departments.

Mr Della Bosca said a Federal Government report found that a total advertising ban could reduce drinking by 25 per cent and road fatalities by 30 per cent. It could also cut the social costs of alcohol abuse by $3.86 billion.

"The Garling report, released last week, advises that we need to focus on prevention when dealing with the health and well-being of children and young people.

"We need to avoid creating a new generation of binge drinkers and to do that we need to use preventive strategies such as restricting alcohol advertising.

"The cost of alcohol abuse to the community nationally is estimated to be more than $15 billion, which is mostly made up of sickies, road accidents and health care."

Mr Della Bosca said he would call for tougher advertising restrictions at the Australian health ministers' conference in Brisbane.

"According to NSW Health data, since 2000, the biggest increase in alcohol-related emergency department admissions has been among 18 to 24-year-olds, up 130 per cent, while female admissions within that group have risen 200 per cent.

"While law enforcement and licensing controls are powerful means to target alcohol abuse, related crime and antisocial behaviour - and NSW is taking strong action on this front by legislating mandatory 2am lock outs - we also need preventive strategies."

Mr Della Bosca said a National Drug Strategy Household Survey found that more than 72 per cent of people aged 14 or older supported a blanket ban on alcohol advertisements. Almost half supported banning alcohol sponsorship of sporting events.

"Alcohol advertising is among the most sophisticated and persuasive I have seen and it is increasingly clear alcohol companies are not prepared to take a responsible approach on this matter.

"Anyone sitting down to watch the cricket on TV this summer is bombarded with an endless stream of advertisements for beer and spirits. It is time we took the influence that alcohol advertising can have on our younger people seriously."

Related:

Alcohol-related hospital visits rise
Alcohol-related hospital visits rocket, with young women the worst.

Brumby confronts booze culture on streets
Victorian Premier John Brumby has toured some of Melbourne's most notorious nightlife strips as his government plots its next move against rising alcoholism and street violence.

Message on a bottle for binge drinkers
BOTTLES of alcoholic drinks could soon carry graphic pictures warning of the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption as part of the Federal Government's latest series of measures to cut down on under-age and binge drinking.

Alliance tackles drunken violence
THE TOLL of alcohol-related violence has reached the point where one in five Australians now say they have been directly affected or know someone who has been affected by this type of violence, a new survey shows.

Binge drinking teens: 'two deaths a week'
South Australia's Drug and Alcohol Service says there are about two deaths a week in Australia involving young people who have been binge-drinking.

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging
The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

Serial drink driver jailed for manslaughter

A serial drink driver, drunk and high on drugs when he killed an innocent motorist, has been sentenced to at least six years jail in Tasmania.

Supreme Court Justice Shan Tennent, in handing out one of the state's harshest-ever sentences for vehicular manslaughter on Wednesday, said 37-year-old Jason Harris's driving record was appalling.

His crime was one of the worst of its kind, Justice Tennent said.

"You were an accident waiting to happen and could easily have killed or injured several other road users," she told Harris.

The unemployed Launceston man earlier this month pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Dawn Lodge, 49, in a head-on collision in Fingal, on the state's east coast, on January 12.

Harris had continued to drive despite having had his licence disqualified five times, four times for drink driving.

He had been convicted of driving whilst disqualified five times and was given a three-month suspended jail sentence for drink driving a month before killing Mrs Lodge.

She was killed instantly on an urban road when Harris veered into the path of her car at 135km/h after smoking cannabis and drinking enough to return a blood alcohol level of 0.109, the court was told.

Her 18-year-old son James, a passenger in his mother's car, escaped any serious physical injury.

Harris survived the collision, suffering serious injuries and some brain damage.

The court was told he can't remember the event.

"I have no doubt both Mr Lodge and his son will suffer the effects of this accident for the rest of their lives and that nothing this court may do will change that," Justice Tennent said.

She said Harris drove in a dangerous manner on highways for about 90 minutes, putting a number of other drivers at risk, before killing Mrs Lodge.

"The consequences of your actions have been the worst imaginable," Justice Tennent said.

"This case can only be described as a very bad example of a crime of this nature and a significant sentence is required."

Justice Tennent convicted Harris and sentenced him to serve at least six years of a seven year jail term.

She disqualified Harris from driving for 15 years, until he reaches the age of 52.

He has to pay a victim of crime compensation levy of $50.

50pc of homeless 'dependent on alcohol, drugs'

New research from the Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) shows a large percentage of homeless people are dependent on alcohol and drugs.

