The Crime of Arson in New South Wales
Two people are dead, several remain missing and more than 150 homes have been destroyed in the past several weeks as bushfires have surged out of control along the Eastern Coast of Australia. With most of the country in severe...
The Offence of Refusing to Leave a Licensed Premises in NSW
The ‘rule of law’ dictates that everyone should be treated equally under the law, regardless of who they are, who they know and what position they hold. A senior police officer learnt this the hard way when, some time ago,...
Police Allegedly Shot Dead an Unarmed Teen
At around 7.15 pm on Saturday 9 November 2019, a Northern Territory constable allegedly gunned down an unarmed Warlpiri teenager. The incident occurred as two police officers entered the home of 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in relation to claims he’d breached...
Sydney Criminal Lawyers® Weekly Rundown – Articles from 11 to 17 November 2019
In case you’ve missed any of them, here’s a rundown of the past week’s articles: Sniffer Dogs are Ineffective in Detecting the Presence of Drugs Drug dogs may give a positive indication where a person has merely touched affected currency...
Police Officer Appeals Conviction, In an Effort to Keep His Job
The Queensland Police officer who received a suspended sentence after pleading guilty to illegally accessing and using information from a police database is now appealing his sentence. Senior Constable Neil Punchard was convicted after leaking a domestic violence victim’s address...
Military Whistleblower Not Allowed to Choose His Own Lawyer: An Interview With David McBride
Former Australian Defence Force lawyer turned whistleblower David McBride told reporters last week that he’ll be representing himself in court. A reason for this decision is that the government requires any lawyer who represents him to have top secret security...
Bringing Back Mardi Gras’ Radical Roots: An Interview With Pride in Protest’s Charlie Murphy
Pride in Protest wants to bring back the radical roots of the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras. The group posits that while the four decades old LGBTIQ festival is now an internationally lauded event, it could be using its...
Suspicious Circumstances: Tane Chatfield’s Alleged Suicide Doesn’t Add Up
As Colin Chatfield puts it, his son was about to be released from prison in relation to charges he’d been remanded over for two years, as eight witnesses couldn’t identify him during his trial as being involved in the armed...
“No Longer a Victim, But a Survivor”: An Interview With Voices for Change’s Catalina Valencia
Catalina Valencia was a strong, independent mother, who worked in various roles helping others in the community. She was a case manager assisting women impacted by homelessness, as well as an interpreter for people from culturally diverse backgrounds. Although, that...
22-Year Old Woman Strip Searched In Front of Shop Window
Twenty-two year old Teleaha Bower was with her partner last month, when she was approached by two undercover male police officers outside a pawn shop in St Mary’s and told she would be strip searched. She says the officers claimed...
