'First Nations women are being murdered at up to 12 times the national average. In some regions, their deaths make up some of the highest homicide rates in the world.’

 

ABC News, 24 October 2022:

‘First Nations women are being murdered at up to 12 times the national average. In some regions, their deaths make up some of the highest homicide rates in the world.

Four Corners can reveal at least 315 First Nations women have either gone missing or been murdered or killed in suspicious circumstances since 2000.

But this is an incomplete picture. We will likely never know the true scale of how many First Nations women have been lost over the decades.

This is because there is no agency in Australia keeping count, and there is no standard way of collecting this important data in each state and territory.

Canada calls it a genocide. The United States considers it an epidemic. But here in Australia, we’re only just waking up to the scale of the crisis…..

Read the full article here.

Queensland, West Australian and Victorian state police services have admitted trying to access logs of contract tracing services created since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic – the other five state & territory police services denying having done so thus far

 

Crikey, 1 June 2021:

Police across the country are attempting to access personal data from mandatory COVID-19 check-in apps for reasons other than contact tracing, despite promises that the data would only be used for public health reasons.

Police in Queensland, Western Australia and Victoria have all owned up to trying to access logs of data created by Australians using check-in applications as part of their investigations, and enquiries by Crikey suggest that police in other states could also access this data using a warrant.

Privacy advocates have slammed state governments for lying to Australians about what the data would be used for.

“We were told this data would only be used for contact tracing. Police made that a lie,” Electronic Frontiers Australia’s Justin Warren told Crikey. “People will remember that next time governments want us to give them data about ourselves.”

One of the major tools in fighting the spread of COVID-19 and managing outbreaks has been contact tracing, which has been aided by various tech solutions.

When the federal government first proposed the contact tracing app COVIDSafe (which used Bluetooth to log close contacts), it responded to fears of a mass surveillance state by announcing the data would not be used by police.

But adoption of a QR code check-in system — the widely used, low-tech alternative now mandatory in many places around the country — was left to states to implement. As it turns out, these states did not assume the same protections for their citizens, meaning that data volunteered in the name of public health has been accessed for other reasons…..

Read the full article here.

There have been at least 451 Aboriginal deaths in police and prison custody since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody delivered its final report in 1991

During the period 1 January 1980 to 31 May 1989 there were 99 reported cases of Aboriginal deaths in custody in Australia falling within the jurisdiction of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.

Between the final report of the Royal Commission in 1991 and 30 June 2019, at least another 451 Aboriginal people have died while in police or prison custody.

Current published statistical records do not yet include the period between 1 July 2019 to the present day.

The following historical information is divided in to two sections – deaths in police custody and deaths in prison custody

DEATHS IN POLICE CUSTODY

Between 1991 and 30 June 2019, a total of 156 of the Indigenous deaths were while the individuals were in police custody and custody-related operations.

In 2018–19 there were 24 deaths in police custody and custody-related operations according to the Australian Government’s Institute of Criminology Statistical Report 31.

Of these 6 deaths were in Western Australia, 5 deaths in each of New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland, 2 in South Australia and one in Tasmania. No deaths in police custody were recorded in the Australian Capital Territory or the Northern Territory.

Sixteen of the 24 deaths occurring in police custody were categorised as category 1 deaths – that is they occurred during close police contact with the deceased, including deaths in police stations, and most police shootings and raids. The remaining 8 deaths were classified as category 2 deaths occurring during contact, such as foot pursuits or self-inflicted deaths in the presence of police after the commission of an offence.

Of the 24 deaths 4 were of Indigenous persons, 19 were of non-Indigenous persons and one person had no Indigenous status recorded.

Of these 4 deaths Indigenous deaths in police custody 3 were male and one was female and their median age was 22 years. One cause of death was listed as unknown, one was from a self-inflicted gunshot wound and 2 were recorded as accidental death as a result of other/multiple causes.

The Indigenous person whose cause of death was unknown died while police were in the process of detaining or attempting to detain this individual.

Of the 4 Indigenous deaths in police custody, 2 occurred in a public place, one on private property, and the other in a public hospital. The location of death for the individual whose Indigenous status was not recorded was a public place.

Of the four Indigenous persons who died in police custody, 2 were suspected of having committed theft-related offences, one was suspected of having committed a good order offence and, an suspected offence was not stated or unknown for the remaining Indigenous death. The 11 non-Indigenous persons who died in police custody in 2018-19 were most commonly suspected of having committed a violent offence.