The ANCD estimates over 100,000 people are homeless every night with a third under the age of 25.

ANCD executive director, Gino Vumbaca, says a number of these people have problems with alcohol and drugs.

"What the council has found is that the levels are quite high - [they are] six times more likely to have a drug use disorder," he said.

"In some cases almost 50 per cent of people who are sleeping rough are dependent on alcohol and 50 per cent of clients would smoke cannabis on a regular basis."

"So what we're seeing is quite a substantial level of substance misuse amongst the homeless. I don't think that's startling but we've got some figures now to back that up."

Mr Vumbaca says greater focus needs to be placed on people who are homeless and dealing with addictions.

He says in some areas like Canberra the homeless are often overlooked.

"Often people don't see homeless people. They might see one or two people ... who have slept rough overnight ... but we are talking about over 1,000 people on any given night are homeless in Canberra," he said.

"As a result, they are sort of out of the way, out of sight and unfortunately out of our minds sometimes.

"So we don't invest what we need to invest in homeless shelters because we don't see the dimensions of the problem."

Online support

The ANCD in conjunction with the National Drug and Research Institute at Curtin University of Technology have today launched a new support website for people working in the homeless sector.

"Homeless services are often being stretched to capacity dealing with the day to day crisis that people are facing," Mr Vumbaca said.

"This makes it very hard for them to then address any underlying issues."

Mr Vumbaca says the Homeless Information Portal provides information on drug and alcohol use and how to address problems as they present.

"It also provides a database for services who will be able to look at what is in their local area and search for drug and alcohol services and other homeless services that may exist nearby," he said.

"So they can work with them and maybe co-manage clients, given they often haven't got the resources to deal with those client problems as they present on the night when people are looking for a roof over their head."

The ANCD is also working with the Federal Government to help raise awareness of the issue.

Mr Vumbaca says the Government will be releasing a white paper on homelessness and launching a major new strategy in the next few months.

"To make sure that we also invest in the difficult end of the homelessness problem which is people who have significant substance abuse problems, or mental health problems or for a lot of people both," he said.

"There needs to be a lot more support given to homeless shelters and the like to actually address the underlying causes of homelessness."

19-drink thug beats jail by 'skin of teeth'

A YOUNG man who had 19 alcoholic drinks before bashing the son of a former Geelong Football Club captain yesterday was ordered to serve a jail term in the community.

Judge Frances Hogan warned Joshua William Martin, 20, that he had escaped jail "by the skin of your teeth".

The County Court heard Martin was out with friends at Geelong's Room 99 nightclub on June 2, last year when he was involved in an unprovoked attack on Che Turner.

Mr Turner, 21, the son of former AFL Geelong captain Michael, was confronted by Martin's group after he said goodbye to an ejected friend.

He was surrounded and assaulted. Martin hit him so hard that a patron reported hearing the cheekbone cracking above the music.

Martin told police he could not remember it, and had drunk eight rum and cokes, six tequila slammers, three vodkas and two jaegerbombs.

But Judge Hogan said Martin later gave evidence in "extraordinarily elaborate detail" that he acted in self-defence.

Martin, of Leopold, was found guilty by a jury of recklessly causing serious injury.

His victim, a member of an AFL Academy, now has four titanium plates in his face.

Judge Hogan, saying Martin had shown no remorse for his "cowardly" attack, sentenced him to 12 months' jail, to be served by an intensive corrections order in the community.

Children needing protection 'has tripled'

The biggest increase in the number of notifications was in NSW.

New research shows state governments have failed to put in place appropriate child protection measures despite a sharp rise in the number of children needing protection from violent and sexual abuse in the last 10 years.

A report from the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) has found that since 1997, the number of children needing protection - mostly from violent and drug-addicted parents - [alcoholics?] - has more than tripled nationally to more than 300,000.

[Unless deemed a drug? Why was alcohol left of the above list? And woudn't they be mostly from violent drunks? Seen as how drugs are illegal?]

While this was based on both substantiated and 'unsubstantiated' child-protection notifications, the number of substantiated notifications also increased dramatically - almost doubling from 29,833 to 58,563.

The biggest increase in the number of notifications (substantiated and unsubstantiated) was in New South Wales, where the figure in 1995-96 was 28,930 and the corresponding figure in 2006-07 was 189,928.

One of the report author's, James McDougall, says little has been done to prevent children suffering at the hands of abusive and violent parents.

