Victim drops gang rape case October 19, 2006 - 11:31AM
The alleged victim of a violent gang rape has told police she does not want the case to proceed, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions says.
Adam Jade Pinner, the alleged leader of the rape, had faced a charge of aggravated sexual assault in company before the charge was dropped in Downing Centre Local Court today.
The ODPP today said the victim told police she did not intend to give evidence.
"The complainant indicated strongly to the police, ODPP officers and Witness Assistance Services officers that she did not want the case to proceed and that she did not intend to give evidence in the proceedings," the ODPP said in a statement.
She was alleged to have been raped for up to an hour on the evening of June 8, after she was lured into a public toilet near the Chinese Gardens, at Darling Harbour.
Four men were alleged to have attacked the woman while a fifth man acted as a lookout.
The ODPP rejected reports the charges would not proceed because of the unreliability of the woman's evidence in light of her learning disabilities.
"This claim is insulting to the complainant and inaccurate, and that version was not provided by the DPP," the statement said.
Leaping stingray stabs Florida man near heart Thursday Oct 19 11:55 AEST By ninemsn staff and wires
A stingray leaped onto a boat and stabbed an 81-year-old Florida man in the chest, leaving its poisonous stinger lodged close to his heart in an incident recalling the one that killed Steve Irwin last month.
Fire Department officials in Lighthouse Point, about 30 miles (48 km) north of Miami, said James Bertakis was in a small recreational boat with two family members on Tuesday when the spotted eagle ray leaped aboard.
Bertakis and his grandchildren told police that the ray leaped out of the water and onto their 18-foot boat. When Bertakis tried to remove the ray from the boat, it struck him in the chest.
"It's just a real freak thing," Lt. Mike Sullivan told Reuters, saying the incident occurred on Florida's Intercoastal Waterway, where stingrays are rarely seen leaping in the air.
"For an 81-year-old man he's in really good shape," Sullivan added, saying Bertakis was expected to make a full recovery after surgery at a local hospital to have the stinger removed from his chest.
"Crocodile Hunter" Irwin, 44, died when a stingray's stinger punctured his heart off Australia's north coast last month. It was one of only a handful of stingray fatalities on record.
Plan needed to combat ice 'evil' October 19, 2006 03:54pm Article from: AAP
NSW Premier Morris Iemma has asked Prime Minister John Howard to help draw up an urgent national action plan to tackle the growing scourge of the drug ice.
Mr Iemma today said he had written to Mr Howard and all state and territory leaders to hold a national forum on "this ice plague" before the end of the year.
He said the leaders could use the forum to draw up an action plan to work out ways to rehabilitate ice addicts and reduce crime and family breakdowns associated with the drug.
"While there are no easy answers, we are determined that law enforcement and health officials will work together as will state, territory and federal jurisdictions," Mr Iemma told Parliament.
"It is appropriate that we take strong action to minimise the damage caused by the use of this drug and its supply.
"It is a dirty, filthy, pervasive chemical cocktail and Australia needs more prevention, more enforcement and more treatment options.
Car park rage victim, 79, knocked down October 19, 2006 - 2:26PM
An elderly woman was attacked after she told a man to "p*** off" when he became angered by her pinching a car parking spot at a Brisbane shopping centre, a court has been told.
Robert James Kenyon, 54, of Windsor in Brisbane's inner-north, today received a suspended jail term after he pleaded guilty in the District Court in Brisbane to one count of serious assault on 79-year-old Patricia May White.
The court heard on June 18 this year that Kenyon had been waiting for a parking bay at the Westfield Chermside shopping centre when Mrs White, who suffers from arthritis and uses a walking stick, took it instead.
An angry Kenyon repeatedly told her it was his parking space and Mrs White replied: "If you're upset mate, get the police or p*** off."
Kenyon became enraged and pushed her from behind, causing her to fall forward and hit her face on the concrete, bruising her face, chest and wrists.
You get only six weeks to grieve By Elissa Doherty October 21, 2006 12:00am
ROADSIDE tributes such as wreaths and letters could be removed by councils after six weeks, under recommendations from the Local Government Association of South Australia.
The LGA's draft policy also states memorials can be re-erected only on the 12-month anniversary for a period of two weeks.
