Most speeding officers on urgent duty?

New South Wales police are playing down figures from the Office of State Revenue which show 1325 police officers have been caught speeding on speed cameras.

The figures from the 2006-2007 financial year mean almost four officers a day are being caught.

That is more than any other public servant group.

The head of the NSW Police Professional Standards Unit, Assistant Commissioner Paul Carey, say the issue is a not a problem.

"The vast majority of those would be cold because we would find the police officers were performing some form of urgent duty," he said.

"That might not have been obvious by the camera detector, in other words they didn't have their lights on."

Most of those fines have been waived.

Quote: "Most speeding officers on urgent duty." Unquote: Well wouldn't that depend on what that "urgent duty" was? What about a detailed list of what those urgent duties were?

Related:

NSW bill for sick police tops $115m
Ten times as many NSW police officers retire on medical grounds than their Victorian colleagues, gaining access to benefits costing taxpayers over $115 million this year.

Charge officers over falsified breath tests: PIC
Three police officers should be charged with perverting the course of justice after allegedly falsifying alcohol breath tests to help two well-connected suspects escape prosecution, the Police Integrity Commission recommends.

Record level of complaints against NSW police
The number of complaints against NSW police has grown to a record level of more than 1000, new data reveals.

Police on sexual act, report finds
A WOMAN escaped a drink-driving charge after two male police officers turned a blind eye to her breath test results when she agreed to perform a sexual act on one of them in the back of her car, the annual NSW Ombudsman report reveals.

Over 130 police have criminal convictions
New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione has defended his force, as new figures show 133 serving officers have criminal convictions.

Charge officers over falsified breath tests: PIC

According to the PIC, at the station, Senior Constable Mark Ronald Christie took the second breath test for Mr Clunes, which was negative and Mr Clunes was not charged.

Three police officers should be charged with perverting the course of justice after allegedly falsifying alcohol breath tests to help two well-connected suspects escape prosecution, the Police Integrity Commission recommends.

The allegations relate to incidents in Moree and Orange late last year.

The PIC did not recommend any charges against superiors and a senior officer in the Corrective Services Department, who discussed the incidents with some of the officers before the second breath test in each case.

In the first incident, in September last year, an officer of the Corrective Services Department, David John Webb, was pulled over for a random breath test outside Moree. He returned a reading of .095, well above the legal limit.

But when he was taken back to the police station, officers recognised him, because he worked out of the same station.

The PIC, in a report released today, says Senior Constable Phillip William Smith agreed with a colleague, Senior Constable James William Boaden, that Senior Constable Smith would take a second breath test for Mr Webb at the station. This test recorded a zero blood alcohol level and no charges were laid.

Senior Constable Smith told the PIC inquiry that Mr Webb's boss, Corrective Services Department Assistant Superintendent John Arthur Weavers, "virtually" said to him: "Can't you get someone else to blow into the bag?"

Superintendent Weavers told the PIC he had no recollection of the conversation because he was intoxicated, but "may have" said this.

Senior Constable Smith also told the inquiry that his boss, Inspector Jeffrey Budd, had told him to "be careful" about the case, which he had interpreted to mean he should not charge Mr Webb.

Inspector Budd told the commission he asked Senior Constable Smith to treat Mr Webb like any other offender.

In the second incident, in December last year, Adam Colin Clunes, the son of a police officer, recorded a reading of .202 in a random breath test on a road in Orange.

According to the PIC, at the station, Senior Constable Mark Ronald Christie took the second breath test for Mr Clunes, which was negative and Mr Clunes was not charged.

Senior Constable Christie told the inquiry he felt empathy for Mr Clunes and was overwhelmed by the situation. He said he had been involved in several high-stress incidents, had been assaulted and took medication to relieve stress.

The PIC heard that Mr Clunes's father, Senior Constable Colin Clunes had allegedly told another officer: "You've got to do something ... he'll lose his licence", and that Senior Constable Clunes had previously been unhappy when his son had received a traffic fine.

But Senior Constable Clunes told the inquiry he was angry with his son and did not intend for the officer to believe he wanted her to do something to stop his son from losing his licence.

The PIC recommended that senior constables Smith, Boaden and Christie be charged.

Related:

Record level of complaints against NSW police
The number of complaints against NSW police has grown to a record level of more than 1000, new data reveals.

Police on sexual act, report finds
A WOMAN escaped a drink-driving charge after two male police officers turned a blind eye to her breath test results when she agreed to perform a sexual act on one of them in the back of her car, the annual NSW Ombudsman report reveals.

Over 130 police have criminal convictions
New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione has defended his force, as new figures show 133 serving officers have criminal convictions.

ASIO officers should be prosecuted

Two ASIO officers should face prosecution for their role in the abduction of a Sydney medical student.

If not why not? They're criminals and should face charges for their criminal acts.

The charges against Izhar Ul-Haque were withdrawn last year, after a Supreme Court judge ruled that two ASIO officers had been "grossly improper" and criminal in their interviews with the student.