This breakdown of suspected offences by persons dying in police custody has been similar over the last 30 years of statistical records.

In 2018-19 the death rate of Indigenous persons in police custody was 0.61 per 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population aged 10 years and over, compared with a death rate of non-Indigenous persons in police custody of 0.09 per 100,000 non-Indigenous population aged 10 years and over.

DEATHS IN PRISON CUSTODY

Between 1991 and 30 June 2019, there have been a total of 295 Indigenous deaths in prison custody, including in youth detention centres and during prisoner transfers.

In 2018–19 there were 89 deaths in prison custody. The largest number of deaths in prison custody occurred in New South Wales (33 persons), followed by Victoria (19 persons), Western Australia (15 persons), Queensland (11 persons), Northern Territory (3 persons) and Tasmania (2 persons). None of these six jurisdictions recorded a decease in the number of deaths. There were no deaths in prison custody in the Australian Capital Territory.

Of these 89 deaths 16 were Indigenous deaths in prison custody, accounting for 18 percent of all deaths in prison custody over that period.

All 16 of these deaths were Indigenous males, with 6 being 55 years of age or older, 8 being between 40 to 54 years of age and 2 between 25 to 39 years of age.

The highest number of Indigenous deaths in prison custody in that period occurred in Western Australia with 5 deaths, followed by New South Wales with 4 deaths, the Northern Territory with 3 deaths and Queensland with 2 deaths. No Indigenous deaths occurred in South Australia, Tasmania or the ACT.

The overall death rate in the prison population in 2018-19 was 0.21 per 100 prisoners. The death rate of Indigenous prisoners was 0.13 per 100 prisoners and 3.11 per 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population aged 18 years and over.

The cause of death was recorded for 13 of the 16 Indigenous deaths in prison custody, with 11 being listed as death due to natural causes, and one listed as death by hanging. The remaining cause of death was not specifically identified in Report 31.

A total of 4 Indigenous deaths in 2018-19 occurred in a prison cell and 7 occurred in a public hospital. The place of death is not identifiable for the remaining 5 individuals.

Violent rats in police ranks

 

ABC News, 19 October 2020:

Domestic violence workers say they come in “waves” — women who, three or four at a time, step forward for help escaping a special class of abuser experts deem particularly high risk: police officers.

Often they’ll call from out of town. A woman living in a rural community in one of Australia’s eastern states recently got in touch with a domestic violence service in a busy city, hundreds of kilometres away. She told support workers her husband — a cop with specialist training and connections — had assaulted her in front of his colleagues, enlisted friends and relatives to help stop her leaving, and warned her that if she ever tried to run, he’d track her down, kill her and bury her some place her body would never be found.

She believed him.

At one point in the elaborate escape plan the service devised, the woman put her phone on a truck heading north, climbed into a car booked under a fake name, and sped off in the opposite direction. “Hers was a particularly tricky case,” one of the staff involved explained, “because of how isolated she was.”

But the abuse she experienced — and the powerlessness to leave she felt — is similar to what other women in violent relationships with police say they endure. Where do you turn when your abuser is part of the system meant to protect you?

An ABC News investigation has found police in Australia are too often failing to take action against domestic violence perpetrators in their ranks, fuelling a culture of impunity in law enforcement agencies across the country and putting victims’ safety at risk.

In public, senior police have consistently claimed they hold serving officers to higher standards and even “more accountable” for committing domestic violence. But behind closed doors, police concede they’re treating badged abusers differently to offenders in the broader community.

National data on the number of police officers charged with domestic violence — the first time such a snapshot has been compiled — shows state police forces have taken criminal action against relatively few officers. Documents obtained by the ABC under Freedom of Information reveal at least 55 police officers around Australia were charged with domestic violence-related offences in 2019, with charges ranging from breaching protection orders, assault with a weapon and reckless wounding, to strangulation, stalking, sexual assault and making threats to kill.

The rank of officers charged ranged from probationary constable to inspector and the majority were male; of 41 cases in which the officer’s gender is known, four were women. (In most cases the information obtained does not identify how many were found guilty of their charges or had convictions recorded.).

With evidence suggesting police are at least as likely to perpetrate domestic violence as the general population, experts say the figures are likely to be just “the tip of the iceberg”, and highlight how difficult it can be not only for victims to report abusers in police ranks, but to get police to take action against their own. In the year ending June 2019, for instance, there were roughly 37 domestic and family violence offenders per 10,000 persons in NSW. Yet of more than 17,000 officers employed by NSW Police, last year just 11 were charged.