"There's been a hell of a lot of concerns around prosecutions and notifications, but in terms of good public policy development it's become fairly clear to us that what we've missed out on doing is that ensuring children are actually protected in that process," he said.

He says it shows a lack of appropriate early intervention polices.

The report also calls for more support programs for parents with drug or alcohol problems, as well as mental health assistance for children.

Related:

Child removal rate similar to Stolen Generations
A Queensland Government report shows Aboriginal children are being removed from their families at a rate similar to the Stolen Generations of the 1920s.

Parents lack life skills, means, time: Stanley
ONE in five Australian parents are poor caregivers because they don't have the means or life skills, child health expert Professor Fiona Stanley says.

Mental illness more prevalent among youth
A new report on children's health shows that young people's mental health may not be improving, as was previously thought.

Taking the scalpel to DOCS
Overloaded on one front, the state's child protection agency fails all. When the body of a boy was found in a suitcase last year, and a girl was later found starved to death, the State Government could no longer ignore the calls for a major inquiry into the state's child protection system.

Formal sorry to child abuse victims
The Mullighan Inquiry recently exposed hundreds of cases of abuse, some dating back to the 1960s. Commissioner Ted Mullighan called it a foul undercurrent of abuse in SA institutions.

Principals agree: cut out social subjects
"The curriculum is far too crowded and we know from our research that not all schools can do what is being asked of them," she said. "The social responsibilities being placed on primary schools are ever increasing, taking time and resources away from our core business."

Alcohol-related hospital visits rise

Alcohol-related hospital visits rocket, with young women the worst

DRUNKEN female party animals are inundating NSW hospital emergency departments in record numbers.

NSW Health has released new figures which show an overall 59 per cent increase in alcohol-related emergency department cases from 2000 to 2007.

The biggest increase in hospital visits was among young women - the 18- to 24-year-old group of females with a thirst for grog to match their male rivals - whose numbers increased by 200 per cent.

The numbers were drawn from a sample of NSW hospital emergency departments with the number of females increasing from 412 to 1233 patients a year.

Alcohol-related illnesses and injuries are taking a huge toll on the NSW health system.

Yesterday NSW Health Minister John Della Bosca said he was so concerned about the level of these hospitalisations - particularly among young people - he would use the health ministers' round-table meeting in November to call for a ban on alcohol advertising.

Mr Della Bosca said the time had come to address the issue, with more than 40,000 drinkers being admitted to NSW hospitals each year.

Excessive alcohol consumption is associated with cirrhosis of the liver, mental illness, several types of cancer, pancreatitis, fetal growth retardation, aggressive behaviour, family disruption and accidents.

He said all options should be considered, including warning labels on alcohol, no alcohol ads to be screened on television before 9pm or a complete advertising ban.

"Binge drinking is caused by a number of factors but advertising does not help," Mr Della Bosca said. "The power of persuasion of alcohol advertising is the most sophisticated and seductive I have seen. As a student of the art of persuasion for electioneering, the alcohol industry is almost unbeatable."

Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon yesterday said the alcohol-related hospitalisation figures were a cause for concern. She did not rule out toughening advertising laws, saying: "We need to have a comprehensive response to tackle binge drinking in Australia."

A $1.5 million trial of specialist nurses in six hospital emergency departments to deal with drunk or drugged patients is being rolled out by the Rees Government. The nurses will work at the Campbelltown, Liverpool, Royal Prince Alfred, Concord and John Hunter hospitals and The Children's Hospital at Westmead to deal with emergency department patients suffering behavioural disturbances due to drug or alcohol use.

"The hospitals have been chosen because they have access to psychiatric emergency care centres and in-patient detoxification units," Mr Della Bosca said. "This will alleviate the pressure on emergency department staff who experience an increase in alcohol and drug-affected patients.

"At the request of Council of Australian Governments, the Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy also has agreed to progress the Federal Government's $53.5 million National Binge Drinking Strategy, including community level initiatives.

"This national approach aims to reduce the incidence of alcohol-related violence and the impact of alcohol abuse on individuals, the community and the health system.

"There was also agreement to assess late-night lockouts for licensed premises based on analysis across the nation of existing and trial lockouts to recommend a preferred framework."

Mr Della Bosca's comments came as police investigated a brawl near a Parramatta hotel yesterday.

An 18-year-old man was struck in the head with a beer bottle during the incident, about 12.40am in Horwood Place. He underwent surgery at Westmead Hospital.

Social commentator Neer Korn said trying to change young Australians' love of binge drinking would require more than changing taxes for alco-pops.

