I am mother to 4 kids after moving districts 2yrs ago our lives have been a living hell,All I did was ask local authorities for help as I ran into problems with the house we moved into and also a reluctant negligent landlord,that was it! After being held at gun point 17 yrs ago i suffer from a nervous debility, most days have a fear of leaving the house.The landlord that thought it was acceptable to leave us for 11 months with no drainage and raw sewerage coming in to the house via up the waste pipes just so happens to be married to one of the registrers for births,deaths and marrages! health visiter ,CPN,housing support worker,msp,environmental I can now identify the stench in the air when I first drove into the town 2yrs ago and its the rotten smell of corruption.And I have saw how low they are willing to go,my youngest was 5 month old when it began the disease from 5yr old sewerage from a main drain in my kitchen easily could have killed her.Not 1 single legal requirement did this man meet he even went 1 yr renting house and wasnt registered after I requested an environmental officer to come out and even though to the naked eye this house was sellotaped together and in serious disrepair,but because she said it was tolerable we were left for another year 5 of us between 2 rooms .Then in june they did what I would call an illegal eviction with the aid of my housing support wrkr and her boss waving the threats of "for the welfare of". I started studying the housing law 4 month ago when i realised what was happening.They made it into this I only wanted me and my children a safe home.Now they are making it hard for us to move into our new home they are even refusing to refer me to any charity as we have lost almost everything we ever had.If Anyone that reads this is one of many corrupt people stop and think How can anyone say this is right there are child molesters and rapists people that are a waste of space why not concentrate on scum if you'se have to terrorise anyone.Im sure if there was a public outroar something would have to be done.There really is no one willing to help it is my childrens rights I am fighting for. I hope we all get judged at the gates who would get the last laugh the
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http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/legal-selection-system-is-corrupt-admit-judges-706668.html
Judges and senior lawyers admit that the system under which they are appointed is riddled with corruption and open to widespread abuse.
Judges and senior lawyers admit that the system under which they are appointed is riddled with corruption and open to widespread abuse.
In a damning report produced by the Lord Chancellor's Department, it is likened to "the old-fashioned class or caste system" by many of the judges and QCs interviewed.
The findings will deeply embarrass the Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg, who has repeatedly rejected calls to end the "secret soundings", whereby judges and senior lawyers are consulted on the suitability of judicial candidates.
Responses from 137 sitting judges or senior lawyers showed a "clear consensus" for the appointments processes to be "based on openness, objectivity, and selection on merit rather than patronage". It is the first detailed research to include judges.
Of the 137 respondents only 10 said no changes were needed to the system. A total of 52 were interviewed face-to-face.
One judge said: "I don't know what the criteria are for silk... maybe there is a document somewhere that I haven't seen but it seems to me that it depends on who you know, what committee you sit on rather than anything else. There doesn't seem to be a system of interview. It seems to be on general reputation and I think that is unreliable."
Many of those who responded expressed concern that the present system deterred applications from women and the ethnic minorities. Women account for 11 per cent and ethnic minorities for 1.7 per cent of all judges in England and Wales, according to figures from 1999.
A serious concern among those consulted was the domination of an "elite group of chambers" in both London and the regions from which most appointments were made.
One white barrister admitted: "I'm the wrong person to ask about the difficulties in applying for silk. I mean in these chambers usually everyone gets silk, usually the first time of asking and everyone becomes made a judge. It is a sort of 'golden road'."
The report's authors, Kate Malleson, of the London School of Economics, and Fareda Banda, of the School of Oriental and African Studies, said many respondents wanted proper recruitment of under-represented groups.
The report said: "The need for the active encouragement of good candidates and the adoption of processes which are, and can be seen to be, more open and objective were most commonly proposed as ways of improving the accessibility and fairness of the processes."
However, the authors noted that there was widespread support for efforts by the Lord Chancellor to increase the number of women and ethnic minority judges. One respondent described it as a vicious circle, saying: "Black and Asian barristers don't get the work because they are considered to be incompetent and because they don't get the work they are considered to be incompetent."
The respondents felt that there was a need for a judicial appointment commission with many favouring a broad range of membership including judges, lawyers and civil servants. The authors said that the growing concern about the unrepresentative background of the judiciary had become more acute because of the "ten-fold" increase in the size of the judiciary since the 1970s.
Last year Sir Leonard Peach produced a report on the process by which judicial and silk appointments are made, commissioned by the Lord Chancellor.
Judges and senior lawyers admit that the system under which they are appointed is riddled with corruption and open to widespread abuse.
Judges and senior lawyers admit that the system under which they are appointed is riddled with corruption and open to widespread abuse.
In a damning report produced by the Lord Chancellor's Department, it is likened to "the old-fashioned class or caste system" by many of the judges and QCs interviewed.
The findings will deeply embarrass the Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine of Lairg, who has repeatedly rejected calls to end the "secret soundings", whereby judges and senior lawyers are consulted on the suitability of judicial candidates.
Responses from 137 sitting judges or senior lawyers showed a "clear consensus" for the appointments processes to be "based on openness, objectivity, and selection on merit rather than patronage". It is the first detailed research to include judges.
Of the 137 respondents only 10 said no changes were needed to the system. A total of 52 were interviewed face-to-face.
One judge said: "I don't know what the criteria are for silk... maybe there is a document somewhere that I haven't seen but it seems to me that it depends on who you know, what committee you sit on rather than anything else. There doesn't seem to be a system of interview. It seems to be on general reputation and I think that is unreliable."
Many of those who responded expressed concern that the present system deterred applications from women and the ethnic minorities. Women account for 11 per cent and ethnic minorities for 1.7 per cent of all judges in England and Wales, according to figures from 1999.
A serious concern among those consulted was the domination of an "elite group of chambers" in both London and the regions from which most appointments were made.
One white barrister admitted: "I'm the wrong person to ask about the difficulties in applying for silk. I mean in these chambers usually everyone gets silk, usually the first time of asking and everyone becomes made a judge. It is a sort of 'golden road'."
The report's authors, Kate Malleson, of the London School of Economics, and Fareda Banda, of the School of Oriental and African Studies, said many respondents wanted proper recruitment of under-represented groups.
The report said: "The need for the active encouragement of good candidates and the adoption of processes which are, and can be seen to be, more open and objective were most commonly proposed as ways of improving the accessibility and fairness of the processes."