“The number of police officers charged is strikingly low given the extent and severity of the [alleged] violence and what we, even as a small project, hear from the people we support who experience this kind of abuse,” said Lauren Caulfield, coordinator of the Policing Family Violence project in Melbourne.

Because police do not publicly report information about employees involved in domestic violence matters, it’s difficult to get an accurate sense of the scale of the problem, Ms Caulfield said. Information about officers who were charged, for example, doesn’t include family violence callouts, police named as respondents on protection orders, or instances where victims have tried to report abuse and been discouraged or not taken seriously.

• Family and domestic violence support services:

• 1800 Respect National Helpline: 1800 737 732

• Women’s Crisis Line (NSW): 1800 656 463

• Safe Steps Crisis Line (Vic): 1800 015 188

• Men’s Referral Service: 1300 766 491

• Mensline: 1300 789 978

• Lifeline (24-hour Crisis Line): 131 114

• Relationships Australia: 1300 364 277

Read the full article here.

ABC News, 21 October 2020:

Dozens of Victoria Police officers were charged with family violence offences in the five years to 2019 but only one was found guilty and none had convictions recorded. 

Documents obtained by ABC News under Freedom of Information show Victoria Police brought family violence charges against 82 officers between 2015 and 2019, with more than twice as many charged in 2019 than in 2015. 

The charges, against 68 male officers and 14 female officers, ranged from contravening family violence intervention orders and recklessly causing injury, to rape, false imprisonment, aggravated assault and making threats to kill. 

Of those 82 officers, 10 senior constables and senior sergeants went on to appear in court, nine of whom had their charges withdrawn and just one was found guilty, though no conviction was recorded. 

For context, 11 per cent of defendants finalised in Victoria's criminal courts in the year to June 2019 had their matters withdrawn by the prosecution, and 84 per cent of family and domestic violence defendants had their charges proven. 

Documents show some of the officers were subjected to internal disciplinary actions including performance monitoring, transferral to other duties, reduction in rank and suspension without pay, however none were sacked or dismissed......

Relatively few officers have been charged with family violence offences in recent years, a trend experts partly attribute to policing bias and conflicts of interest which can make it difficult for police to conduct impartial investigations into their colleagues. Now, the new data casts a harsh spotlight on how courts are responding to abusive police, whose service as officers may be shielding them from more severe punishment. 

"Given the severity of the violence [alleged] in these matters, the fact that no convictions have been recorded for police officers found guilty of family violence charges is staggering," said Lauren Caulfield, coordinator of the Policing Family Violence project in Melbourne. 

"These statistics really illuminate the pervasive and chilling culture of impunity that police officers operate within. Police know the system — they know how to do plea negotiations and consolidate and reduce charges, and at every step of the way concern for their role and reputation continues to protect them."......

Read the full article here.

A conga line of #COVIDIOTS - Part 6

NSW Police, News, 26-28 September 2020:

A man has been charged after allegedly attempting to travel across the NSW/Victoria border in a taxi yesterday.

About 4.30pm (Saturday 26 September 2020), police stopped a Victorian taxi at a checkpoint on the Hume Highway, Albury.

The passenger, a 26-year-old man, was asked to produce a permit; however, it was not valid.

When he was spoken to further, police will allege the man stated he wanted to go shopping in Albury.

He was arrested and taken to Albury Police Station, where he was charged with not comply with noticed direction re section 7/8/9 -COVID-19 and breach of bail.

He was refused bail to appear at Wagga Wagga Bail Court today (Sunday 27 September 2020).

Two people have been charged and eight infringements have been issued since the last COVID-19 update.

About 6.15pm yesterday (Sunday 27 September 2020), a 45-year-old woman attended Maitland Police Station, where she allegedly became aggressive while intoxicated before coughing on an officer. She was arrested and charged with not comply noticed direction re spitting/coughing - COVID-19, behave in offensive manner in/near public place, assault officer in execution of duty, and two counts of intimidate police officer in execution of duty without actual bodily harm. She was granted strict conditional bail and is due to appear in Maitland Local Court on Wednesday 18 November 2020.

- About 11am on 5 September 2020, police attended an unauthorised protest in Byron Bay. It’s alleged a 45-year-old man failed to move-on as directed by police. He was arrested and taken to Tweed Heads Police Station where he was charged with fail to comply requirement public health order – COVID-19.