Mr Korn, director of Heartbeat Trends, said the number of young people visiting hospitals for alcohol-related problems came as no surprise.

"We have been tracking 18- to 24-year-olds for at least a decade, talking with them three to four times a year, and we have increasingly seen them engage with alcohol," Mr Korn said. "They want to have a great life with extreme experiences. They have this philosophy of compensation where they beat up their body to the nth degree on a binge, but then take a vitamin pill, go for a swim or do yoga the next day to make up for the punishment. They view bingeing as being functional. Someone who drinks every day in the morning or lies in the gutter is dysfunctional in their minds."

Related:

Brumby confronts booze culture on streets
Victorian Premier John Brumby has toured some of Melbourne's most notorious nightlife strips as his government plots its next move against rising alcoholism and street violence.

Message on a bottle for binge drinkers
BOTTLES of alcoholic drinks could soon carry graphic pictures warning of the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption as part of the Federal Government's latest series of measures to cut down on under-age and binge drinking.

Alliance tackles drunken violence
THE TOLL of alcohol-related violence has reached the point where one in five Australians now say they have been directly affected or know someone who has been affected by this type of violence, a new survey shows.

Binge drinking teens: 'two deaths a week'
South Australia's Drug and Alcohol Service says there are about two deaths a week in Australia involving young people who have been binge-drinking.

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging
The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

Self-harm increasing among girls

TEENAGE girls are more likely to be admitted to hospital for overdoses, slashed limbs or other forms of deliberate self-harm than for any other type of injury, including road accidents.

The alarming development, revealed in new national figures, illustrate the effects of intense academic pressure, changing family dynamics and rising drug and alcohol use, experts say.

The rate of self-harm among girls aged 13 to 19 has risen by one-third in the past eight years, moving in the opposite direction to the improved suicide rate, analysis from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare shows. For every 100,000 girls in that age group, 300 were admitted to hospital after harming themselves last year, compared with 100 boys, the institute's report, Making Progress, says. The report brings together key measures of children's health and social wellbeing from several government sources.

Bruce Tonge, the head of Monash University's Centre for Developmental Psychiatry, said increasing academic pressure, even on high-achieving girls, was undermining their self-esteem at a vulnerable age.

Busy parents who set strict rules but did not put aside time to talk to their teenagers could be especially damaging. "There may be some alienation within families," Professor Tonge said.

Youth suicide rates were down, he said, probably as a result of suicide prevention programs and better treatments for depression, but while there was an overlap between suicide and self-harm, "they're not the same behaviour. [Self-harm is] a cry for help, a communication where other communications have failed."

There was also, "a copycat element, a cultural element," to

self-harming, Professor Tonge said, with the practice apparently more socially acceptable in some countries than others. And self-harm was promoted within some youth subcultures.

Patrick McGorry, the chairman of the executive committee of the National Youth Mental Health Foundation, which operates 30 youth mental health centres under the Headspace program, said the self-harm rates were indicative of worsening psychological health.

Young people already suffered, "the worst mental health of the whole life cycle", Professor McGorry said, and evidence from Britain and elsewhere suggested this was deteriorating with successive generations.

This might be because of, "the changing landscape of transition to adulthood … People are now in the mid-20s before they are financially and socially independent." Fees for higher education and debt created extra pressure, Professor McGorry said.

"Young people are not well equipped to deal with unbearable feelings and can be totally overwhelmed," he said.

Brain development was incomplete and this meant teenagers often could not manage intense emotions.

But self-harming could become, "recurrent or even a bit addictive", if it gave temporary relief from the negative emotion.

Increasing alcohol use was likely to be another factor, Professor McGorry said, because it lessened inhibitions that might otherwise stop young people from harming themselves.

Man jailed over night club assault

A Kilmore man has been sentenced to a year in jail for attacking a young woman in a nightclub last year.

James Murphy was 20 when he attacked 18-year-old Tamika Malone at the Area61 nightclub in St Kilda.

Murphy has pleaded guilty to intentionally causing serious injury.

The court has heard Murphy was drunk when he propositioned Ms Malone at the nightclub in February last year.

When she resisted Murphy pulled her off a podium and punched her ten times.

She suffered a broken nose and teeth and cuts in her back from glass on the floor.

The Judge criticised the reliance of young people on alcohol for entertainment and stimulation saying it has reached insidious proportions.

He sentenced Murphy to 12 months jail with a non parole period of six months.

NT intervention increasing murders

The North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) is blaming the federal intervention for an increase in the number of murder cases it is defending in the Northern Territory.