However, the authors noted that there was widespread support for efforts by the Lord Chancellor to increase the number of women and ethnic minority judges. One respondent described it as a vicious circle, saying: "Black and Asian barristers don't get the work because they are considered to be incompetent and because they don't get the work they are considered to be incompetent."
The respondents felt that there was a need for a judicial appointment commission with many favouring a broad range of membership including judges, lawyers and civil servants. The authors said that the growing concern about the unrepresentative background of the judiciary had become more acute because of the "ten-fold" increase in the size of the judiciary since the 1970s.
Last year Sir Leonard Peach produced a report on the process by which judicial and silk appointments are made, commissioned by the Lord Chancellor.
The British Justice System is rotten to the core.
http://100777.com/node/125by Maurice Kellett
Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven
- Christ in Luke 6:37
Police will willingly protect corrupt judges. Corrupt solicitors and barristers abound. This is the true state of the present UK justice system. When people don’t stand up against corrupt judges and policemen that is the most dangerous part of it. They gain more confidence to carry on with yet more evil acts against innocent victims. On web site http://www.mason-rule.com there is part of the evidence to show what happens when a judicial and police victim stands up and defies their evil. These people have nothing to do with justice whatsoever. They are criminals covering under the umbrella of alleged justice. They are amongst the very reasons why terrorism exists. It will exist just so long as they exist. Under the New World Order, which is now underway, more of the worlds downtrodden will turn more to terrorism. World leaders will condemn terrorism but will continue to ignore the reasons that terrorists exist. Just so long as the general public are led by evil people the outcome will itself be evil. I don’t condone terrorism but I can say that I know one of the main reasons of why it exists. There are many hypocrites within British authority, those same hypocrites help to make sure that those with similar tendencies will always remain in the chain of authority.
In 1986 I was battered and then struck by a car that was deliberately driven at me after I had uncovered corruption at then British Coal Estates Department.. The court proceedings at Houghton-le-Spring, Tyne-Wear were illegal. The single magistrate who on sat on the matter was not qualified to act alone. There were in fact two magistrates sitting on the bench but he was a close friend of the man who had battered me and the struck me with the car he deliberately had driven at me. It would have been against court rules for him to have sat on the case in these circumstances. When I raised that matter , even though he sat on the bench, he claimed that he had stood down. Magistrates generally have a few days notice of cases coming before them so they can withdraw from the proceedings in cases such as this. The Clerk to the Justices of Houghton Magistrates Court, along with the Lord Chancellors Department were party to the cover up of those illegal proceedings. After years of trying to have the matter brought to true justice the reaction of authority has been to give me more trouble by continued corruption so rife amongst their ranks. I have recently made a claim for damages against Houghton-le-Spring Magistrates Court and demanded a full inquiry into my case and into others to see if I was the courts only victim since 1986 or whether there were others. I have also formally refused to accept the jurisdiction of that court until such Inquiry is set up. The new Clerk to the Houghton-le-Spring Magistrates Court has not replied to my Statement of Truth setting down the facts of 1986 and the years following it. I delivered that statement to the court several weeks before Christmas. I can only arrive at one conclusion. Northumbria Police have promised over the past few years to investigate the matter of the courts illegal proceedings. But that has been nothing short of a smokescreen set up while they have plotted yet further acts of corruption against me. Even the Crown Prosecution Service situated at Washington, Tyne-Wear attempted to blackmail me. The Northumbria Police Authority have failed to answer a letter I sent to them several months ago asking what Northumbria Police were doing in regard to my allegations of bent judges Durham Constabulary have also failed to act on the matter. of bent judges at the Durham County Court. There is also the matter of perjury that was used against me.
Member of Parliament Mr Fraser Kemp has known about my allegations for several years. Previously he had passed me on to former MEP Alan Donnely. Alan Donnely then informed me that what was being done to me was nothing to do with him and he would not act. Only now after a further approach to him, has MP Fraser Kemp referred my case to the RT Hon. Baroness Scotland QC Parliamentary Secretary to the Lord Chancellors Department. He has also referred my case to the Parliamentary Ombudsman. That was several weeks ago but to date nothing further has been heard from Mr Kemp.
Durham Constabulary have falsely alleged that when a judge lies it is a judicial decision and is therefore protected. That is in fact a lie. A judge who decides to lie and use fraud to arrive at his or her judgement is not protected other than by bent policemen. Such a judge is a criminal by reason of such acts.
To date the mob I mention above, for that is what they are, have cost me my thirty year marriage and the death of my father. They have also caused me other severe damage. With the assistance of bent judges operating within the North East Court Circuit they engineered my bankruptcy. It was two days later that my father collapsed and died after my alleged bankruptcy was published on the front page of the Sunderland Echo newspaper. He had been extremely upset at what was being done to me and begged me to give up my fight against our corrupt justice system because he said that ultimately it would kill me.. My conscience would never allow me to do that. It was the damages awarded by a criminal judge named onhttp://www.mason-rule.com who is still being protected by both Durham and Northumbria Police which allowed my alleged bankruptcy. The proceedings before that judge were also illegal and he used considerable fraud as a means to arrive at his judgement. He also allowed my civil law opponent the use of very material perjury. Some of the evidence of that fraud etc. is published on http://www.mason-rule.com It is known that several police forces are monitoring this website. These scum operating within the UK justice system have made my life so bad that I am no longer afraid of death so I am no longer afraid of them.
"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell-fire."
- Christ in Matthew 10:28
By means of their corrupt practices, they have provided me with evidence of what they are capable of doing to people such as myself. I am using that evidence. And providing it to others. I will never give up until these people are brought to trial. Prime Minister Tony Blairpromised us a fairer Britain. Britain is less fair now than I can remember in the fifty eight years of my life. We remain the laughing stock of other countries who have what can be called a credible justice system. I think it is now time for judges to be elected as in the North American system. The old boys network, often with Masonic membership or leanings, who are responsible for the employment of judges. That must be brought to a halt as soon as possible. People holding public office must be made to declare any membership of any secret society as a first step to trying to achieve something resembling a true justice system.