- About 10pm yesterday (Sunday 27 September 2020), police attended a home on Bromide Street at Broken Hill after numerous noise complaints were received. Officers from Barrier Police District attended and issued the occupants a noise abatement direction. Police returned to the home later that evening after continuing to receive noise complaints. Officers seized the speakers before issuing two occupants a $1000 PIN for failing to comply requirement public health order – COVID-19.

- About 7.30am yesterday (Sunday 27 September 2020), police were called to Tyagarah Beach about complaints were received about a party that was taking place. Officers from Tweed/Byron attended and located more than 20 people at the party. Police were told approximately 500 people had attended the party earlier in the evening. Three people were issued $1000 PINs for failing to comply requirement public health order – COVID-19.

- About 12.20am on Saturday (26 September 2020), police stopped a car on the Sturt Highway at Hay. Police spoke with the occupants, who were from Victoria, and determined they didn’t have a valid permit to enter NSW. The three occupants were issued an $1000 PIN for not comply with noticed direction re section 7/8/9 COVID-19.

Anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000 or https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report crime via NSW Police social media pages.

A conga line of #COVIDIOTS - Part 5

The Daily Telegraph, 9 September 2020:

A Victorian man and woman who tried to sneak into NSW via taxi have been fined for not possessing valid permits and escorted back across state borders.

NSW Police, News, 7-9 September 2020:

* Officers from Orana Mid-Western Police District yesterday (Tuesday 8 September 2020) issued the licensee of a hotel on Montefiores Street, Wellington, with a $1000 PIN after receiving prior warnings for breaches including overcrowding, patrons not being seated and not practising physical distancing.

* Two people have been issued PINs following an altercation at a hotel in Albury. The man and woman were with family members at the hotel on Dean Street yesterday (Tuesday 8 September 2020), when police were called about an altercation between the group. Checks revealed the pair, from Victoria, had a permit to be in NSW; however, the permit stated they should minimise contact with others for two weeks. Both were issued a $1000 PIN.

* Police have charged a man after he allegedly produced false documentation to leave hotel quarantine in Sydney.

On Friday 4 September 2020, a 30-year-old Victorian man arrived at Sydney Airport without an exemption.

The man was taken into hotel quarantine; however, the following morning he provided what he claimed to be a valid exemption document stating he was in NSW to visit his terminally ill grandfather in hospital.

The man was subsequently released from the hotel.

Following inquiries, police determined the documentation he provided was false. Further checks revealed the man’s grandfather was not in hospital.

Yesterday (Monday 7 September 2020), police attended a home on Rodley Avenue at Penrith where they arrested the man.

He was charged with fail to comply with noticed direction in relation to 7/8/9 -COVID 19, and produce false or misleading application.

He was given bail to appear in Penrith Local Court on 12 October 2020.

The man was returned to hotel quarantine.

* A man will face court today charged with allegedly attempting to enter NSW from Victoria on numerous occasions without a valid permit.

About 1am today (Monday 7 September 2020), a 27-year-old man attempted to enter NSW at the Saddle Flaps Road border checkpoint at Rockton.

The man, who did not possess a valid permit, was denied entry and returned to Victoria.

About 2.45am the same day, the man allegedly attempted to enter NSW via the Princess Highway at Timbillica, south of Eden.

Inquiries revealed the man’s permit was invalid and he was directed to return to Victoria.

It’s alleged the man failed to comply and began verbally abusing officers at the checkpoint, before exiting his vehicle.

As police attempted to arrest him, he allegedly assaulted a male senior constable. The senior constable did not sustain any physical injuries.

The Western Australian man was arrested and taken to Eden Police Station, where he was charged with not comply with noticed direction re section 7/8/9 COVID, offensive language, assault officer in execution of duty and resist officer in execution of duty.

The man was refused bail and is due to appear in Batemans Bay Local Court today (Monday 7 September 2020).

Anyone who has information regarding individuals or businesses in contravention of a COVID-19-related ministerial direction is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report crime via NSW Police social media pages.

Queensland Police, News, 4- 9 September 2020:

* Police have charged a man after he allegedly breached the state border police checkpoint at Goondiwindi on the weekend.

Police will allege at 4.30pm on Sunday, September 6, a 26-year-old New South Wales man was refused entry into Queensland as he did not have a valid border declaration pass.