NAAJA solicitor Michelle Swift says since March the number of murder and manslaughter cases has increased astronomically.

She says the Intervention measures like dry camps and income management have pushed people from remote communities into Darwin's town camps in search of alcohol.

And she says the conditions are leading to increasing numbers of violent deaths.

"It's a result of urban drift, where people that are trying to access alcohol are coming into Darwin and into the town camps," she said.

"Most of these issues, most of the deaths are related to people who have been under the influence of alcohol when that happened."

Calls for Darwin restrictions
She says once people move away from their families and support networks they are isolated, stressed and more likely to be involved in violence.

"People come into town to drink," she said.

"When they could, there was some managed drinking that was happening in their communities before, but one of the problems with the policies of the intervention is that it hasn't made alcohol in Darwin any harder to access."

She says the problem of alcohol abuse affects the whole community and there should be blanket restrictions on grog sales in Darwin for at least two nights a week.

"It's not only Aboriginal people that have a problem with alcohol," she said.

"The number of road deaths that we've seen shows that alcohol is an issue for the Territory and some reduction or some restriction perhaps during weekdays or certainly for large parts of the weeks certainly would be appropriate for the whole community."

Related:

NT intervention failing to curb abuse
The head of one of Australia's peak Aboriginal child protection agencies says the federal intervention has failed to achieve one of its key goals.

Abandon NT intervention: Commissioner
The Northern Territory's Anti-Discrimination Commissioner Tony Fitzgerald says the Federal intervention into remote Aboriginal communities should be abandoned and the legislation underpinning it should be repealed.

Police cannot cope with backlash
Chief Minister, Paul Henderson, has warned the Federal Government that many indigenous people displaced by the emergency intervention are creating unrest and straining police capacity.

Woman who killed friend avoids prison

A Canberra woman who admitted killing her best friend by crashing her car into a brick letterbox, then another vehicle, while under the influence of drugs and alcohol has escaped a full-time prison sentence.

Samantha Jane Moffat, 33, had pleaded guilty in the ACT Supreme Court to culpable driving causing death over the April 2007 accident which left her friend Lynn Herringe, 43, dead.

Justice Hilary Penfold, in sentencing Moffat on Thursday, said there were "no winners" in such a tragic case and no sentence, however severe, would bring Ms Herringe back.

Moffat was sentenced to 12 months' periodic detention with a further 12 months suspended.

She was also placed on a three-year good behaviour bond and disqualified from driving for the same period.

Justice Penfold told Moffat she should use her time in weekend detention - which starts on Friday - to seek treatment for her mental health problem and alcohol abuse issues.

Moffat was driving Ms Herringe's car to get cigarettes when she crashed in the early hours of April 29 last year killing her passenger.

The court heard Moffat was doing 85km/h in a 60km/h zone and was under the influence of amphetamines and alcohol.

She recorded a blood alcohol level of 0.185.

Justice Penfold said she had taken Moffat's early guilty plea into account when determining the sentence.

The plea avoided an expensive trial, demonstrated remorse and saved Ms Herringe's family the trauma of a long court case, she said.

During sentencing proceedings, widower Peter Herringe read aloud a victim impact statement detailing how his family had been devastated by the death of his wife of 20 years.

He also, in his statement, told the court his wife's twin sister, Gaye, had committed suicide just five weeks after Ms Herringe's death.

The court heard a mental health report stating that Moffat, who has a 12-year-old son, had been diagnosed with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, and was at a high risk of committing suicide.

The report said she had suffered guilt and remorse since the accident, and had recognised she had a drug and alcohol disorder.

Moffat had told the court she accepted full responsibility for her actions.

Unsafe corporations, unsafe sex, drugs, binge drinking 'normal' for teens: study

Researchers say the tax on alcopops will do little to curb binge drinking which is seen as 'normal' (Get Images)

A university study has found binge drinking is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to teenage risk-taking behaviour.

Education researchers at the University of Tasmania surveyed 1,000 parents and 1,000 high school students over five years about their perception of risky behaviours.

Thirteen per cent of students surveyed said they got "blind drunk" regularly while 43 per cent said they did so occasionally.

Education researcher, Professor Joan Abbott-Chapman, says she was surprised to find that many young people do not regard binge drinking as high-risk.

"Teenagers seem to think that normal teenage behaviour includes drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and to a certain degree smoking marijuana and also to a lesser extent unsafe sex," she said.

Professor Abbott-Chapman says parental involvement in setting standards can reduce teenage risk-taking behaviour.