The actions of the officers should be referred to prosecutors.

But if they don't face prosecution it is because of the state sanctioned criminal government and the many criminal acts they should be charged with but to date have not.

In Australia we live a lie.

ASIO interrogators were grossly incompetent: judge

THE ASIO officer drew the figure "Y" in the gravel with his foot. "This is a Y; we are here," he said, gesturing to the intersection of the letter. "We've got two choices. We can go down the difficult path or the less difficult path."

The officer was addressing a Sydney medical student, Izhar Ul Haque. It was dusk and the interrogation was about to begin at Francis Park, Bankstown. Mr Ul Haque was under no illusions that he was in serious trouble.

For more than six months he had heard nothing. Now he was being told he was under investigation because an associate of his, Faheem Lodhi, [scapegoat in John Howards war on Iraq now doing 20 years for thought crime] was suspected of planning a terrorist attack in Sydney.

"You're in a substantial amount of trouble," the ASIO officer told him. "We have many means of investigation and hold considerable information about you. What we now require from you is your full co-operation."

With these threats began a series of events that terrified Mr Ul Haque and, in the end, led to the case against him yesterday collapsing. It is the latest in a series of high-profile blunders by those responsible for prosecuting the war against terrorism [Iraq and Afghanistan resource wars].

In a damning judgment, Justice Michael Adams said the two ASIO officers "committed the "criminal offences" of "false imprisonment" and "kidnapping" at common law".

Their conduct was "grossly improper", he said. Ruling all subsequent police records of interview inadmissible, Justice Adams also observed that the officers' later explanations for their behaviour were defensive and, at times, untruthful.

"They were aware that what they were doing was unlawful. They were perfectly aware that they were not entitled to detain. Nor was there any suggestion of emergency that might have provided some mitigation for their conduct," he said.

ASIO had obtained a warrant to search the premises of the Ul Haque family on November 6, 2003. But the warrant did not permit them to detain Mr Ul Haque or question him.

But the ASIO officers did so at Francis Park and at the Ul Haque home while it was being raided by 30 plainclothes officers. For almost 10 hours, he was detained, threatened and interrogated, with an Australian Federal Police officer taking notes on the side.

Mr Ul Haque said the meaning of doing things the difficult way or the less difficult way was clear.

"I believed that I was under arrest and that if I did not comply with whatever they asked me that they will either use physical violence or take me to a more sinister place to interrogate me or, you know, do something to my family or deport me," he told the court.

The initial ASIO raid and interrogations were followed up by interviews with the federal police.

In the ensuing weeks, it became clear what the authorities really wanted: they needed him to become an informant. If he did not co-operate and spy on Lodhi he would face serious consequences.

"You wouldn't want to miss third-year medicine," one of the police officers told him.

Mr Ul Haque rebuffed the overtures, which included the suggestion that he wear a covert listening device. "It's dangerous for me to go and do this thing," he told the police.

Four months or so after refusing to co-operate, Mr Ul Haque was arrested in April 2004 and charged with training with Lashkar-e-Taiba with the intention of causing harm to Indian armed forces.

In his judgment, Justice Adams said any alleged offence "was of relatively minor criminality. Indeed, I think that he did not know he was committing an offence under Australian law."

The Director of Public Prosecutions abandoned the trial and the Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, said any disciplinary action against the ASIO officers was a matter for the intelligence watchdog, Ian Carnell.

Quote: Each and every time the government are allowed to break the law and terrorise citizenry and then let off to get away with it is just another nail in the community coffin.

Inspector-General Ian Carnell is no watchdog for intelligence. He’s grossly incompetent and should be sacked immediately. Then the government who instigated this state terrorism should be held to account.

We can’t allow authorities in this country to carry out criminal acts and those responsible like the rest of the community who commit crime should be brought to justice.

Related:

Ex-CIA Officials Tied to Rendition Program and Faulty Iraq Intel Tapped to Head Obama’s Intelligence Transition Team John Brennan and Jami Miscik, both former intelligence officials under George Tenet, are leading Barack Obama’s review of intelligence agencies and helping make recommendations to the new administration. Brennan has supported warrantless wiretapping and extraordinary rendition, and Miscik was involved with the politicized intelligence alleging weapons of mass destruction in the lead-up to the war on Iraq. We speak with former CIA analyst Melvin Goodman and Michael Ratner of the Center for Constitutional Rights.

Police provocateur infiltrates political and protest groups
In a series of articles published last month, Melbourne's Age newspaper revealed that a covert police agent recently infiltrated several left-wing political and activist groups, including Socialist Alternative, Stop the War Coalition, Unity for Peace, and Animal Liberation Victoria. Beginning in 2006, the agent provocateur was involved in anti-Iraq war demonstrations—including last year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) protests in Sydney—animal liberation actions, and participated in planning meetings for a protest to be held against a weapons fair in South Australia.

There never has been a terrorist attack in Australia
One other problem is that if the STATE decide to go all the way like for instance in the Hilton Bombing then they plant the bomb and blame the patsy.