I can no longer rely on the police for protection. A visit to http://www.mason-rule.com will give the reason for this. I cannot rely on the courts either for justice but that has been the situation for a long time now. Bent judges don’t like being exposed. Straight judges don’t like bent judges being exposed either. My life has been threatened and a threat was also made to burn my home down unless I stopped publicising judicial and police corruption much of which has its roots in Freemasonry. Northumbria Police simply did not want to know about that. Neither did they want to know about a man who threatened that my wife, daughters and I were to be stabbed. He even repeated that threat to a Northumbria Police officer who took no action on it. When we heard evidence that the threat to burn down our home was probably real, my wife begged me to sell our home and run. I could not do that so she went and there effectively ended my thirty year marriage.
In the name of God Almighty all I ask is that the general public wake up to what is going on. My health is now such that my efforts to publicise the situation, even if I eventually get justice, will not help me much. I have concluded that what I am doing may well cost me my life but what is a life when it has been made pure pain and suffering at the hands of the corrupt justice establishment? It is a sad reflection when Tony Blair has recently been preaching at home and abroad on the matter of justice when Britain remains second only to Turkey for the abuse of human rights.
Maurice Kellett
16A The Lyons,
Hetton-le-Hole,
Tyne-Wear DH5 0HT.
e-mail: maurice.kellett@ntlworld.com
6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth Seal (using his "Key"), and, lo, there was a great "earthquake"; and the "sun" became black as sackcloth of hair, and the "moon" became as blood; (Please see "The Four Horsemen of The Apocalypse & the Two Witnesses" Booklet for the Bible Prophecy "Code")
6:13 And "the stars of heaven" fell unto the "earth", even as the "fig tree" casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind (Ezekiel 13:13).
9:13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
It can´t be much more before the "earthquake", that is, a great upheaval of people...
In this context the scriptural code "sun" means The Throne of David - (Psalm 89 v 36) - which is the British Throne. The "Stone of Scone" is Jacob's Pillar and Israel's Throne of David.
and the "moon" Reflects the light of the SUN. The SUN is the British Throne and the "Commonwealth" reflects her light and power (like the moon does to the sun).
please see http://jahtruth.net/horse.htm for the complete document.
Fw: DISCRIMINATION AGAINST A BLACK JAMAICA MAN IN THE U,K
----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Stacie Banton <mssbstbess@yahoo.com>
To: yourstory@equalityhumanrights.com; yourstory@equalityhumanrights.com
Sent: Friday, February 27, 2009 9:30:57 AM
Subject: DISCRIMINATION AGAINST A BLACK JAMAICA MAN IN THE U,K
To whom it may concern,my name is Stacie Banton i am writing this story to you asking you to please help us ,my brother Paul Banton lives in the UK, he was setup by his EX-Girlfriend and her daughter.these two girls plotted all sorts of allegations against him,had him arrested and sentence to 8 years in prison just for revenge,all the legal representative in Great Britain believed these girls.they did not gave Paul Banton the opportunity to defend himself,he was represented by the legal aid department,the legal aid lawyers did not defined paul banton the way they should have,they did no investigation in to these girls allegations,they had no evidence or proof against paul banton to collaborate these girls allegation.they found paul banton guilty from the very moment they arrested him know that he was a black jamaica, he was found guilty before they tried him,now paul banton is doing 8 years hard labor for something he did not do,all because of his origination and race .this girl also had custody of our nephew by lying,manipulating coning and schemeing the entire justice department, the immigration officers and most of the legal Representatives of great Britain,she was abusing our nephew until the social service found out and took him away from her,the social services report this to the cat-ford police station from November 2008 until today March 2009 nothing has been done by the police or the social workers regarding the abuse.our family is poor and we don't have much this trial has taken a great tole on us,and has cost our family a lot trying to get justice for paul banton and our nephew.please help us we need your help,now more then ever before.please do not turn your backs on us.paul banton and our nephews rights has been violated in every way possible by these girls and the legal Representatives of Great Britain,i thank you sinclery stacie banton .contact details email mssbstbess@yahoo.complease respond A,S,A,P. thank you God bless.
I am mother to 4 kids after
THE MOST CORRUPT BRITISH JUDGES TO THE LORD CHANCELLOR By Dr A Adok
http://www.ukfathers.co.uk/THE%20MOST%20CORRUPT%20BRITISH%20JUDGES%20TO%20THE%20LORD%20CHANCELLOR%20By%20Dr%20A%20Adoko%20Barrister.htm
Welcome to UK Fathers
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MensIssuesOnline/message/14590
THE MOST CORRUPT BRITISH JUDGES.
TO THE LORD CHANCELLOR
By
Dr. A Adoko
Barrister:
(Voluntarily disbarred)
Papal Knight
of St. Gregory the Great.
PRINTED & PUBLISHED
BY
LONDON TRUTH PUBLISHERS
DR. A ADOKO
10 SOANE HOUSE
ROLAND WAY
LONDON SE17 2JT
TEL: 0171 640 0583
ISBN: 1 871694 05 1
CONTENT
Cover Page: 01
JUDICIAL CORRUPTION: THE START.
1. Millennium Present: 03-08
THE MOST CORRUPT LAWYERS:
2. (Chronology of Events of Racial Discrimination): 09-14
3. The Gang of Four: Rendall, Saunders, Hone & Coles: 15-22
4. Individuals Members of the Gang: 23-31
5. The Cross Examination of Mrs. Coles. 32-35
6. Lord Anthony Lester of Herne Q.C. 36-44
7. Solicitor Robin Lewis: 45-51
THE MOST CORRUPT JUDGES:
8. Chairman: Ms. E R Donnelly 53-62
9. (Chronology of Events of- Publishing Proof of Offences): 63-69
10. Chairman David Booth 70-84
11. Mr. Justice Morrison 85-91
12. Anonymous Judges 92-94
13. Mr. Justice Michael Wright: 95-98
14. His Honour Judge Mitchel : 99-105
15. Mr. Justice Potts: 106-111
16. The Legal Aid Board 112-118
17. & Mr. Justice Maurice Kay:
18. Office for the Supervision of Solicitors. 119-134
19. Lord Chief Justice, Lord Bingham of Cornhill: 135-140
THE MOST JUST PRACTISING LAWYER:
20. Counsel Richard Clayton 141-145
THE MOST JUST JUDGES:
21. Mr. Justice Brooke: 146-147
22. His Honour Judge Altman: 148-151
23. His Honour Judge Prosser: 152-165
24. Lord Denning: 166-173
25. People, People everywhere 174-182
26. Conclusion: 183
27. Inspired Verses: 184-195
CHAPTER 1.