"And it's the teenagers who rely only on peer groups for support or feel isolated and have no one to turn to these are the ones that tend to drink more and we also found that school engagement was also involved," she said.

Alcopop tax little use [to corporations]


The Federal Government's tax on so called 'alcopops' is likely to have only a minimal impact on teenage binge drinking according the researchers [from the business association?]

Taxes on pre-mixed alcoholic drinks have increased by around 70 per cent, making them to $1.30 more expensive, in a bid to curb binge drinking.

Professor Abbott-Chapman says more needs to be done to address the problem.

"The effects are likely to be marginal unless they are linked to a widespread range of community and family programs which tackle some of the problems of social and educational engagement or disengagement rather," she said.

Updaedt 350:pm (AEST)

Greens want alco-pops tax revenue spent on alcohol education

Greens leader Bob Brown says his party will not be inclined to support the Government's increased tax on pre-mixed drinks unless the money is put aside to combat alcohol abuse.

The Coalition says it will block the legislation to approve the 70 per cent tax increase, which is expected to give the government $3 billion in revenue.

Senator Brown says the Greens do support the tax and believe it will reduce consumption of so-called alco-pops.

But he says the revenue raised must be spent on education and health programs.

"We're not inclined to support this legislation unless there's a program for re-mediating the impact of alcohol abuse goes with it, in other words unless a sizeable part of this money goes to tackling the big problem of alcohol abuse in our communities" he said.

Related:

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging
The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

Support for booze public education
A SURVEY of 1000 Australians found more than three-quarters of those questioned about attitudes to drinking said there was not enough public education about the dangers of alcohol, despite the Rudd Government's promise of a multimillion-dollar binge-drinking strategy

Conference told drinking needs to be 'denormalised'
A conference in Brisbane has been told that society needs to change the way it thinks about alcohol before there will be a reduction in binge drinking. The Alcohol and Drug Foundation organised the conference to discuss ways to tackle the problem, with organisations and researchers from across the country attending the event.

Alcohol boosts cancer risks: experts
A new study has found that drinking just two standard alcoholic drinks a day significantly increases the risks of developing breast, bowel, throat and mouth cancer.

Balmain hotels fill as young mourn pub mates
Many of those involved in the accident were from Balmain. Friends gathered, embraced and cried openly on Darling Street, and soon after were intoxicated with alcohol as well as grief. Balmain bar staff described the incident as a pub staff night gone wrong.

Conference told drinking needs to be 'denormalised'

A conference in Brisbane has been told that society needs to change the way it thinks about alcohol before there will be a reduction in binge drinking.

The Alcohol and Drug Foundation organised the conference to discuss ways to tackle the problem, with organisations and researchers from across the country attending the event.

Victoria's Professor Margaret Hamilton says drinking needs to be "denormalised".

"Its not really all that acceptable to have people who are out of control, vomiting, mess, aggressive, difficult to manage, making a hell of a mess," Ms Hamilton said.

"I think we've got to get that kind of thinking happening. That'll take a long time."

Related:

One in three pregnant women drink: study

More than one third of pregnant women drink despite most knowing the harmful effects alcohol can have on unborn children, a study has found. A paper, to be presented at the Royal Australasian College of Physicians annual congress in Adelaide on Tuesday, outlines the results of a telephone survey of 1,103 Australian women aged between 18 and 45.

Thirty-four per cent of the women surveyed consumed alcohol during their last pregnancy and 32 per cent said they would drink if planning, and during, a future pregnancy. Some 93 per cent of survey respondents knew alcohol could affect unborn children and 81 per cent agreed pregnant women should not drink alcohol.

Pediatrician Elizabeth Elliott says alcohol consumption early in pregnancy puts the unborn child at risk of birth defects, while consumption later can impact on the developing brain. "The message, really, for women should be that no safe level has been established, and that large amounts of alcohol frequently, and particularly early in the pregnancy, is likely to cause the worst outcomes," Professor Elizabeth Elliott said."Not drinking in pregnancy is the safest option and we particularly advise women not to become intoxicated."

The alcohol level in the mother's blood is the same as in her foetus. The risks of alcohol consumption during pregnancy are difficult to predict for each individual because factors such as a woman's weight, age and general health, come into play. About half of pregnancies are unplanned so inevitably many women have consumed alcohol before learning they are pregnant, Prof Elliott said. "What we do is reassure women that if they've drunk alcohol at low levels then it's likely that they've done no damage to their baby," she said.