At 5.45pm, the man and his vehicle were captured on CCTV gaining entry into Queensland at Talwood Boonanga Road in South Talwood.

Local police and investigators from Task Force Sierra Linnet commenced investigations and the man was taken into custody at a Toogoom address yesterday (September 8).

He was transported to hospital for testing and returned a negative COVID-19 result.

He was later charged with wilful damage and fail to comply with the COVID-19 Border Direction. He is due to appear in Hervey Bay Magistrates Court today (September 9).

Darling Downs District Officer Superintendent Mark Kelly said the Queensland Police Service was committed to ensuring everyone complied with public health directions.

“Officers in the Darling Downs District will continue to ensure everyone crossing the border is doing so legally and not putting the local community at risk by failing to comply with public health directions,” Superintendent Kelly said.

“Providing false information on the Queensland Border Declaration or entering Queensland unlawfully could result in a $4,003 infringement or criminal charges.”

* The Queensland Police Service (QPS) has issued a 64-year-old man with a Notice to Appear (NTA) in court following investigations into a vessel which travelled from Victoria to Queensland last month.

The manager of the vessel was today issued with the NTA with police alleging the man breached the Public Health Act by providing false information to an emergency officer. 

NSW Police are also investigating.

A conga line of #COVIDIOTS - Part 4

NSW Police, News, 16-19 August 2020:

Police in the Riverina region have issued two Penalty Infringement Notices (PINs) in the past 24 hours for non-compliance with COVID-19 Public Health Orders.

As part of proactive compliance operations, officers from Riverina Police District attended a restaurant on Fernleigh Road, Mount Austin, just before 7pm on Saturday (15 August 2020).

After speaking with the 39-year-old male owner, officers conducted a walk-through and established that a COVID Safety Plan had not been completed.

Further, the owner, who was also the chef, claimed to be the designated COVID marshal.

The owner was informed he would receive a $5000 PIN for non-compliance with the Public Health Orders, which was issued yesterday (Tuesday 18 August 2020).

In a separate and unrelated incident, officers from Riverina Police District have been conducting inquiries into suspected non-compliance of self-isolation directions since late last month.

On Saturday 25 July 2020, local police were contacted after a 25-year-old woman, who had arrived in Wagga Wagga from Victoria on Thursday 23 July 2020 on a valid permit, was reportedly not self-isolating.

Police conducted a number of inquiries, including repeat compliance checks, during which it was established she had not been self-isolating.

Officers advised the woman she would receive a $1000 PIN for fail to comply with noticed direction in relation to s7/8/9 – COVID-19 and reminded she must complete the full self-isolation period.

The woman was issued with the PIN yesterday (Tuesday 18 August 2020).

Police continue to appeal to the community to report suspected breaches of any ministerial direction or behaviour which may impact on the health and safety of the community.

Anyone who has information regarding individuals or businesses in contravention of a COVID-19-related ministerial direction is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report crime via NSW Police social media pages.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two people have been issued with Penalty Infringement Notices (PINs) since the last update:

About 6pm on Sunday (16 August 2020), officers from Eastern Beaches Police Area Command responded to reports of a large gathering at Jack Vanny Memorial Park, Maroubra. Officers spoke with a 33-year-old man who was one of the organisers of the event, before the crowd was dispersed without incident. Following inquiries, the man was issued with a $1000 PIN yesterday (Monday 17 August 2020) for fail to comply with noticed direction in relation to s7/8/9 – COVID-19.

On Friday 14 August 2020, a 57-year-old man attended Bourke Hospital with possible COVID-19 symptoms. He was tested for the virus and directed to self-isolate at home. About 3.30pm yesterday (Monday 18 August 2020) the man was located at a friend’s house. Further inquiries revealed the man had attended a local shop the same morning. He was issued with a $1000 PIN for fail to comply with noticed direction.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two people have been charged and 19 Penalty Infringement Notices (PINs) have been issued since the last COVID-19 update.

CHARGES INCLUDE:

About 12.30pm on Saturday (15 August 2020), police attended the Albury-Wodonga railway bridge and spoke with a 24-year-old man, from West Wodonga, was who was wanted in NSW on four outstanding warrants.

It’s alleged the man had crossed the border into NSW illegally, with officers also locating and seizing a set of knuckledusters when he was searched.

The man was taken to Albury Police Station where he was charged with the outstanding warrants, along with go onto running lines, resist police, possession of a prohibited weapon, and fail to comply with the Public Health Order.