MILLENNIUM PRESENT
TO THE VICTIMS
OF JUDICIAL CORRUPTION
The content of the book sounds very much like a wild burlesque. And, I wish it were. Unfortunately, it is a sinister reality. Nor is it a unique sinister reality. It is about common place corruption, within our courts of law. And, still much more within our legal system i.e. the Law Society and the Bar of England and Wales.
What is written here, is the tip of the iceberg. I was embarrassed, not by the paucity, but, by the abundance of the incidences of judicial abuses of power, from which I had to select, what to publish, and what to leave unpublished. It reminded me of the claim made in the Bible, that if everything that Jesus said and did were written down, the world would not be able to hold the publication!
COMPARATIVE STUDY:
The enormity of the offences of corruption, dealt with may be brought home by comparing what our corrupt judges and lawyers have done, with what Jonathan Atkin and Oscar Wilde did. Both Jonathan Atkin and Oscar Wilde ended up in prison. The charge against them was perjury, that is, telling lies in court. Yet, many of our judges, who have committed worse offences, are still trying cases!
THE NEED TO SPEAL OUT:
It is necessary to the commonwealth of justice, for all persons, especially those of us who are lawyers, to uphold justice without fear or favour. And we should do so, even if, by so doing, the firmament may fall upon us. In an effort to ensure that a few frogs do not pollute the source of the well of justice, this book is written. It is my millennium present to the victims, in England and Wales, of judicial abuses of power.
It has been said that:
“No individual however ... resourceful, can bring a court into disrepute ... The conduct of the judiciary itself and not the individual or group criticising it. determines whether or not it is respected”.
Indeed, honest judges do welcome criticisms. As Lord Denning puts it:
We will never use this jurisdiction to uphold our own dignity ... Nor will we use it to suppress those who speak against us. We do not fear criticisms. Nor do we resent it. For there is something more important at stake. It is no less than the freedom of speech itself”.
There is no law, which make judges immune from the legal consequences of their false oaths. Indeed, the provision of s.4(1) of the Criminal Law Act 1968 makes it mandatory that their criminal offences should be reported to authorities. It is now the practice in England, as is seen in the case of Jonathan Atkin, and Hamilton and of other ministers, that a case alleging sleaze, in a public office, is first reported in a media of public opinion. This book, is that media of public opinion.
In accordance with the requirement of the law, a copy of this book will be sent to the Lord Chancellor, by way of a formal complaint. It will stress the fact that the judges, whose conduct is criticised in this book, are not fit and proper persons to be judges. It will demand that a public investigation of the serious accusations of gross misconduct made against those judges. Further, it will insist that those judges be tried for the criminal offences that they have committed i.e. the course of justice, or defeating the end of justice.
THE OFFENCE OF DEFEATING JUSTICE
BY SWEARING FALSE OATH:
It does not make sense that these judges should escape scot-free from the offence, for instance, of perjury that they have committed. The more so when persons like Jonathan Atkin and Oscar Wilde are made to suffer grievously, for the offence of perjury. Indeed, the offence of perjury committed by Jonathan Atkin and Oscar Wilde, compared to the offence of perjury committed by the corrupt judges such as Lord Bingham, Mr. Justice Morrison and Judge David Booth, to name but a few, look like a grain of sand, compared to a huge balloon!
The charges against Oscar Wilde and Jonathan Atkin were merely that they had committed breaches of a witness' oath, to tell the truth. But, these judges have committed breaches of their Oath of Loyalty to the Sovereign, as well as their Judicial Oath, plus the offence of swearing falsely, in the name of God!
The 3 oaths, which those judges have broken, are as follows.
First, in their Oath of Allegiance to the Sovereign, all these judges had sworn that they would:
Well and truly serve our sovereign Lady Queen Elizabeth the Second, in their various judicial offices.
Second, in their Judicial Oath, all the judges had sworn to:
Do right to all manner of people after the laws and usage of this realm, without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.
Third, all the judges ended the swearing of their Judicial Oath, by calling upon Providence. Each said:
So help me God.
Yet, all of them, in the course of their duty as judges, have maliciously committed atrocious breaches of the oaths to the Sovereign, the Court and to God.
THE OFFENCE OF DEFEATING JUSTICE
BY IGNORING ISSUES:
The legal requirement about what a judge should and should not deal with, may be said to have had it origin in our prayer book. The prayer book commands us not to leave undone that which we ought to do, and not to do that which we ought not to do. The law requires judges to deal with the issues raised in the case before them, by giving their reasons for determining those issues, in one way, or the other. in the cases that I have brought against the Law Society, the judges invariably ignored to deal with the issues that I had raised! The reason is quite clear. If they dealt with those issues, they would have had no alternative, but to make a ruling in my favour. However, since, they had already conspired to defeat justice, they had no alternative but to avoid dealing with the issues raised by me! Their conduct, could not merely be explained in terms of judicial bias. It was the very definition of the offence of a conspiracy to defeat the end of justice!
Just as a judge would have to be insane to deny that the object of the eye, is to see and, of the ear, is to hear, so would he be insane, to deny that the object of judgement, is to determine the issues in the dispute between the parties. There can therefore, be no defence, in law or in fact, to a judgement, which ignores to deal with the issues that constitute the cause of action or the grounds of appeal. Just as no judge dares say that he believes in the self-contradiction, or in the existence of the impossible, so, no judge dares say that he believes that the purpose of pleading causes of action, or grounds of appeal, is for him to ignore them!
Consequently, judgements which ignore causes of action, or grounds of appeal, such as the judgements of Mr. Justice Potts, Mr. Justice Morris Kay, Judge Mitchel, and Judge David Booth etc are, law and in fact, a confession by the judges concerned, that they have maliciously defeated the end of justice. And that confession constitutes grounds for prosecuting them for the criminal offence of a conspiracy to defeat the end of justice.
According to the law, as stated by the Court of Appeal, a fully judicial body, is required by natural justice to give
"Sufficient reasons for its decision to enable the parties to know the issue to which it addressed its mind and acted lawfully". See R v. Civil Service Appeal Board, ex parte, Cunningham [1991] 4 All E.R. 310 at 318 as per Lord Donaldson M.R.