Prof Elliott says Australian attitudes to alcohol are very tolerant. "So, in contrast to somewhere like the (United) States where if you're a pregnant woman in a pub drinking you might well have people coming up to you and telling you to stop drinking," she said. "That doesn't happen here as much."

There have been increasing levels of drinking by young women, she said. Prof Elliott says she hopes revised guidelines on safe drinking, to be issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council later this year, will include messages to women about the dangers of drinking during pregnancy. She said 95 per cent of women surveyed wanted doctors to ask them about alcohol consumption in pregnancy and to advise them of the potential harm to their foetus. "The community is ready for a tougher message on alcohol," she said. "We have got to not only give them (women) the knowledge but we have got to somehow change their attitudes."

Driver straps in beer, leaves kid loose

Police in Alice Springs say they were appalled to find a driver put a seatbelt around a carton of beer - but left a five-year-old child unrestrained.Officers stopped the unregistered sedan on the Ross Highway south of Alice Springs on the weekend. They found the child sitting in the back seat without a seatbelt, but the driver had put a belt around a slab of beer.

Alcohol boosts cancer risks: experts
A new study has found that drinking just two standard alcoholic drinks a day significantly increases the risks of developing breast, bowel, throat and mouth cancer.

Balmain hotels fill as young mourn pub mates
Many of those involved in the accident were from Balmain. Friends gathered, embraced and cried openly on Darling Street, and soon after were intoxicated with alcohol as well as grief. Balmain bar staff described the incident as a pub staff night gone wrong.

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging
The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

Support for booze public education
A SURVEY of 1000 Australians found more than three-quarters of those questioned about attitudes to drinking said there was not enough public education about the dangers of alcohol, despite the Rudd Government's promise of a multimillion-dollar binge-drinking strategy.

Extra police, child protection stem from abuse inquiry

A report from an inquiry led by former judge Ted Mullighan on child sexual abuse in remote Aboriginal communities has produced disturbing findings.

It has been tabled in the South Australian Parliament, with the Government promising to act immediately on several of the 46 recommendations.

Following on from an earlier child abuse investigation involving former state wards, the latest inquiry spent 10 months investigating communities in the far north-west of SA.

It found child sexual abuse on the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunyjtjatjara (APY) Lands to be widespread.

SA Premier Mike Rann has told Parliament that the Government will act immediately on recommendations including the posting of eight extra police officers and two extra child protection officers to the APY Lands.

The Government will also look at ways to restrict pornography in the Lands.

Mr Rann says the findings are deeply disturbing, with sickening details of the abuse of young Aboriginal children.

He says extra houses will also be built for police on the APY Lands.

"The injection of extra police recognises the need to keep the community safe both the Anangu and for the workers," he said.

"It will also ensure that we crack down on the trafficking of drugs and alcohol."

Related:

Compensation for SA sex abuse victims
The South Australian Government says it will focus on compensation for victims, now that the inquiry into the sexual abuse of children in state care is complete.

Apology pledge for SA child sex victims
The South Australian Government says it will make a formal apology to victims of child sexual abuse, as a result of the wide-reaching Mullighan inquiry.

Call for new indigenous body
Former ATSIC Commissioner Klynton Wanganeen says he will raise the idea of a new national body to represent indigenous communities at the 2020 Summit.

Aboriginal delegation heads to UN
The National Aboriginal Alliance is taking its concerns about the Northern Territory intervention to the United Nations.

More elderly Sydneysiders 'living in squalor'

University of Sydney professor John Snowdon says his team of psychiatrists have found 150 elderly people living in excessive dirtiness in inner city suburbs.

He says those figures mean between 500 and 1,000 people are in a similar position across the state.

Professor Snowdon says part of the reason behind the increase is the rise in dementia and the lack of services in some areas.

"The main clinical conditions leading to these sort of living conditions is either dementia, schizophrenia or alcoholism and we believe that a lot of the people have changes in their frontal lobes of their brains," he said.

He says more resources are needed to help those living in extreme squalor.

"When they have such severe problems with their thinking processes and are unable to work out what to do for themselves, yes, we believe that the community should intervene," he said.

The NSW Opposition is calling for the proper funding of forensic cleaners to deal with the rise in elderly people living in extreme squalor.

The Opposition's ageing spokesman, Andrew Constance, says the State Government has ignored the problem.

"They've turned their back at a time when they should ensure that funding is available for forensic cleaners to go in, backed up by much needed support services - be it mental health, home care, department of health and other services - to ensure that those people no longer fall through the cracks," he said.