Not one shred of evidence, Haneef case
Federal police knew they had nothing to link Mohammed Haneef to terrorism, but pressed on regardless, writes David Marr.

ASIO agent watched my torture - Habib
"I had to stand for hours and hours on my toes, trying not to drown: Mamdouh Habib with his family in a Bankstown cafe, yesterday. From his left are his children Ahmed, Maryam, Moustafa and Hajer, and his wife Maha.

Thomas lawyers call for inquiry
Lawyers for Melbourne man Jack Thomas are calling for an inquiry into the conduct of the Australian Federal Police and Commonwealth Director of Prosecutions, in pursuing him on terrorism charges.

Concern over anti-terrorism laws
THE Haneef inquiry emerged briefly into daylight yesterday to hear the former chief justice Sir Gerard Brennan express concern that security laws are causing "too great an erosion of our fundamental rights".

Haneef's lawyer says inquiry is weak
The inquiry into Australian authorities' handling of the Mohamed Haneef case needs stronger powers to avoid becoming a "toothless tiger", the former terror suspect's lawyer says.

Stand down, lawyers tell Keelty
THE Australian Federal Police Commissioner, Mick Keelty, should stand down pending the outcome of the Clarke Inquiry into the handling of the Haneef case, the Australian Lawyers Alliance said yesterday.

Haneef to seek compensation
Greens...AFP needs to properly explain the reasons why it pursued the case against Dr Haneef. MORE than a year after a terrorism charge against him was dropped and more than $8 million later, the Australian Federal Police have finally confirmed they have cleared the Indian doctor Mohamed Haneef as a suspect.

Haneef advice ignored by Andrews: lawyers
Lawyers for former Gold Coast-based Dr Mohamed Haneef say they have obtained new documents showing former immigration minister Kevin Andrews ignored advice from his own department.

Haneef's lawyer wants secret dossier released
A lawyer representing former Gold Coast-based doctor Mohamed Haneef says a secret dossier used to cancel his client's visa contained no incriminating evidence against his client.

Haneef lawyers want more powers in probe
Lawyers acting for Mohamed Haneef want an inquiry investigating the failed terrorism case against him to be given the powers of a royal commission.

Haneef case evidence 'to remain secret'
The retired judge who is investigating the case of Dr Mohamed Haneef says much of the evidence he has received will have to remain secret.

AFP denied lawyer to Haneef: report
Mohamed Haneef's lawyers say the Australian Federal Police (AFP) repeatedly denied their client's request for a lawyer to be present during his first interview.

Legal experts to mull Haneef case
The head of the inquiry, retired Supreme Court judge John Clarke QC, says the forum will examine legislation as it applied to Dr Haneef.

Terror suspects held in 'repressive' conditions: lawyer
Lawyer Rob Stary who represented five of the men convicted of terrorism related offences said the conditions they were held in were 'repressive. He said the Government should review the anti-terror laws.

Key witness terrorism trial previously jailed
Outside the court, defence lawyer Rob Stary criticised Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland for comments made while the trial was still underway.

'Traumatic, stressful' terrorism trial - lawyer
A lawyer for one of the men found not guilty in Australia's largest [scapegoat] terrorism trial has spoken about the effect of the long-running trial on his client and on his own life.

Contradictory verdicts in Australia’s largest terrorism trial
Australia’s largest and most protracted terrorist trial ended with distinctly mixed results last week in Melbourne. After a Victorian Supreme Court trial that ran for 115 days, the nine women and three men on the jury took nearly four weeks to reach their verdicts. While they found seven of the twelve defendants guilty of terrorist-related offences, they acquitted four others of all charges and were unable to reach a unanimous verdict on another, who now faces a lengthy re-trial.

Benbrika guilty on terrorism charges
A Victorian Supreme Court jury has found Abdul Nacer Benbrika guilty [Draconian Laws] of leading a terrorist group.

Jury discharged in terrorism book trial
Khazaal's barrister said his client wrote just two paragraphs in the book, with most of it written by other people.

Jury finds man guilty of terrorist book charge
A Supreme Court jury has found a man guilty of one terrorism-related offence and is still considering its verdict on a second terrorism-related charge.

Judge attacks disparity in laws
Justice Kirby was at the University of NSW last night to accept an honorary Doctorate of Laws for his ''eminent service to the community''.

Suspended sentence in winery terrorist plot
A Victorian grape grower who planned to blow up a rival winery in the state's north-east has been given a suspended sentence.

High Court rejects appeal against Thomas retrial
The High Court has rejected an application for an appeal by Melbourne man Jack Thomas against his retrial on terrorism-related charges.

Bill: Independent reviewer for terrorism laws
Two Liberal Senators have introduced a private member's bill calling for an independent reviewer of terrorism laws.

Push for overhaul of laws on terrorism
In a paper in Judicial Review he said that the National Security Information Act "gives the appearance of having been drafted by persons who have little knowledge of the function and processes of a criminal trial".