And it reminds councils that by law, people must obtain a permit to place a memorial on a road or footpath – or face a penalty of up to $5000 for "altering a road".
As it stands, councils largely turn a blind eye to the requirement due to the sensitive nature of the displays.
The draft policy – released for consultation – is intended as a guide for approving memorials, first requested by West Torrens Council.
The LGA says it aims to strike a balance between mourners' needs and concerns about risks to road safety, liability issues and complaints from residents living near them.
But it also admits the document – which also recommends councils remove memorials if they pose a hazard or distraction to motorists – is not legally binding.
King of the pool takes to the open water David Sygall October 22, 2006
LOOKING fit and powerful, swimming great Ian Thorpe appears primed for a return to top competition.
Following months of concern over his future, the five-time Olympic gold medallist is sporting a muscular sprinter's frame and looked a picture of health as he relaxed with a dip off a jetty in Port Hacking last week.
Thorpe has returned from Los Angeles where photographs taken in August suggested he was out of shape. He had suffered glandular fever, which ruled him out of the Commonwealth Games in March and, later, a broken bone in his hand.
However, the 24-year-old is back training with coach Tracey Menzies in preparation for the World Championship trials in Brisbane in December and his return to international competition at the World Championships in Melbourne next March.
Black and white twins Elissa Lawrence October 22, 2006 12:00am
BEAUTIFUL baby twins Alicia and Jasmin Singerl certainly make people look twice. Alicia has dark brown eyes and complexion, while Jasmin is blue-eyed and fair-skinned.
Experts say the chance of twins being born with such different physical characteristics is about a million to one.
Conceived naturally, the sisters from Burpengary, north of Brisbane, were born at Caboolture Hospital in May.
Mum Natasha Knight, 35, is of Jamaican-English heritage, while their father Michael Singerl, 34, was born in Germany. The couple, who are engaged, also have five-year-old daughter Taylah, who is blue-eyed with blonde hair and a light olive complexion.
Ms Knight said she was shocked when she saw how different her daughters were.
"It's just amazing, they are so different," she said. "When they were born you could see there was a colour difference straight away. We couldn't believe it.
"Alicia's eyes were brown and her hair was dark. Jasmin's eyes were blue and her hair was white – you could hardly see her hair or her eyebrows.
"We were joking when I was pregnant about what if one baby looked like me and one looked like Michael. We joked about one light one, one dark one, so it was amazing when it actually happened.
"When we go out people stop and ask if they are twins. Other people will look but not say anything. Maybe they think I am babysitting one of them.
"Someone even asked me if I was sure there wasn't a mix-up at the hospital. But there was no mix-up – they are my girls and they are both so beautiful.
"It will be interesting when they go to school, and they will probably wonder why they look so different from each other. I guess the easiest way to explain it will be to say one took after Mum, one took after Dad."
Genetics experts say that in most cases a mixed-race woman's eggs will be a mixture of genes for both black and white skin.
However, much more rarely, the eggs may contain genes for predominantly one skin colour.
In this case, Ms Knight has released two such eggs – one with predominantly dark pigmentation genes and one with predominantly fair genes.
Non-identical twins are conceived when two eggs are fertilised by two sperm at the same time, which has odds in itself of about 100-1.
Clinical geneticist Dr Stephen Withers said the likelihood of a mixed-race woman having eggs that were predominantly for one skin colour was rare enough, let alone releasing two of them simultaneously and producing twins.
"It's probably a million to one," he said. "It's a terrifically rare phenomenon . . . extraordinarily rare.
"There's two parts of this that are very rare – just having those extremes of eggs, and also releasing them simultaneously."
Aren't they gorgeous? They were born 40 minutes south of me. My Niece-in-law is a nurse at that hospital and it must of been so amazing to see these beautiful babies born.
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Arsenic poisoning killed Phar Lap Monday Oct 23 06:14 AEST Arsenic killed Australia's greatest racing horse Phar Lap 74 years ago, a new scientific study reveals, The Daily Telegraph reports.
The story suggests a lethal dose of the poison was given to the Melbourne Cup champion about 35 hours before he collapsed and died in California on April 5, 1932.
Previous theories speculated the champion died of a stomach condition but many suspected foul play by US gangsters trying to avoid losses from Phar Lap's continued success.