The most corrupt judge in the country, Mr. David Booth, does not merely ignore issues in a case. He goes all the way out to conceal material evidence from assessors! His conduct is like that of the watchdog who steals the property in its trust. Or that of a father, who sexually assaults his minor daughter. He cannot be trusted.
THE OFFENCE OF DEFEATING JUSTICE
BY SECRET BRIEFINGS:
The offence of giving judgement on the basis, not according to evidence as required by law, but according to secret briefings sent to judges has now become prevalent! Suson Forscey-Moore, of Campaign for a Fair Hearing, discovered a written secret briefing, warning the Court of Appeal, in case number FC2 96/6193/E (LTA 96/5619) against the plaintiff, Geoffrey Harold Scriven! Mrs. Moore carried out necessary investigations, and learnt that such Secret Briefings to judges, was not an exception to the rule, but the order of the day!
Accordingly, she wrote a strong complaint, denouncing the judicial Secret Briefings, as judicial corruption. The prejudicial Secret Briefing to the judges of the Court of Appeal, stated:
"It will be noted that after reading the Attached Affidavit, Lord Justice Russell directed that the papers should be submitted to Her Majesty's Attorney General to consider what further action, if any, he should take in the public interest. The Court should be warned, that the present Plaintiff has made it clear in discussions with the writer on the telephone that he has completely misinterpreted the basis of the referral. The writer has not commented in response to his expression of delight that Lord Justice Russell has referred the topic of alleged perjury committed by Lords and Lady Justices of Appeal to the Attorney General for further investigations. The Plaintiff has no idea he is the subject of the referral"!
Judges being human, and human nature being what it is, Secret Briefings of the kind, warning the judges that a litigant was a dangerous person, who accused judges of perjury and corruption etc, could not fail in their object. Indeed, it did not fail in its object! Geoffrey Harold Scriven narrowly escaped criminal penalty.
Nor indeed, did it fail in its object in the cases I brought against the Law Society! Look, for instance, at my appeal against the judgement of Chairman Donnelly! The appeal was based on very serious judicial misconduct:
The misconduct of Judge Donnelly accepting a bribe!
The misconduct of Judge Donnelly receiving blackmailing letter from solicitor Robin Lewis and complying with the term of the blackmail!
Yet my appeal did not succeed! Why did it fail?
The answer is, because of secret briefing! In his judgement, Mr. Justice Mummery, who determined the appeal himself, confessed, without shame, that the appeal failed on the basis of a secret briefing that he had received from the bribed and blackmailed Judge Donnelly! Up to now, I do not know the content of the secret briefing, which is the basis upon which my appeal was determined! I hope and pray that the Lord Chancellor will cause an investigation to take place and then, I will know the content of the secret briefing and give an answer to it!
In its campaign to judges, the Law Society seems to have made my accusation of their officials to appear as a violation of the Law Society franchises! Consequently, my publication of the crimes committed by the Law Society officials was treated, by the court, as the kind of conduct that the court must severely punish! I was to be compelled, by a denial of my right to practise law, to kneel before the Law Society and to apologise for publishing the offences of the Law Society officials! I was to be denied an opportunity to earn a penny of income, as a practising solicitor!
Some of the judges who conspired to defeat the end of justice still show some conscience. For instance, Mr. Justice Morrison and Mr. Justice Potts were, at least, so ashamed of their fictitious judgements, that they did not have the courage to deliver the figments of their minds, which they called judgements, in an open court, attended by their judicial victim! In order to prevent me from attending the deliverance of his judgements, Mr. Justice Potts dared not deliver it in London! He insisted on delivering it in Leeds, in the absence of the parties! Had the courage to deliver his judgement in London, in my presence, I would have had the discourtesy to call him by the name that describes him best:
A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing.
And had Mr. Justice Morrison had the courage to deliver his judgement in open court, in my presence, I would have called him, in his face:
"Sir, Macbeth might have murdered sleep. But you have murdered Justice".
I did, however, had the courage to tell Chairman Booth that he was who he is:
The Most Corrupt Judge in England. And A Racist!
BIBLICAL DESCRIPTION OF INJUSTICE:
The Bible describes well, the conduct of these corrupt judges. Their conduct is not different from the conduct of bad parents. When litigants ask for bread, these corrupt judges, like bad parents, give stones. When litigants asked for fish, they give snakes! When we ask Morrison for Justice, he gives us Injustice. And when we ask Booth for Judicial Determination, he gives us Malicious Determination!
By their own conduct, they have opted out of being judges. They should be butchering cows, and weighing meat.
LEGAL MAFIA:
During the trial of the several cases that I brought against the Law Society, it became clear, why the Law Society hired Lord Lester Q.C. and Solicitor Robin Lewis to represent it! The legal practice of Lord Lester and Solicitor Robin Lewis is essentially Mafia in nature! Lester and Lewis were hired to represent the Law Society solely because of their ability to corrupt the judiciary!
There is absolutely no question that there are some officials of the Law Society, to whom justice is fearful for its own sake. They are like former President Iddi Amin of Uganda, who, having no academic qualification, held that persons with academic qualifications, were fools fit only to be hewers of wood and drawers of water!
These owl-like creatures of darkness, known as the Gang of Four, are:
The Law Society Director John Rendall
Head of Department Nicholas Saunders.
Legal Adviser Anne Coles.
And Manager Mark Hone.
A DEMIGOD:
There is nothing more natural than that those of us brought up under the English system of law should find ourselves addicted to crying ourselves up, as belonging to the best legal system in the world. I never heard a single person cry us down as being a part of a legal system, which was not the best in the world. I had taken for granted that when those addicted to such puffing, stoop to conspire against justice, they would, because of such puffing, at least commit a breach of justice, while still appearing to be doing justice.
I was thus shocked that a number of judges in England go all the way out to publish at least where black people are concerned, that they are neither doing justice, nor pretending to do justice!
Again, there is nothing more natural that a person brought up under the English system of law, as I am, should have entertained the greatest respect and even affection towards our judges. In terms of his independence, and above all, in terms of his unshakeable impartiality as a judge, a person like Lord Denning has always been, to me, as some sort of demigod.
THE SINS OF INJUSTICE & THE VIRTUE OF JUSTICE:
Hence, upon the heads of those corrupt judges, the sins of injustice must be heaped. And, it must be seen to be heaped.