Court denies Lodhi leave to appeal
Lodhi claimed the trial did not establish that he had actually decided to carry out a terrorist attack.

Thomas to appeal retrial order
Lawyers for Victorian man Jack Thomas will appeal to the High Court against a decision to retry him on terrorism related charges.

Court orders retrial for Jack Thomas
The Court of Appeal has ordered that Victorian man Jack Thomas must be retried on terrorism-related charges.

Push for overhaul of laws on terrorism
In a paper in Judicial Review he said that the National Security Information Act "gives the appearance of having been drafted by persons who have little knowledge of the function and processes of a criminal trial".

Court denies Lodhi leave to appeal
Lodhi claimed the trial did not establish that he had actually decided to carry out a terrorist attack.

Hicks media gag order ends
As part of the deal, he was also banned from speaking to the media after his release in December 2007.

Terror trial halted over prison conditions
A Supreme Court judge has put a Melbourne terrorism trial on hold and ordered Corrections Victoria to change prison conditions of the 12 accused men

Faheem Lodhi - another non-terrorist jailed under Australia's 'anti-terror' laws? Jack Thomas, a non-terrorist, has been jailed under Australia's anti-terror laws. Now Faheem Lodhi has been convicted under the terror laws on flimsy, circumstantial evidence. It is likely he is another non-terrorist jailed for political purposes under the terror laws.

Officers cleared of deadly crash-tackle

Mrs Boyd...In a way I knew it would be hard to get a conviction. (Debbie Boyd with her daughter, Rebecca.)

Paul Boyd, 21, had been walking with a group across a car park in Narromine, near Dubbo in the state's west, when two men, Sean Britton, 34, and Eric Coote, 38, [allegedly?] crash-tackled him to the ground.

Mr Boyd did not regain consciousness and died before the ambulance arrived.

Britton, an off-duty police officer at the time, and his friend Eric Coote, a Corrective Services officer, were tried for manslaughter in the District Court this month.

But a judge yesterday acquitted them of killing Mr Boyd and of an alternative charge of assault, as there was not enough evidence to prove how Mr Boyd had died or that the men had tackled him.

"On the evidence presented in this court I could not be satisfied [of] what actually happened … that is why the accused must be acquitted of these charges," Judge Anthony Blackmore told the court.

The decision will be cold comfort for two of Mrs Boyd's other sons, Mark Ernest Boyd and John Gregory Boyd, who are in jail awaiting trial for allegedly stabbing Britton in an attack in November last year, near the anniversary of their brother's death.

Paul Boyd and his friend Graham Jones had been drinking heavily earlier on the night he died. As they walked through a car park nearby, two men got out of a car and started running at Mr Boyd before allegedly tackling him from behind.

Justice Blackmore said he had found several witnesses who claimed to have seen the crash tackle to be unreliable and that they had given evidence believing it must have happened because someone of Mr Boyd's age "does not simply fall on the ground and remain there".

But Justice Blackmore said there was evidence to suggest Mr Boyd's death may not have been the result of a crash-tackle.

[But if someone crash-tackled his relative and they died how would he have judged that?]

Weeks before his death, Mr Boyd had been diagnosed with epilepsy and had been warned by doctors to drink less and make other lifestyle changes.

However, a blood alcohol level upon his death of 0.188 he had not heeded those warnings.

Several witnesses also described Mr Boyd being dropped on his head from a height of 80 centimetres after Mr Jones tried to pick him up as he lay unconscious on the ground.

Justice Blackmore said there had been no physical signs on the clothing of Britton or Coote, such as scuff marks or holes, to suggest that they had performed a tackle.

Outside court, Mrs Boyd said she was "crushed" by the result. "In a way I knew it would be hard to get a conviction."

Quote: This case is a disgrace. Why is there a special disparity of the law for officers when they kill in Australia? No need to wonder why Mrs Boyd was crushed. The protection of those who have served the government is clear. People ought not have any confidence in this judgement or Justice Blackmore's take on the law.

Man killed by police 'had mental health issues'

It is believed a 43-year-old man shot dead by police near Newcastle last Friday had a history of drug abuse and mental health issues.

About 5:00pm AEDT last Friday, police officers were called to Spinnakers Leisure Park on the Pacific Highway at Belmont on the mid-north coast of New South Wales to investigate reports of a domestic dispute.

There was then a stand-off between police and long-time park resident Michael Capel in a children's play area.

Mr Capel, who was armed with a knife, refused several police requests to drop the weapon.

Officers used capsicum spray in an attempt to subdue him but when it had no affect, police shot Mr Capel dead.

Mr Capel had a long history of drug and alcohol abuse but was also dealing with mental health issues.

The critical incident team and homicide squad are investigating. Police are also preparing a report for the coroner.

Related:

Brother, sister Tasered 'after vandalism spree'
When police tried to arrest the man they say he attacked the five officers and had to be Tasered.

Over 130 police have criminal convictions

New South Wales Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione has defended his force, as new figures show 133 serving officers have criminal convictions.

Three senior constables and two detectives have kept their jobs despite more than one conviction.

