Legal Affairs
Vince Focarelli – alleged leader of the feared New Boys street gang and, briefly, an Adelaide group of Comancheros bikies – had already walked away from three attempts on his life.
It seemed unlikely that those who wished him harm were about to stop trying.
Last weekend, Focarelli’s aura of invincibility was shattered with tragic results. A hail of gunfire left the man himself with a head wound and claimed the life of his son Giovanni, who was just 22.
Continue reading "Outlaw bikies cannot be judged outside the law" »
How would you feel if you found out that your mere existence is such a burden on your parents they want $10 million compensation?
It’s not clear whether 11-year-old Keeden, who has severe brain damage after a rare genetic condition caused a massive stroke, will ever understand what his parents are doing.
Debbie and Lawrence Waller are suing their IVF specialist for “wrongful birth”, claiming he breached his duty of care by failing to take proper care that Lawrence’s genetic blood clotting condition would not be passed on. They say they love Keeden, but wouldn’t have gone ahead with the birth if they’d known because of his suffering.
Continue reading "These parents think their son shouldn’t have been born" »
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TracyS says:
I don’t agree with wrongful birth suits on principle as I believe that it devalues the life of the person whose birth is being claimed as “wrong”. That being said, I have some sympathy for these parents as they are dealing with a child with significant disabilities, and they would… Read more »
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the parents says:
You actually don’t have all the facts Bec. You only have what’s in the media. I invite you to come and breathe some oxygen in the court room so you can not be so judgemental and you can be fully informed before you write such comments. My son gets an… Read more »
Recently in South Australia, the local reproductive medicine outfit had, for want of a better term, a “sperm drive’‘.
The campaign, conceived on the cheap, pleaded with Aussie blokes not to “waste’’ their sperm.
It was wildly successful. The number of sperm donors in SA jumped 100 per cent. From two to four.
Continue reading "Should kids give a toss about their sperm donor dads?" »
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Liz says:
Providing genetic material doesn’t make you a real father or mother. While a sense of where you come from genetically is important to some and the ability to access that information can be vital at times personally, if you donated sperm anonymously then your right to remain anonymous should be… Read more »
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Ray says:
Sorry to be a bit tardy Alphaba, but I have to admit I was being unfaithful. No it wasn’t all that memorable, but you do remember we did more than speak, and you were very grateful at the time. Whinging Alphaba, well women have refined it to an art form.… Read more »
The Anti-Discrimination Commissioner plans to launch a federal High Court action to ban the recognition of April Fool’s Day in Australia on the grounds that it discriminates against stupid people.
If successful the case could trigger a tidal wave of litigation from schoolboys who got their fingers caught in chewing-gum-box traps, teachers who have had shoes drop on their heads, co-workers who agree to go looking for a long stand and other victims of their own gullibility.
They could in theory seek compensation from the federal government for having failed to protect them from hilarious practical jokes.
Continue reading "Court bid to ban April Fool’s Day for discrimination" »
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paul says:
qwhy do we suffer these fools Read more »
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Anjuli says:
Surely this a Punch joke for April Fool’s day. Read more »
Shane Scott almost made it. He was just 700m from his home when the motorbike he was riding - after drinking six or seven cans of Jack Daniels and cola at the pub - left the road. He died.
Before getting on his bike he had argued with the publican and convinced him to let him make the 7km ride home. Shortly before giving him the keys, the publican had asked for his wife’s phone number so he could give her a call and get her to come pick Scott up. Scott’s response, according to the publican, was: “If I want you to ring my f**kin’ wife, I’d f**kin’ ask ya.”
But crucially, according to people who were there that night, Scott didn’t seem drunk. He told the publican he was fine to ride home. Now the High Court has decided the publican shouldn’t be held responsible for what happened in a ruling that backs what any bartender working under responsible service laws will tell you - it’s often impossible to tell when someone is on their ear.
Continue reading "Court calls last drinks on drunken excuses" »
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Dichotomous Enigma says:
Let’s hope this principle is extended to all those situations (especially those involving violence) where smart-arsed lawyers are currently able to claim that their client was too drunk to form intention. Intention to perform a violent act should be deemed to occur concurrently with the decision to drink to excess.… Read more »
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JN says:
Johnsa said: The patron exercised GOOD judgment in handing over his keys. He was trying to protect himself. yes he did do the right thing by handing his keys over, but then he went against his word saying that he would get his wife to pick him up. It says… Read more »
It’s been seven years since Brisbane mother-of-three Dianne Brimble died naked and alone on the floor of a stranger’s cruise ship cabin.
In that time, through a 16-month inquest and subsequent court appearances, we have heard about the bungled police operation, incompetent security staff and – perhaps most stunningly – been shown just how appallingly human beings can behave.
Ms Brimble was a mother of three children and it’s those young adults whom we should all consider today.