And upon the heads of the just judges, such as Lord Denning, Mr. Justice Brooke, His Honour Judge Altman and his Honour Judge Prosser the virtue of justice must be heaped. And it must be seen to be heaped.
Adlai Stevenson once described a free society, as a society, where it is safe to be unpopular. We should not allow our corrupt judges to succeed to describe our free society as:
A society, where it is safe for corrupt judges, to defeat the end of justice!
CHAPTER 2 CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS IN RACIAL DISCRIMINATION CASES:
CHAPTER 3 THE GANG OF FOUR: RENDALL, SAUNDERS, HONE AND COLES
CHAPTER 4 INDIVIDUAL MEMBERS OF THE GANG OF FOUR:
CHAPTER 5 THE CROSS-EXAMINATION OF MRS. COLES
CHAPTER 6 LORD ANTHONY AS LORD CAMOUFLAGE!
CHAPTER 7 SOLICITOR ROBIN LEWIS: MASTER OF BLACKMAIL
CHAPTER 8 CHAIRMAN E R DONNELLY: JUDGEMENT BY FEAR.
CHAPTER 9 SECOND CHRONOLOGY - PUBLISHING THE CRIMINAL OFFENCES OF LESTER ETC:
CHAPTER 10 CHAIRMAN DAVID BOOTH: THE MOST CORRUPT JUDGE.
CHAPTER 11 MR. JUSTICE MORRISON: THE MURDER OF JUSTICE.
CHAPTER 12 ANONYMOUS JUDGES:
CHAPTER 13 MR. JUSTICE MICHAEL WRIGHT:
CHAPTER 14 HIS HONOUR JUDGE MITCHEL
CHAPTER 15 MR. JUSTICE POTTS.
CHAPTER 16 LEGAL AID BOARD & MR. JUSTICE MAURICE KAY:
CHAPTER 17 OFFICE FOR THE SUPERVISION OF SOLICITORS
CHAPTER 18 LORD CHIEF JUSTICE, LORD BINGHAM
CHAPTER 19 COUNSEL RICHARD CLAYTON:
CHAPTER 20 MR JUSTICE BROOKE:
CHAPTER 21 HIS HONOUR JUDGE ALTMAN:
CHAPTER 22 HIS HONOUR JUDGE pROSSER:
CHAPTER 23 LORD DENNING
CHAPTER 24 PEOPLE, PEOPLE EVERYWHERE:
CHAPTER 25 CONCLUSION
http://www.ctjnet.co.uk/dossier%20of%20corruption.htm
Dossier of Judicial Corruption in the UK |
Ahmed Balogun and Others
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Unlawfully Denied Access to the courts by a corrupt Judiciary
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Shetreet v SHARP and Lovells / Hogan & Hartson NHS and UK Attorney General v Shetreet
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/draconian-judge-says-riot-sentences-were-fair-7855270.html
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Ron Down Under
The MIckleberg Stich by Allan Loval
www.smh.com.au/.../06/11/nws_
Running for justice ...
one of the three Mickelberg brothers, Peter, chases the then CIB chief, Don Hancock, down the street after losing an appeal in the Perth Supreme Court in February 1999. Photo: WA News
Mint robbers were framed Sydney Morning Herald By Liza Kappelle June 11 2002
A former police officer has admitted that he and another detective lied and faked evidence during the trial of the Mickelberg brothers for the Perth Mint gold swindle 20 years ago. The West Australian Attorney-General, Jim McGinty, said yesterday that Anthony Lewandowski had given an affidavit to the Director of Public Prosecutions admitting he and the former CIB chief Don Hancock, who was murdered last year, had lied and fabricated evidence to convict the Mickelbergs. Raymond, Peter and Brian Mickelberg were convicted in 1983 of swindling $650,000 worth of gold from the mint. Raymond, a former SAS soldier, was released from jail in 1991 after serving eight years of a 20-year sentence. Peter served six years of a 14-year sentence. Brian Mickelberg had his conviction overturned after nine months in jail. He died in a helicopter crash in 1986.
The WA Court of Criminal Appeal has quashed the Mickelberg brothers' convictions.
Micklebergs cleared over Perth Mint swindle
The Western Australian Court of Criminal Appeal has quashed the Mickelberg brothers' convictions over the 1982 Perth Mint swindle.
More than two decades ago, Ray and Peter Mickelberg were convicted for stealing 68 kilograms of gold from the Perth Mint.
They made seven unsuccessful attempts to have their convictions quashed.
Their eighth appeal was launched after one of the investigating officers, the late Tony Lewandowski, confessed to helping fabricate evidence against them. The pair was not in court today to hear the court's 2-1 decision in their favour.
But their lawyer, Malcolm McCusker QC has called this a great day for justice in Western Australia.
Mr Lewandowski's mother, Irene Burns, says she is elated for the Mickelbergs and is proud of her son for coming forward.
"This is the reason that he did confess, to get a good outcome, and he's done it," she said.
"The Mickelbergs have come through fine, and I'm happy for them."
Compensation
The Western Australian Government will consider making a one off ex-gratia payment to the Mickelbergs for their wrongful conviction.
The state has already paid out $600,000 towards the Mickelberg's legal costs, including $250,000 that funded today's successful appeal.
Attorney-General Jim McGinty says while the brothers are taking legal action for compensation, an ex-gratia payment is an option the Government will be looking at.
"We would give consideration to this because it is now clear from the court of criminal appeal that the Mickelbergs had the wrong thing done to them as a result of Tony Lewandowski's perjury," he said.
"That was obviously a failing on the part of the police and the law enforcement processes of this state."
Doubt
The Assistant Police Commissioner, Mel Hay, has expressed disappointment about the decision to quash the convictions against the brothers.
Mr Hay has refused to apologise to the Mickelbergs, saying there remains considerable evidence to suggest they committed the crime.
"There is an abundance of evidence to suggest and point the finger in their direction so that evidence is still there that hasn't been taken away in any way, it still exists today and one can't ignore it," he said.
Mr Hay has also defended the officer in charge of the case, the late Don Hancock.
"He was a good officer, a officer that had a great deal of pride in being an officer with the West Australian Police Service and during his time he locked up a lot of good criminals and that ought to be never be forgotten," he said.