It is reported that documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show that the officers have 166 offences between them.

Commissioner Scipione says most of those are traffic offences, although there are several assaults.

He says he dismissed some of the officers, but the Industrial Relations Commission ruled that they could keep their jobs.

"I lost confidence in them in the first instance," he said.

"But whilst I might not be to pleased at having to take them back, at the end of the day the commission is the commission and they have the authority to make sure I take them back."

Woman convicted over child sex charges

An American charged with having sex with a central Victorian boy has been released from custody

Thirty-six year-old Barbara Case of the United States was convicted in the County Court in Bendigo of two charges of sexual penetration of a child under 16.

The court was told Case met the 15-year-old Bendigo boy over the internet, and flew to Australia last May to meet him in person.

It heard they spent 10 days together, before woman, who is a mother of three, was arrested.

Case wept as Judge Tim Wood, handed down her sentence.

She received a partially suspended sentence.

The judge took into account the 112 days she had spend in custody following her arrest and suspended the remaining 253 days.

She is expected to return to the United States as soon as possible.

ADFA cadet 12 months jail over fatal crash

An ACT Supreme Court judge has sentenced an Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) cadet to a minimum of six months in jail after a fatal car accident in Canberra.

Ahmed Alzaabi was the driver of a car that slammed into a concrete barrier in Russell in June this year.

One of the passengers, ADFA cadet Benjamin John Taylor from Queensland, died in the crash, and two other cadets were seriously injured.

The ACT Supreme Court heard the 24-year-old was driving at twice the speed limit and had a very high blood alcohol level when he lost control of the car.

Alzaabi told the court that he blames no one else for what happened, and that he will never forgive himself.

In sentencing, Chief Justice Terence Higgins said the two aggravating factors, speed and alcohol, were a recipe for tragedy.

He sentenced Alzaabi to 12 months in jail, but he will be eligible for release in six months.

Judge attacks disparity in laws

Australia has a long way to go in protecting the rights of women, Aborigines, migrants and homosexuals, High Court judge Michael Kirby said yesterday.

Justice Kirby was at the University of NSW last night to accept an honorary Doctorate of Laws for his ''eminent service to the community''.

He told graduates from the university's law faculty it was up to the next generation of lawyers to continue to uphold and improve the justice system.

"At your coming in, you must scrupulously maintain that tradition," Justice Kirby said. "You must strengthen it and safeguard it, for without law there is tyranny."

Justice Kirby, who must retire from the High Court in March when he turns 70, is tipped to leave the Bench at the end of the year.

Perhaps alluding to the reforms, which he has lobbied for, Justice Kirby said there was still inequality for women and minority groups "The position of gays has got better in my lifetime; but the oppression and ignorance are not yet over," he said.

"Inequality and discrimination have not yet stopped.

"Wrongs and injustices still occur in the law to this day, including even for me, an office-holder under the nation's Constitution. So it is work in progress; no room for complacency."

He warned graduates, "We cannot afford to be starry-eyed about our profession".

"You know that sometimes, with the aid of good lawyering, judges can strengthen the law with justice.

"But you also know many cases where this has proved impossible. And some where the outcomes sometimes seemed unnecessarily unjust. You know that access to justice is too expensive. Despite law reform reports, parliaments often neglect the demonstrated need for reform."

Related:

Suspended sentence in winery terrorist plot
A Victorian grape grower who planned to blow up a rival winery in the state's north-east has been given a suspended sentence.

Some Risdon inmates in solitary confinement for years: reports
Risdon's solitary confinement unit is under investigation. The Tasmanian Ombudsman has begun an investigation into the unit after hearing inmates have not had access to enough sunlight or fresh air.

Black Australia's doing fine, says G-G
The Aboriginal leader Pat Dodson said the head of state's remarks were superficial and suggested that all that was needed was to "force these [remote] people out of their communal ways …

Women's battle for equal pay continues
ALMOST 40 years after it became unlawful to pay women less than men for equal work of equal value, women are still earning on average $196 a week less than men.

Push for federal charter of human rights
High Court Judge Justice Michael Kirby has again called for Australia to adopt a charter of human rights.

QLD judge-only trials 'not the answer'
Civil libertarian Terry O'Gorman says judge-only trials are not the answer. Laws to go to Parliament next week will allow the prosecution or the defence to apply for a trial to be heard by a judge-only in some complex or notorious cases.

Planned phone-tapping laws in Qld
Council for Civil Liberties..These new laws involve a considerable intrusion into the privacy of people's lives. Queensland Council for Civil Liberties says the public has a lot be concerned about.

Watered down same-sex laws pass in ACT
Laws granting same-sex couples legal recognition passed the ACT Legislative Assembly Thursday night, but the territory government is still furious it was forced to water down its legislation.