Phar Lap won 37 of 51 races in his four-year career including the 1930 Melbourne Cup.
A sample of the horse's preserved skin was sent to a US laboratory in June and analysed by a synchrotron — a light-emitting particle accelerator.
"The arsenic in the hair structure is consistent with ... a single large dose of arsenic between one to two days prior to death," the report states.
But Australian scientists who participated in the study told The Daily Telegraph arsenic associated with traces of lead were also found in the sample.
The lead arsenate may have been used to preserve the hide but produces a different chemical signature and distinct from ingested arsenic, possibly used to poison Phar Lap.
"You will never get a 100 per cent definite answer that your confident there is no doubt about it," Australian Synchrotron Research Program scientist Ivan Kempson told the Daily Telegraph.
"But we can't explain it by any other way than the scenario of poisoning."
Community grieving after horror crash Monday October 23, 2006 A community is in mourning after four teenage boys died in a car crash near Byron Bay on NSW's north coast.
The boys, three aged 16 and one 17, were passengers in a Holden Commodore that veered off the road at Broken Head just after midnight.
AND
PCA chairman Harold Scruby urged the NSW government to ban P-plate drivers from carrying more than one passenger from 11pm until dawn.
"The evidence is overwhelming. Young drivers, late at night, with a car full of friends, are a recipe for disaster, especially on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights," he said.
BASE jumper death: parachute failed October 23, 2006 - 9:40AM
Thousands of people watched a base jumper leap from a bridge to his death after his parachute opened too late during a popular festival, a sheriff said.
Brian Lee Schubert, 66, died of injuries suffered when he hit the New River, 263 metres below the New River Gorge Bridge, officials said.
After the man's body was recovered and taken to a local funeral home, jumping at the festival resumed, said Fayette County Sheriff Bill Laird.
Schubert, from Alta Loma, California, was an experienced BASE jumper, said Laird. He was taking part in West Virginia's annual Bridge Day festival, which typically draws an estimated 100,000 spectators and about 400 parachutists to the southern part of the state.
Schubert was also a former police lieutenant, retired from the Pomona, California, police department in 1989.
Mills cops tabloid whack over bashing claims Rochelle Mutton, London October 23, 2006
THE acrimonious McCartney-Mills divorce saga has the British press in a frenzy over claims the Beatle hit his late wife Linda and his estate was bugged.
In headlines openly hostile to Heather Mills McCartney, the tabloids have railed against claims attributed to her "friends" that abuse marred Paul McCartney's previous marriage.
McCartney's 30-year marriage to Linda, who died of breast cancer in 1998, was one of most enduring unions in showbiz.
The allegation follows Mills' explosive claims leaked last week that McCartney was cruel and violent to her.
The Sunday Mirror reports that Mills taunted McCartney's daughter Stella by telling her she knew of assaults between her parents. It is claimed Mills said: "You are so full of bitterness, Stella. Is it because you can't forgive your father for what he did to your mother?"
USING everything from cow dung fumes to Coca-Cola mixed with mosquito coil ash, teenagers in southern Thailand are intent on getting high at any cost. Methamphetamines are also readily available, with "yaaba", as it is known, sold in primary schools for 25 baht (80 cents Australian) a tablet in the south.
"The yaaba epidemic is the most serious problem in the southern communities," said Dr Srisompob Jitpiromsri, a political scientist at a southern Thailand university.
There's no accounting for taste October 21, 2006 12:00am THE US has banned Vegemite, even to the point of searching Australians for jars of the spread when they enter the country.
The bizarre crackdown was prompted because Vegemite has been deemed illegal under US food laws.
The great Aussie icon - faithfully carried around the world by travellers from downunder - contains folate, which under a technicality, America allows to be added only to breads and cereals.
Australian expatriates in the US said enforcement of the ban had been gradually stepped up and was now ruining lifelong traditions of Vegemite on toast for breakfast.
Kraft spokeswoman Joanna Scott said: "The (US) Food and Drug Administration doesn't allow the import of Vegemite simply because the recipe does have the addition of folic acid.''
The US was "a minor market'' for Vegemite, she said.