But investigative journalist Avon Lovell who wrote a book 20 years ago that revealed that the Mickelbergs had been framed by police says today's decision is long overdue.
Mr Lovell's book, The Mickelberg Stitch, was banned for many years and he was sued by Tony Lewandowski and other detectives.
He later taped Mr Lewandowski's confession to fabricating evidence against the Mickelbergs.
Mr Lovell says their convictions should have been quashed many years ago.
"One of the lawyers says it's a great day for justice, a great victory for justice, in fact it's nothing of the kind, it's an appalling indictment on a system that failed to correct itself over 22 years," he said.
Perth Mint Swindle From Wikipedia
The Perth Mint Swindle is the popular name of a 22 June 1982 gold robbery at the Perth Mint in Perth, Western Australia. A total of 49 gold bars weighing 68 kg were stolen. The value of the gold at the time was A$653,000.
Three brothers, Ray, Peter and Brian Mickelberg were sent to court and were sentenced in 1983 to twenty, sixteen and twelve years in jail respectively. The convictions against all three were eventually overturned.
To date the case remains unsolved and continues to be fought by the Mickelbergs who maintain their innocence and allege a conspiracy by the police to frame them.
The Mickelberg brothers
Soon after the robbery police investigations focused on the Mickelberg brothers. According to the police, the Mickelberg brothers stole cheques from a Perth building society and then fooled the mint into accepting those cheques in exchange for gold bullion, which it was alleged, the brothers had picked up by a courier. The gold was picked up by a security company who delivered it to an office in Perth and then to Jandakot Airport, from where it seemingly disappeared.
After serving nine months of his jail term and having his conviction overturned on appeal, Brian was released from jail but died in an air crash in 1986when the twin-engine plane he was flying ran out of fuel and crashed near Mundaring Weir. Whilst in prison, Ray and Peter embarked on a series of seven appeals against their convictions, essentially on the grounds that their confessions had been fabricated. Ray and Peter served eight and six years of their sentences respectively before being released on parole.
In a bizarre twist, in 1989 55 kg of gold pellets, presumed to have been from the swindle, were found outside the gates of TVW-7 (currently Channel Seven Perth), a Perth television station, with a note addressed to one of the station's reporters, protesting the Mickelberg's innocence and claiming that a prominent Perth businessman was behind the swindle.[citation needed]
In 2002, midway through a State Royal Commission into police corruption, a retired police officer who had been at the centre of the case and who was present at the interviews with the Mickelbergs, Tony Lewandowski, made a confession of his involvement in fabricating evidence which was used to help frame the brothers. He was subsequently charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice, making false statements, fabricating evidence andperjur
Lewandowski's senior officer during the investigation and the other person who had been present at the brothers' interviews was Detective Sergeant Don Hancock who later went on to become head of the State Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB). Hancock was directly implicated in fabricating evidence by Lewandowski's confession. In September 2001 in an apparently unrelated issue, Hancock was murdered after a car bomb planted under his car exploded outside his home in Rivervale, killing him and a friend Lou Lewis.
In July 2004 the Western Australian Court of Criminal Appeal quashed the brothers' convictions after seven unsuccessful attempts. The judge ruled that with the suppression of their sentence, they were entitled to a presumption of innocence. The Assistant Police Commissioner, Mel Hay, expressed disappointment with the decision which prompted a threat of a defamation lawsuit from the brothers. The brothers subsequently sued the Western Australian government for libel, and as part of the settlement, the West Australian police issued a public apology in December 2007. [1]
After lodging claims for compensation, in January 2008 State Attorney-General Jim McGinty offered $500,000 in ex-gratia payments to each brother for the "injustice done to them".[2] The payment followed $658,672 paid to cover legal costs of their two appeals. The Mickelbergs’ lawyer had asked for $950,000 in compensation for Ray and $750,000 for Peter.
A book about the case
Author Avon Lovell wrote a book about the case, The Mickelberg Stitch (1985) in which he described questionable investigation practices by the Western Australian Police Force and made allegations of unsigned confessions and a forged fingerprint. The police union collected a levy of $1 per week from each member to fund legal action against Lovell and his publishers and distributors to suppress publication of the book. It was estimated that between one and two million dollars was raised.
The book was in fact banned by the State Government, but was still freely available to be read at the J S Battye Library. The ban was eventually lifted.
See also
Notes
- ^ "Police apologise to Mickelberg brothers". www.ninemsn.com.au. December 15.
- ^ "Mickelberg payment satisfies neither brothers nor police". thewest.com.au. 16 January 2008. Retrieved 2009-02-17.
References
- MelbourneCrime Don Hancock and the Perth Mint Swindle (read: September 7, 2005)
- Sydney Morning Herald Mint swindle officer seized(read: September 7, 2005)
- Post Newspapers This time, the stitch is by Lovell (read: September 7, 2005)
- ABC News online Micklebergs cleared over Perth Mint swindle
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Ron Down Under
I wanna rant about the police here. If you all back in the US think that Australia is a peaceful and fair land, you are wrong. The police here are terrible. No better than the criminals in my oppinion.
In particular, there are two cases here in Perth that illustrate how bad it is. First, there is the case the the Perth Mint Swindle. Back in the mid 80's, someone, or some group, stole some gold from the Perth Mint. The police blamed it three brothers, the Micklebergs. The three brothers were convicted on very flimsy evidence and thrown in prison for a very long time. In the last couple of years, one of the detectives on the case decided to come clean. It turns out that he and some other detectives had fabricated all the evidence. They had beaten the Mickleberg boys at remote police stations. When they still refused to confess, they simply made the confessions up. Last week, after 20 years, the bothers finally had their convictions reversed. There is a good book about all of this. It is called "The Mickleberg Stitch". The other case concerns the other detective involved in fabricating the Mickleberg evidence. He was a senior detective named Don Hancock. After he took early retirement, he bought a bar out near Kalgoolie. A few years ago some bikers (Hell's Angel types) got into a row in his bar. He threw them out. It apparently was no big deal... just the usual weekend brawl between drunk bikies. The bikers went over their camp site outside of town and sat around the campfire drinking beer. A shot rang out the only house nearby. On the bikers was shot through the skull from a high-powered rifle. The evidence was clear as a bell to everyone involved. The only house nearby belonged to Don Hancock. The path of the bullet came from the house. He had rifles, being ex-law enforcement and all. He had a grudge against the bikers he had thrown out of his bar. But, the police did nothing. They refused in investigate. When forced, they somehow could not come up with anything. They said the muder was a complete mystery to them. After a number of years of stonewalling it became apparent to the bikers that nothing was going to be done. So they took things into their own hands and blew Don Hancock up with a car bomb. Don and a friend went to the horse races for an afternoon of betting and drinking. When they got back into their car, it exploded, killing them both instantly. Someone had placed a bomb under the car while they were inside. Of course the police were all over this. They eventually got some low ranking biker to admit to it. They had him somewhere for three weeks getting info out of him. It saw his photo after the confession. To me, he looked like he had been tortured. He looked like those American POW's you saw having to apolgize on TV in Vietnam. After Don Hancock was murdered, his partner detective, Tony Louwinski, decided to come clean out the Micklebergs. He claims he waited so long because he was afraid of Hancock. It turns out Hancock was as dirty and mean as they came. It doesn't seem to me that the police are at all suprised that he got what was coming to him. To me it illustrates how bad the corruption is. There is more. The police investigate themselves. They comission reports to, get this, the police. So, there are no checks on their activities.