Australia: Concerns of a police state
Cameron Murphy...a massive reduction in police accountability to the community. NSW police now have special emergency powers to bug or track people for up to four days without a warrant. Under the biggest shake-up to the state's surveillance laws, police will have up to four days to monitor people before needing to apply retrospectively for an emergency warrant from a Supreme Court judge. NSW Attorney-General John Hatzistergos said the new police powers flowed from an inter-governmental Australian terrorism summit in 2002.

Australia to sign up to anti-torture treaty
Australian complicity in War Crimes in the Middle East, Torture, Rendition. In Australia Draconian Laws, Indefinite Solitary Confinement of prisoners at places like the HRMU at Goulburn Correctional Centre.

UN Torture Committee Blasts Australia
In its report on Australia, the Torture Committee was critical of Australia's prisons, counter-terrorism laws, mandatory immigration detention and of the way Australian officials have ignored torture and mistreatment overseas in places like Abu Ghraib.

LINE IN SAND ON MENTAL HEALTH
“Patients under state control have had their social interaction reduced, and right to smoke removed. These vulnerable and isolated citizens, to whom the state owes a special obligation, are extremely distressed and have asked for community assistance,” said JA spokesperson Michael Poynder.

Faheem Lodhi - another non-terrorist jailed under Australia's 'anti-terror' laws? Jack Thomas, a non-terrorist, has been jailed under Australia's anti-terror laws. Now Faheem Lodhi has been convicted under the terror laws on flimsy, circumstantial evidence. It is likely he is another non-terrorist jailed for political purposes under the terror laws.

Suspended sentence in winery terrorist plot

A Victorian grape grower who planned to blow up a rival winery in the state's north-east has been given a suspended sentence.

Steven Bergamin plotted to blow up the Gapsted Winery in 2002, when they reduced their payments to grape growers.

The court heard the 25-year-old engaged a private investigator and an undercover policeman to do the job, using a remote-controlled device so he could watch from a distance.

Bergamin pleaded guilty to one count of incitement to commit criminal damage and was fined and sentenced to 12 months' jail suspended for two years.

Quote: I reckon John Howard had something to hide whilst prosecuting other alleged terrorists. Why was the above case not resolved prior say the related case below? Seems incredible that the above case was not resolved or at least heard of and not resolved yet Lodhi was found guilty of much less evidence than the above case and given 20 years.

How does the Lodhi Case related below add up to the above Case?

What is more likely a terrorist act?

A) A person who has made certain arrangements to carry out a terrorist act?

B) A person who has made no certain arrangements to carry out a terrorist act?

That's not to suggest that the above person should have been given more time just that it is incompatible with the Lodhi case in evidence, demeanour and disparaty.

Related:

Faheem Lodhi - another non-terrorist jailed under Australia's 'anti-terror' laws? Jack Thomas, a non-terrorist, has been jailed under Australia's anti-terror laws. Now Faheem Lodhi has been convicted under the terror laws on flimsy, circumstantial evidence. It is likely he is another non-terrorist jailed for political purposes under the terror laws.

Westpoint promoter gets suspended sentence

A promoter for the collapsed company Westpoint has been given a suspended jail sentence after being found guilty of deceiving investors.

In May, Sydney man Neil Burnard was found guilty of nine criminal charges following an investigation by the Australian Security and Investments Commission (ASIC).

The New South Wales District Court has heard he deceived investors into putting the total of more than $1 million into the Kebbel Investment Bank, an entity that did not exist.

The court heard that Kebbel was a mezzanine company that channelled money into Westpoint in exchange for a commission.

The 48-year-old was given a 12-month suspended jail sentence and fined $50,000.

The judge said while Burnard knew he was stealing with unsophisticated investors, he played no direct role in the collapse of Westpoint and is unlikely to re-offend.

David Dench jailed for fraud

Former North Melbourne football club captain David Dench has been sentenced to 14 months in jail for his part in a million-dollar fraud scheme.

Ten months of the sentence has been suspended.

The court heard Dench took part in the scheme to defraud Victoria University by creating false invoices for maintenance work.

A Victorian County Court jury found him guilty of 11 fraud-related charges.

Judge Jim Wood sentenced Dench to serve four months in prison with the remaining 10 months of his sentence suspended for two years.

In sentencing, Judge Wood said Dench was a cog in the machine to defraud Victoria University and his financial reward was minor.

But he said Dench had shown no remorse and still denied his guilt despite strong evidence against him.

Outside court, Dench's lawyer Bernie Balmer said his client is holding up well, but is worried about his family.

"We accept the verdict and we accept the sentence," he said.

"We won't be appealing, he just wants to get the next 3-and-a-half months out of the road, settle with the university and get on with life."

Dench captained North Melbourne in the 1977 grand final and was inducted in the AFL Hall of Fame in 2000.

Hoon driving Crow avoids jail

Adelaide Crows footballer Scott Thompson has been given a suspended jail sentence for hoon driving.

Thompson, 25, had pleaded guilty in Port Adelaide Magistrates Court to causing serious harm by dangerous driving and leaving the scene of an accident at Fulham last November.

Magistrate Paul Foley said Thompson panicked after crashing into a pole.

His friend Adam Sampson was seriously injured.