He was refused bail appeared at Wagga Wagga Local Court yesterday (Sunday 16 August 2020), where he was formally refused bail to appear in Albury Local Court today (Monday 17 August 2020).

In another incident, about 4.20pm on Friday (14 August 2020), a 37-year-old man attended Eastwood Police Station for a meeting. While waiting, the man allegedly coughed directly towards two female officers, aged 30 and 33. He was arrested and taken to Ryde Police Station.

Police will further allege that while in custody the man damaged a station phone during a call.

He was charged with not comply with noticed direction re spitting/coughing – COVID-19, two counts of assault officer in execution of duty, two counts of intimidate police officer in execution of duty without actual bodily harm, and destroy or damage property.

The man was granted conditional bail and is due to appear in Burwood Local Court on Tuesday 25 August 2020.

In addition, 19 people and businesses were issued with PINs. PINS INCLUDE:

- About 12.30pm on Saturday, police were called after a light aircraft, which left Victoria, had landed at Deniliquin Airport. The 61-year-old male pilot did not have a valid permit to enter NSW. He was directed to return immediately to Victoria and was issued with an infringement notice.

- About 11.30am on Saturday, officers from Sydney City PAC were called to a unit on Hay Street, Haymarket, after reports of a party occurring inside. Officers attended and found a gathering in progress with approximately 30 people inside. Officers spoke to the 20-year-old female occupant who told police she booked the premises online. She was issued with a $1000 infringement for failure to comply with noticed direction.

- A man who organised a dance party on the North Coast of NSW last month has been issued an $1000 infringement for ‘Not Comply Noticed Direction’. Police allege the man held the unauthorised party on Saturday 4 July 2020 at Wilsons Creek Road, Wilsons Creek, which attracted an estimated crowd of 1000-1500 people. Following inquiries, the 50-year-old man was issued a PIN on Friday.

- About 10.20pm on Saturday 8 August 2020, officers from Murray River Police District visited a licensed premise on End Street, Deniliquin, where they saw patrons not practicing social distancing. Following inquiries, police issued the licensee – a 65-year-old woman – a $1000 fine on Friday.

- Another licensee of a hotel on Station Place, Wagga Wagga, was also fined $1000 on Saturday, after officers from Riverina Police District identified breaches, including patrons not practising social distancing and an out-of-date COVID safety plan, during a visit on Saturday 8 August 2020.

- On Friday evening, licensing officers from Murray River Police District conducting business inspections spoke with a 54-year-old man at a club in Mulwala, and a 58-year-old woman at a club in Barooga, who were both drinking alcohol and playing gaming machines. Both were from Victoria, with the man entering NSW with a working permit, and the woman entering NSW on a permit strictly stating she was only entering the state to provide care. The man and woman were each issued $1000 PINs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Victoria Police, Breaking News, 19 August 2020:

Moorabbin Highway Patrol members grabbed a man for excessive speed, drink driving and breaching Chief Health Officers restrictions in Brighton last night.

Police detected a white BMW sedan on Nepean Highway travelling at 138km/h in a 80km/h zone about 8.10pm.

Police spoke to the driver, a 43-year-old Beaumaris man, who underwent a preliminary breath test.

He was taken to a local station for an evidentiary test where he returned an alleged reading of 0.157%.

His car was impounded at a cost of $878.50 and his licence was immediately suspended for 12 months.

He is expected to be summonsed to appear at a Magistrates Court at a later date for traffic related offences.

The driver was also found to be in breach of the directions issued by the Chief Health Officer and issued a $1652 penalty notice.

The directions by the Chief Health Officer, under the State of Emergency declared in Victoria, have been enacted to help stop the spread of Coronavirus.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Things you might have missed in the daily news

Financial Review, 3 August 2020:

Taiwanese lender Yuanta Securities Investment Trust has sold $27 million worth of bonds in Adani's Abbot Point coal terminal in Queensland, joining a rapidly expanding list of Asian and global lenders that have shunned the controversial project.

Yuanta was once the second-biggest investor in one of the project's bond issuances, holding more than 5 per cent of a $US500 million issuance due to expire at the end of 2022….

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

According to an ABC News artilce published on 31 July 2020, a senior federal Border Force officer allowed 2,700 people to disembark the Ruby Princess cruise ship mistakenly believing passengers had tested negative to COVID-19, when they had instead tested negative for the common flu. 