Last night I saw a report on the news where foreign named shops and restaurants, primarily Asian, are going to be made to put the english translation of the name on display also. From recent experience I know that many Asian words either dont have a straightforward english translation or the translation means an entirely different thing. What looks like a very interesting name in a foreign language may translate to 'Pigs Bum' or something similar, for example. I know when my almost Daughter-in-law heard me call someone on the TV a pig, she thought it was good, because 'pig' in Cantonese is a good word, denoting something or someone good. So we could be eating in the 'filthy dirty kitchen' or 'come here and get food poisoning'. I think it is a stupid and trivial thing to be concerned about.
Teen nabbed after car chase Jano Gibson October 24, 2006 - 7:14AM
Three men, including a teenager, were involved in a high speed car chase in Sydney overnight while a P-plater was clocked driving at more than 170 kmh on the NSW North Coast, just two days after four teenagers were killed in a horror car crash near Byron Bay.
Police began pursuing a suspected stolen Holden Commodore, carrying three males, after it failed to stop when directed to pull over on Old Mount Ousley Road, Wollongong, just before 1am.
The chase went on for about 30 minutes but was terminated as speeds allegedly hit 160 kmh near Appin.
A police helicopter continued to track the vehicle as police on the ground unsuccessfully deployed road spikes to bring the alleged stolen car to a halt.
The car eventually stopped in bushland near Airds about 2am.
Police said the three people on board ran away from the area as police officers and a police dog gave chase.
They arrested a 16-year-old boy, who was found under a house, and are continuing to search for the two other alleged offenders.
The 16-year-old was charged with carried in conveyance [stolen vehicle] and will appear at Campbelltown Children's Court today.
Inspector Julian Griffiths at Macquarie Fields police station said in light of the horror crash near Byron Bay it was vital people drive with caution.
"People are not bulletproof. We are all susceptible to being injured when we are driving at speed. We've got to keep driving the message home that speed does kill."
Meanwhile, a 22-year-old P-plater driver has had his license suspended for six months after he was allegedly caught driving at 176 kmh on the Pacific Highway at Halfway Creek, near Coffs Harbour, this morning.
Police said the Killara driver held a P2 licence, which meant he could not travel faster than 100 kmh.
He was issued with an infringement notice for exceeding the speed limit by more than 45 kmh and fined $1589.
I killed them, cries lone crash survivor Cosima Marriner and Edmund Tadros October 24, 2006
WHENEVER Tyler Green wakes up from sedation in hospital, he repeats the same words over and over, a friend says.
"He says 'Oh my God, I killed them. I killed them'," Tyler's friend, Scott Waters, said yesterday.
Paul Morris, 16, one of the four teenage boys who died instantly when the car 17-year-old Tyler was driving careered off the coast road out of Byron Bay just after midnight on Saturday, should never have been in that vehicle. He was supposed to travel in the second carload of teenagers heading back home to Lismore, but there was no room.
Two of the other boys, Corey New and Mitch Eveleigh, both 16 and best friends, were meant to have been home two hours earlier. They had been at a friend's birthday dinner at a Chinese restaurant in Lismore and had promised Mitch's mother, Karen, they would be home when she got back from her shift as an emergency nurse at 10pm.
Instead they went cruising to Byron with Tyler, and another friend from Kadina High School, Bryce Wells, 17. It was not until the third phone call from Mrs Eveleigh that the boys finally said at midnight they were getting in the car to go home. Twenty minutes later they were dead. [url] http://www.smh.com.au/news/nat.....3/1161455665706.html[/url]
From experience, Tyler will carry this with him for the rest of his life and will be riddled with guilt including 'survivor guilt' until he dies. I know personally two men who killed a passenger each in separate accidents 30+ years ago. Speed was the main contributor in both accidents. One killed his cousin and one killed his best mate. The one who killed his cousin was travelling over 100mph on a slight curve on a road he drove every day. He has had breakdowns and has been unable to resume any resemblance of his former life. The one who killed his mate (who happened to be an only child) had a gaol/jail sentence hanging over his head for around three years before his appearance in court. He was also travelling over 100mph also on a straight road, lost control and hit a tree, breaking the Ford Falcon GT in half. He was shattered and a changed man afterward and became a Christian, married, with a wonderful family.
Well since the first fleet came, we have all, been changing names of towns look at the name "Australia" we were once "New Holland" and Tasmania use to be called "Van Dieman's Land". White people like us are guilty of changing Aboriginal names to English names.