Continue reading "Mark Wilhelm has a future. Dianne Brimble does not." »
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Mary says:
No one can change the outcome now. But here is a grown woman on a holiday with her young daughter who choose to enter a cabin of her own accord with men unknown to her and also take drugs. These men were predators but surely we as women should know… Read more »
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Rommo says:
I agree, the behaviour of these men was well below par according to normal social standards. However, whether Wilhelm’s acts alone (and not the acts of his travelling companions imputed to him) constitute manslaughter on a criminal burden of proof (ie: beyond reasonable doubt) is a question for the jury. … Read more »
The present political consensus among the major parties against permitting and recognising same sex marriages is so obviously an intellectual surrender to the religious right that one looks for a single phrase rhetorical demolition of this anti-gay pretence of a position that would show it in all of its hypocrisy.
I do not, for a moment, believe that those politicians (including speakers at the recent Labor Party National Conference) who go on about protecting the “sanctity of marriage” believe the nonsense they espouse. I also fail to believe that they believe that a majority of the Australian people support the continued refusal to recognise single sex marriages.
I believe that the political imperative is to avoid the anger of that noisy minority, the religious right, which, itself, is hardly representative of most people of a religious persuasion in Australia. The political imperative also concerns the possible swing vote of the Family First in the Senate.
Continue reading "The ‘sanctity of marriage’ argument is nonsense" »
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alan says:
I’m not gay, but I’m willing to learn! Apparently 0.2 per cent of children born in Australia are hermaphrodite. I suggest it’s wrong to discriminate against them. They are human and still have rights regardless of how homophobic the rest of us might be. Read more »
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Alan says:
After reading through all these comments.. all I have in response is Wow.. Just wow. Now my standpoint I want to share. I went to a catholic primary school. And a catholic high school. I would definitly say I have christian values. You know what, I’m Gay. I didn’t choose… Read more »
IT’S so tempting to see misfortune as a money spinner. Slipped on a grape at the supermarket? Sue!
Stressed out by an overbearing boss? Claim! Hurt your neck in a car accident? Collect!
But here’s something to consider before you speed dial a lawyer – a compensation payout may make life worse.
Continue reading "Hurt? Suing over it may hinder your road to recovery" »
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Dale says:
Go Tina! Although our situations differ there are times when we FIGHT for every inch of our existence, especially when families are the unwitting victims as well. In my case, I had worked in the welfare arena for 2 1/2 years with a very difficult client with whom I had… Read more »
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Tina says:
I’d like to leave a message to “Bitten”. I was homeless at the age of thirteen, raped at fifteen and while I was at home I was physically bashed and emotionally abused for years. I moved 200km’s from home and lived on the streets of Melbourne until I got my… Read more »
While the National Conference of the Labor Party has been protecting the sanctity of other people’s marriages (a topic for another day, perhaps), the House of Lords in the UK has been grappling with the complexities of helping one’s loved one board the plane to Switzerland. The case is called R (on the application of Purdy) v Director of Public Prosecutions.
Under the Suicide Act 1961, suicide is not illegal in England. However, the piece of legislation makes it a criminal offence to assist another to take their own life.
But assisted suicide is not an offence in Switzerland.
Continue reading "How will Australia deal with assisted suicide?" »
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peter says:
So much for peoples rights to self determination. Cheers peter Read more »
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watty says:
Shane and Pete you have asked questions near to my heart. The N.T was used as the test laboratory for the Aboriginal Land Rights (N.T.) Act 1976 by Fraser and the Federal Government. No other State or Territory would have a bar of the conditions laid down in this Act… Read more »
Like Peter denying Jesus after the arrest, as dawn was breaking and the cock was getting ready to crow, Australia is given a third chance to acknowledge its inconvenient associations. Will we, like Peter, deny any association with or responsibility with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the detainees in Guantanamo? We probably will. We denied our own citizens in Guantanamo until the opinion polls started to turn dirty.
Australia, through the support of the Howard government for the actions of the Bush Administration’s war on terror, has as much responsibility for the Uighurs, who were found to have been wrongly detained, as does the US and the Bush Administration.
We should accept the Uighurs as refugees and permanent residents. If they are returned to China, they face certain persecution and, possibly, death. To do otherwise would display a flaw in our national character.
Continue reading "Haneef lawyer: Guantanamo inmates should come here" »
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Les says:
If these people are found to be innocent then they should be compensated by America and then returned to wherever they had been first detained. Read more »
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Sam says:
James - these people are not criminals. They have not been found guilty by a military tribunal let alone any civilian court that follows established rules of evidence etc. I’m constantly perplexed by a (seemingly) persuasive belief that any person who is arrested or interviewed by the police is guilty.… Read more »
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From: Punch on: Open thread 09/02/2012
marley says:
I'm one of the older ones, so I've certainly seen a few changes in my time. When I started school I learned to write with a nib pen, dipped in an inkwell (no, I'm not kidding). My mother became a dab hand at getting inkstains out of my clothes. Flicking ink at one another in the classroom was an essential… [read more]From: I’d rather have a piece of toast than listen to crap lyrics
Erick says:
Led Zeppelin are responsible for my all-time favourite mixed metaphor: "There you sit, sit and stare, like a book on a shelf rusting." (Misty Mountain Hop) I laugh every time I hear it. Hmmm, I believe I've decided what to play on the way to work today. [read more]Gentle jabs to the ribs
No wuckin forries. These nuckin futs are tuckin fops
Well, puck me with a fitchfork. The F-word is apparently an acceptable part of Australian speech. That’s… Read more
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