Mr Foley aid he could have jailed the midfielder for five years for each offence, but instead he set a four-month prison term which he suspended.

Australian rape victim to be paid $30k by Japan

Japan will pay compensation of $30,000 to an Australian woman who was raped in 2002 by a US sailor who never faced prosecution.

The woman known as "Jane" was raped by a then sailor of the USS Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier in the naval port city of Yokosuka, south of Tokyo.

Japanese prosecutors dropped the case without pressing a criminal charge against the sailor.

The victim filed a civil case with the Tokyo District Court, which recognised the rape and gave her the right to seek compensation from her attacker.

However, by the time of the ruling, the sailor had left the country and the money has never been paid.

The Japanese defence ministry has decided to make the payment instead.



Tags: law-crime-and-justice, sexual-offences, australia, japa

Reduced sentence for female sex offender

A 35-year-old Melbourne woman who had sex with a 15-year-old boy has received a reduced jail sentence because treatment is not available to female sex offenders in custody.

Bianca Aleida Smulders, 35, formerly of Pakenham, wept in the dock as she was sentenced in the Victorian County Court on Thursday to at least 12 months in prison.

Smulders had pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual penetration of a child under the age of 16, and was also charged with breaching an intervention order.

The court heard the parents of the victim, who cannot be named, became suspicious of Smulders last July after realising she had bought gifts including cigarettes, CDs, a mobile phone and an iPod for their son.

The pair had sex in the back of Smulders' car and a caravan at her home on about 18 different occasions between July and October last year, the court heard.

An intervention order was taken out against Smulders on October 18 last year, but the court heard Smulders breached the order by sending letters to the victim.

The pair also had sex in Smulders' car at the Bunyip State Park, in Melbourne's outer east, while the intervention order was in place.

They each also sent more than 2,000 mobile phone text messages to one another up until November 3, when Smulders was taken into custody, the court heard.

In sentencing, Judge Geoffrey Chettle said authorities claimed that Smulders be treated no differently to any other sex offender because she was a woman.

He noted the maximum penalty for sexual intercourse with a child under 16 is 10 years in prison.

Judge Chettle sentenced Smulders to 36 months in prison, with a non-parole period of one year.

He said he set a "longer than usual parole period" in order for Smulders' to seek treatment for her offending while on parole.

He said he did this because courses for sexual offenders were not available to women in prison.

"You will not be able to benefit from a sex offenders course while in custody," he said.

Judge Chettle said Smulders' guilty plea and the genuine remorse she had shown for her actions, also entitled her to a substantial reduction in sentence.

Smulders has already served 187 days of her prison sentence.

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Chijoff fined $750 over bogus leaflets

The estranged husband of former Liberal candidate for Lindsay Karen Chijoff has been fined $750 for his role in a bogus leaflet drop in the hotly contested federal electorate.

Greg Alex Chijoff, 44, last week pleaded guilty to distributing unauthorised election material in the lead-up to last November's federal election.

Downing Centre Local Court Magistrate Ian Barnett fined the IT engineer $750 plus court costs of $70, reducing the maximum $1,000 penalty in recognition of the personal consequences of his actions.

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Racist escapes conviction over 'disgusting' fake leaflets incident
A Sydney magistrate has told a man who escaped conviction over the distribution of fake leaflets during last year's federal election campaign there was national disgust over the incident.

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Former Prosecutor's safety risk in prison

A Tasmanian court has heard a former Crown Prosecutor who stole $200,000 seized from criminals can not go to Risdon Prison because his safety would be at risk.

Michael Paul Shirley has been in custody at the Hobart Remand Centre since his arrest in March.

For about four and a half years Michael Shirley, a senior crown prosecutor, stole varying amounts of cash from the Tasmania Police property store in Hobart.

Prosecutor, Mark Miller, said the money was mostly proceeds of crime seized from drug dealers.

Defence lawyer, Greg Richardson, said a spiralling gambling problem led Shirley to steal and he also gambled much of his wages and bank loans.

He said "it was close to half a million dollars wasted on keno."

Mr Richardson told the Hobart Criminal Court Shirley would have to serve his prison term in the Hobart Remand Centre because of the criminals he had prosecuted.

He said "he can't go to Risdon, they can't guarantee his safety."

Mr Richardson said his client had twice attempted suicide since his crimes came to light. He said Shirley's crimes were neither clever nor sophisticated and detection was inevitable.

He said his client has paid back part of the money and will be practically destitute when he leaves prison, with little chance of gaining employment.

Shirley will be sentenced later this month.

Qld police officer given jail time for assault

A Queensland police officer has been convicted of an assault in Sydney last year.

Queensland Police Media says the officer and another man were given custodial sentences after being found guilty of an incident last November.

The Queensland Police Service says both men have appealed against their prison sentences and have been granted bail.

The officer is on leave, but has been stood down from operational duties.