From experience, Tyler will carry this with him for the rest of his life and will be riddled with guilt including 'survivor guilt' until he dies. I know personally two men who killed a passenger each in separate accidents 30+ years ago. Speed was the main contributor in both accidents. One killed his cousin and one killed his best mate. The one who killed his cousin was travelling over 100mph on a slight curve on a road he drove every day. He has had breakdowns and has been unable to resume any resemblance of his former life. The one who killed his mate (who happened to be an only child) had a gaol/jail sentence hanging over his head for around three years before his appearance in court. He was also travelling over 100mph also on a straight road, lost control and hit a tree, breaking the Ford Falcon GT in half. He was shattered and a changed man afterward and became a Christian, married, with a wonderful family.
Karma's a b!tch ain't it!
This happens all to often, the driver surviving and the passengers dying.
I wonder if jail time is even nevessary in this instance as the driver will have to live with the guilt of murdering his mates for the rest of his life, that's a harsher penalty than jail could ever be.
If the families of the dead kids don't want to press charges, perhaps the driver shouldn't be sent to jail, instead maybe a 2 year ban on driving and mandatory community service working in a road accident rehabilitation clinic or something.
babes_mate if you had done some homework was originally named Terra Australis
also: Terra Australis Incognita, Latin for "the unknown land of the South" was an imaginary continent, appearing on European maps from the 15th to the 18th century
It was Flinders that suggested the name of Australia.
TOWNSVILLE'S beaches have been closed again barely three hours after re-opening following an unconfirmed crocodile sighting near a popular swimming hole.
The Townsville City Council lifted a two-day beach ban at 11am (AEST) today after getting the all clear from Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service (QPWS) and Surf Life Saving Queensland officers.
However, another unconfirmed crocodile sighting near Townsville's Strand rock pool about 4pm today forced another beach closure.
Townsville's three main beaches were initially closed after two crocodiles - believed to be more than two metres long - were sighted near the Strand rock pool about 9am on Sunday.
The Townsville City Council will decide whether to re-open the beaches tomorrow morning after consulting QPWS officers who will search the area tonight.
Heres a pic of the Pool they are refering too if you dont already know
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October 24, 2006 11:00am Article from: AAPFont size: + - Send this article: Print Email WEST Australia is poised to get a three-year daylight saving trial after the Labor government today decided to support the proposal put forward by Independent MP John D'Orazio.
Both major parties said members would have a free vote and not have to vote along party lines.
Daylight saving seemed a dead issue in WA until last week, because state politicians were avoiding it after West Australians rejected the regime in three referenda over the past 31 years.
But it could be in place in early December after Mr D'Orazio last week proposed a new Bill he hoped to introduce today.
Since then, Liberal MP Matt Birney has introduced another bill in support of daylight saving and Labor has decided to work with both men to develop a bill that combines elements of both.
Last summer The Sunday Times launched a concerted campaign in favour of daylight saving, which was backed by thousands of WA readers. The paper has continued to raise public awareness about daylight saving in recent weeks, prior to Mr D'Orazio's move to bring WA out of the Dark Age.
Premier Alan Carpenter today said the Labor Party had decided to support a three-year trial of daylight saving followed by a referendum in 2009.
"We will be working with John D'Orazio and Matt Birney to try to make sure we take procedural party politics out of it and get the outcome that every one wants - that is, no political arguing about whose bill it is,'' Mr Carpenter said.
He would like the trial to start in early December and continue the following two summers, with the referendum to follow in 2009.
WA would start and finish daylight saving in line with other mainland states.
The trial's introduction would not coincide with a state election, to prevent it from becoming ``a party political football kicked around at election time'', Mr Carpenter said.
But the call for daylight saving has received mixed community support, with radio talkback callers divided and farmers coming out against the proposal because it does not cater to those who work with the natural rhythms of time, such as dairy farmers.
If WA does introduce daylight saving, only Queensland and the Northern Territory would be without the regime.
Queensland Premier Peter Beattie said he would not follow WA because daylight saving increased the rate of skin cancer due to people spending more time in the sun.
"One of the issues in a state where we've got the highest incidence of skin cancer in the world - an extra hour of daylight is going to make that worse,'' Mr Beattie said.
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