The gauntlet has been thrown down in the direction of Steve Cansdell, the Member for Clarence.
Last week Cansdell was reported to have said, "As I'm told, the magistrate said these guys dodged a bullet."
(The Daily Examiner, 17/5/11)
Cansdell made that remark when he said he wasn't surprised that charges against juveniles who were alleged to have participated in the Yamba "riot" were dropped after the adults charged were found not guilty.
Solicitor Mark Spagnolo, who advised barristers representing two acquitted adults and three acquitted juveniles charged over their part in the incident, said Mr Cansdell’s comments were ill-informed and relied on hearsay. (The Daily Examiner, 23/5/11)
Mr Spagnolo said comments made by Mr Cansdell in the story about the youths’ riot charges dropped (The Daily Examiner, May 17), that he was told the magistrate said the accused dodged a bullet, were completely false.
NCV has been very reliably informed that a reading of the trial's transcript will show it was the police prosecutor who said something about "escaping a bullet" and it was made in relation to one (singular) of the defendants, not the group collectively.
Sources: The Daily Examiner, 17/5/11 and 23/5/11
2 comments:
Though I think Cansdell is a giant richard head, I feel for him a bit in this situation.
Yes he should have checked his facts and not gone off half-cocked (which seems to be his natural state), but the Daily Examiner on the 13th April strongly implied the "bullet" remark came from the bench and this impression is now widespread in the Clarence Valley.
http://www.dailyexaminer.com.au/story/2011/04/13/accused-free-told-to-pay-up-valentines-riot-yamba/
It's a bit hard to feel sorry for Cansdell. He's an ex-boxer, so he should know better than to lead with an open jaw.
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