Quote: How come police officer and co offender are not named here, particularly after they've been sentenced to a term of prison and punishment? How can others avoid these dangerous violent criminals if they are not named like everyone else? Especially seen as how they're out in the community on bail. These are very serious offences. How come the cop wasn't sacked? Do they expect to win the appeal already? Typical of Mulrunji’s killing by Queensland police officer Chris Hurley rates only a footnote in the annals of justice. What about it ABC? Do we want police that assault people?

Racist escapes conviction over 'disgusting' fake leaflets incident

Liberal Party member ... Jackie Kelly's husband, Gary Clark, has pleaded not guilty.

A Sydney magistrate has told a man who escaped conviction over the distribution of fake leaflets during last year's federal election campaign there was national disgust over the incident.

The leaflets, attributed to a non-existent Islamic group, were distributed in the Western Sydney seat of Lindsay days before the election.

They alleged the ALP wanted the Bali bombers forgiven and urged Muslims to vote Labor.

Two of five men charged over the incident have pleaded guilty, but 37-year-old Troy Craig had no conviction recorded.

Magistrate Pat O'Shane said although there was national disgust over the incident and he should feel ashamed, it was at the lower end of the scale of offences.

The estranged husband of Liberal candidate Karen Chijoff, Greg Chijoff, did plead guilty. His case has been adjourned until next month.

Quote: What about some community service? Washing Muslims feet!

Updated: 30 April 2008

Kelly seemed involved, court told
THE former federal Liberal MP Jackie Kelly appeared "at the face of it to be involved" in the fake leaflet affair in her western Sydney seat at the last election, a court has heard.

A volunteer who was asked to distribute the leaflets - and who faced court yesterday with four others, including the husbands of Ms Kelly, the retiring MP, and the Liberal candidate contesting the seat - might have been entitled to think it had been approved, because he had been asked to meet at Ms Kelly's home, his barrister said yesterday.

The party machine also owed its volunteers a "duty of care" not to ask them to engage in unethical and criminal behaviour, the barrister and former NSW Liberal Party vice-president, Alex Howen, told the Downing Centre Local Court.

Five men were accused of allegedly breaching federal election legislation by distributing a brochure that did not bear the names, address and authorisation of their political masters. The brochure, distributed by the Liberal Party volunteers, was claimed to have been published by the fake "Islamic Australia Federation", and bore the ALP insignia.

But the magistrate, Pat O'Shane, said the stupid and offensive action was "an ugly chapter" and the community had shown its view of it already. The Liberal Party lost the seat of Lindsay, which Ms Kelly had held with a margin of almost 10 per cent.

The court heard about 15 brochures were distributed in the St Marys area on November 20 before witnesses saw the men.

Those being prosecuted include Ms Kelly's husband, Gary James Clark, who pleaded not guilty, and the now estranged husband of the election candidate Karen Chijoff, who sought to replace Ms Kelly as the local member. Greg Alex Chijoff pleaded guilty yesterday, but disputed some of the facts.

Another senior Liberal party official, Jeffrey Michael Egan, who left the party after the scandal, also pleaded not guilty. Robert Mathew Holstein, who failed to appear in court, did not enter a plea.

Mr Howen said his client, Troy Matthew Craig, had not been a party member for about seven years, but had volunteered because he was a friend of Ms Chijoff's.

Mr Howen said Craig was asked to come to Ms Kelly's and Clark's home, where he saw the brochure for the first time.

"He is entitled to think that this was all approved. The federal member appears at the face of it to be involved," he said.

Craig thought it was stupid, crude and "dumb politically and dumb because of its content", Mr Howen said. He also realised it lacked the required authorisation but "simply went along with the distribution".

Craig had been told "the brochure was OK and everything in it is true", Mr Howen told the court.

Clark had pleaded guilty, facing a maximum $1000 fine, but Ms O'Shane discharged the case against him without recording a conviction, after hearing he would lose his job as a valuer if he received a conviction.

"That kind of material arose in a political climate of divisiveness and disharmony which had been generated over several years. It is now well recognised across the country that this was an ugly chapter in our history. The people of this country have moved on … and are trying to build an inclusive civil society and you need to be part of it," she told Craig.

Chijoff's lawyer told the court he disputed the allegations that he distributed the leaflet with the other co-accused in the suburb of St Mary, but instead pleaded guilty to distributing the leaflet by himself in Oxley Park. His case was adjourned until May 7. The cases against the others will return to court later next month.

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No jail for doctor who raped patient

The District Court in Adelaide heard that in 1989, when Tori Barnes was 16, she was on a houseboat holiday at Renmark in the South Australian Riverland with family and friends.

A friend of her parents, who was also the family's GP, woke her and raped her twice.

It was not until 2001 that Ms Barnes reported it to police.

A jury found the doctor, now 58, guilty.

Judge Peter Herriman today said he was hesitant about suspending a two-year jail sentence.

He told the doctor his conduct was exploitative and disgraceful and there had been no sign of remorse.

Outside the court, Ms Barnes said she was disappointed at the suspension of the jail term but pleased that the six-year court process was over.

The name of the doctor has been supressed.