Calls for binge warnings on alcohol packaging

The Public Health Association (PHA) says warnings about the dangers of binge drinking should be pasted on all forms of packaged alcoholic drinks.

The Australia-New Zealand Food Regulation Ministerial Council has requested Food Standards Australia to consider putting warnings on all alcoholic drinks.

PHA chief executive Michael Moore says mandatory warnings are a must if Australia is to properly combat binge drinking.

"I think people should be warned about intoxication," he said.

"I think they should be reminded that drinking sensibly is one thing but drinking to get drunk is an inappropriate way to use alcohol and an unhealthy way to use alcohol."

Mr Moore says warnings must carry the basic message that getting drunk is unhealthy.

"I think that it is appropriate if we begin a labelling regime to apply to alcohol across the board," he said.

"I think it is appropriate to remind people that what we ought to be doing is drinking sensible and binge drinking or drinking regularly is really not good for your health."

Man stabbed in night of brawls

Three men have been arrested over a stabbing in Sydney's Darling Harbour, after police had to respond to three separate fights involving up to 30 people. A 24-year-old man was taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Camperdown, after being stabbed in the back during one brawl, which occurred at a hotel on Wheat Road. Police say they were called to the hotel around 1.30am (AEST), with reports that three separate fights had broken out involving 30 people. Three men were later arrested over the incident. Two 18-year-olds and one 19-year-old have been taken to City Central police station, where the are currently being questioned, police said.

Meanwhile, two teenage boys have been charged after a separate altercation in Sydney's Hyde Park last night. Police say a group of 15 teenagers had gathered at the park, before a fight broke out among the youths at 1.30am (AEST). A 19-year-old Croydon Park man and 17-year-old from Burwood Heights were arrested by police patrolling the park.
Both have been charged with affray and will appear in court later this month. The 19-year old will appear at Downing Centre Local Court on May 23, while the teenager will face Bidura Children's Court the same day.

Related;

Balmain hotels fill as young mourn pub mates
Many of those involved in the accident were from Balmain. Friends gathered, embraced and cried openly on Darling Street, and soon after were intoxicated with alcohol as well as grief. Balmain bar staff described the incident as a pub staff night gone wrong. The Commercial Hotel on Darling Street had changed hands on Wednesday and it is understood that staff from hotels in the area had gathered to mark the occasion with a night of drinking and celebration.

Police name 6th harbour crash victim
Thirty-two-year-old Ashlei Ayres, a single mother of two, has now been named as one of the five people who died at the scene of the crash.

Support for booze public education
A SURVEY of 1000 Australians found more than three-quarters of those questioned about attitudes to drinking said there was not enough public education about the dangers of alcohol, despite the Rudd Government's promise of a multimillion-dollar binge-drinking strategy

Australia's cocaine use up, smoking down

AUSTRALIANS are smoking fewer cigarettes and less cannabis but using more cocaine, a report shows.

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare survey found that from 2004 to 2007, the proportion of people aged 14 and more who smoked daily fell from 17.4 to 16.6 per cent.

Recent cannabis use dropped from just more than 11 per cent to just more than 9 per cent.

The 2007 National Drug Strategy Household Survey: first results report also found methamphetamine (or "ice") use had declined, in contrast with popular perceptions it was increasing.

The proportion of men and women using cocaine, however, increased from 1.3 to 2.2 per cent.

Welfare agency spokesman Mark Cooper-Stanbury said Australia now had one of the lowest smoking rates.

The report found about one in four teenagers put themselves at risk of short-term alcohol-related harm at least once a month. "The proportion was higher among females (28.3 per cent) than males (24.5 per cent)," he said.

The report also raised concerns about girls' smoking habits - 16 to 17-year-old females were "almost twice as likely to be daily smokers (7.4 per cent) as their male counterparts (4.1 per cent), although both of these figures dropped by about half from the previous survey".

Related:

Ciggy substitute abuse on rise
ABOUT 425,000 Australians are fuelling a boom in the nicotine replacement market, now worth more than $90 million a year.

Alliance tackles drunken violence
THE TOLL of alcohol-related violence has reached the point where one in five Australians now say they have been directly affected or know someone who has been affected by this type of violence, a new survey shows.

Support for booze public education
A SURVEY of 1000 Australians found more than three-quarters of those questioned about attitudes to drinking said there was not enough public education about the dangers of alcohol, despite the Rudd Government's promise of a multimillion-dollar binge-drinking strategy.