Border Force command only realised the mistake more than 30 hours after passengers — including 13 who had been isolated in their cabins with fever — had left the ship.

The Ruby Princess COVID-19 cluster resulted in at least 662 infections and 21 deaths, the single biggest arrival of coronavirus on Australian shores.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Market Herald, 23 July 2020:

• The Chinese navy has confronted Australian warships in the South China Sea en route to a military exercise with Japan and the U.S.
• Five ships, lead by HMA Canberra, were travelling through disputed waterways when they encountered the Chinese military
• The Joint Task Force was heading to the Philippine Sea at the time, where it planned to conduct military movements ahead of the biennial RIMPAC conference
• The exercise aimed to increase interoperability between the Australian, American, and Japnese navies, but came amid increasing tensions between the U.S. and China over territory in the South China Sea
• Speaking to the encounter, the Department of Defence said all "unplanned interactions with foreign warships throughout the deployment were conducted in a safe and professional manner"….

Next month, all three navies will head to the biannual Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) in Hawaii — the biggest global maritime warfare activity.

However, in 2018, China invitation to RIMPAC was withdrawn based on its 'aggressive' territorial claims in the South China Sea.

It's understood China won't participate in this year's RIMPAC event either.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The Daily Telegraph, 1 August 2020, p.27:

The crowd pleaser

With world-famous surf breaks, natural springs and coastal charm, Yamba is the beach break you never knew you needed.

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'Eve Black' dramatically arrested in Melbourne week after she filmed hersel laughing her way through a Bunyip Victoria police checkpoint. She was detained around 2pm on 29 July in arrest that forced police to smash her car window. Now facing up to $10k fine [News Corp 31.07.20]

— no_filter_Yamba (@no_filter_Yamba) August 1, 2020

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According to recently released Australian Taxation Office data, in the 2017-18 financial year the amount of tax paid in main urban areas went as followed in the NSW Northern Rivers region:

• Grafton postcode 2460 – 14,500 individuals paid $117.32 million.
• Kyogle postcode 2474 – 3,336 individuals paid $24.66 million
• Ballina postcode 2478 – 15,690 individuals paid $186.06 million
• Lismore postcode 2480 – 24,989 individuals paid $207.96 million
• Byron Bay postcode 2481 – 9,050 individuals paid $114.50 million
• Tweed Heads postcode 2485 – 7,709 individuals paid $66.43million
• Tweed Heads postcode 2486 – 17,127 individuals paid $150.65 million.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Former PM Tony Abbott, Alan Jones & George Pell ate at an exclusive club days before a staff member tested positive for COVID-19 [Daily Mail 01.08.70]. So were these men guests of a member. Or has the Australian Club sunk so low that it would now accept one this trio as a member?

— no_filter_Yamba (@no_filter_Yamba) August 2, 2020

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

ABC News, 4 August 2020:

A growing group of anti-maskers have been "baiting" and antagonising Victorian police, and in one instance smashed the head of a female officer into concrete until she was concussed, authorities say. 

Police said two female police officers approached a 38-year-old woman, who was not wearing a face covering, in the Frankston area last night. 

After questioning the woman about why she was not wearing one, police allege she pushed one officer and struck the other in the head. "After a confrontation and being assaulted by that woman, those police officers went to ground and there was a scuffle," 

Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Shane Patton said. "During that scuffle, this 38-year-old woman smashed the head of the [26-year-old] policewoman several times into a concrete area on the ground." 

Police said the constable was taken to Frankston Hospital with "significant head injuries". 

The woman's alleged assault left the young police officer with a concussion and a missing clump of hair, Police Association of Victoria secretary Wayne Gatt said. 

"The offender had a clump of our member's hair in her hands and said to our member 'what's it like to have your hair in my hands' or words to that effect," he said. "That's just horrible conduct — it's not human-like to be quite honest." 

Police have charged the alleged attacker with nine offences, including two counts of assaulting an emergency worker and one count of recklessly causing injury. 

She had no previous criminal history and was granted bail to appear before the Frankston Magistrates' Court on March 31, 2021.... 

Chief Commissioner Patton said in the past week police had seen a trend of people calling themselves "sovereign citizens" who "don't think the law applies to them". 

"We've seen them at checkpoints baiting police, not providing a name and address," he said. 

"On at least four occasions in the last week, we've had to smash the windows of cars and pull people out to provide details because they weren't adhering to the Chief Health Officer's guidelines, they weren't providing their name and address."

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