Recently, the boyfriend of a friend of mine got into a scrap with the police. He was on a party riverboat when two of the patrons got too rowdy and started breaking things. The captain called the police. When the boat docked, the two rowdy guys took off on foot. Then the police showed up and arrested my friend's buyfriend. He protested telling them they had the wrong guy. The captain even told the police that the two guys had left and they had the wrong guy. The police didn't care. They eventually let him go, but they decided to charge him with a felony, resisting arrest. There were two cops there. A guy and a woman. The woman cop tired to tell the guy cop that he had the wrong guy, but he wouldn't listen. Her boyfriend is a law student, and nice guy. He was very ticked off. So he pleaded not guilty and demanded a trial. The prosecuter tried to offer him a deal on a lesser charge. He refused. In June his trial came up. He showed up with his friends who had been on the boat as witnesses. He also got the captain there. He suponed the female officer, but she refused to show up. The guy officer lied like a rug under oath. The boyfriend and the other witnesses could not believe some of the outright lies he was telling. He was sure the female officer refused to show up for the trial because she would have to perjure herself under cross examination. Either that, or get blacklisted and posted out in the middle of the desert. He was aquitted. Fortunately for him, the judge could smell bullshit when he heard it. Good thing too because if he had lost, he would not be able to get licensed to practive law when he graduates because of a felony on his record. posted by Ron Larson @ 4:13 PM 0 comments links to this post Police get demoted The detectives who were involved in the brawl with the American university students were demoted back to beat police. They may be fired. The police union is of course claiming that this is all a bunch of nothing. They are wrong. These detectives used their police power for personal revenge matters. They abused their authority. The police where holding one of the American students in jail and trying to charge him with assaulting an officer and all sorts of crap. He was the one that managed to get a clean punch in and knock out the front teeth of one of the detectives. However, the prosecutors refused to file charges claiming that everyone was at fault for the brawl and no blame could be laid on one person. The student flew home to the States. I don't blame him. The cops will be looking for him and trying to make his life hell.
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Lovell, Avon. Split Image. Perth, Western Australia.:
Creative Research, 1990. First Edition Hard Cover. Signed by Author. Good / Good. 415pp sequel to the well known Mickelberg Stitch which was removed by booksellers from their shleves by threats of litigation. This is a clean copy signed by the author. Jacket is edge worn and has a few marks. $35.00 [010025] Lovell, Avon. The Mickelberg Stitch. Perth, Western Australia: Creative Research, 1985. 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. Mass Market Paperback. Good This is the book that was too hot for the shelves of Western Australian book shops. A controversial view of the Perth Mint gold swindle and its aftermath. 285 pp with some b/w photos. Old price label on front
1998 Death in Custody of 18-year-old Stephen Wardle
A justice of the peace alleged he had evidence of a police cover up in the 1998 death in custody of 18-year-old Stephen Wardle, arrested for alleged drunkenness on his way to an AC/DC concert. JP Geoffrey Waldock, who was on duty at the East Perth lockup the night Wardle died, told the Sunday Times an official log he made on that night disappeared from the cells in the days after the death. "No one is pretending that the next few months will be an easy time for the police service," Dr Gallop told about 80 delegates from 39 union branches meeting in Fremantle.......
Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct sometimes involving political corruption, and generally designed to gain a financial or political benefit for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest. An example is police officers accepting bribes in exchange for not reporting organized drug or prostitution rings or other illegal activities. Police corruption can involve a single officer or group of officers, or can be the standard practice of entire police precincts or departments. In most major cities there are internal affairs sections to investigate suspected police corruption or misconduct. However, sometimes the corruption is so widespread that investigation requires an external body with far reaching powers, such as a Royal Commission.
Mint robbers were framed By Liza Kappelle June 11 2002
A former police officer has admitted that he and another detective lied and faked evidence during the trial of the Mickelberg brothers for the Perth Mint gold swindle 20 years ago. The West Australian Attorney-General, Jim McGinty, said yesterday that Anthony Lewandowski had given an affidavit to the Director of Public Prosecutions admitting he and the former CIB chief Don Hancock, who was murdered last year, had lied and fabricated evidence to convict the Mickelbergs. Raymond, Peter and Brian Mickelberg were convicted in 1983 of swindling $650,000 worth of gold from the mint. Raymond, a former SAS soldier, was released from jail in 1991 after serving eight years of a 20-year sentence. Peter served six years of a 14-year sentence. Brian Mickelberg had his conviction overturned after nine months in jail. He died in a helicopter crash in 1986.
Raymond and Peter Mickleberg made four unsuccessful attempts to have their convictions overturned - three appeals to the Court of Criminal Appeal, at which Mr Lewandowski and Mr Hancock testified, and an appeal to the High Court. Mr McGinty said Mr Lewandowski had admitted that he and Mr Hancock had fabricated confessions from the brothers, and had lied at the trial and the appeals. He had also admitted that Peter Mickelberg was stripped naked and beaten by interviewing officers during the investigation. Mr Lewandowski had said he had not come forward earlier because he had not wanted to cross Mr Hancock, who died in a car bombing in what police believe was a payback killing by Gypsy Joker bikie gang members after the murder of a gang member in 2000. Mr McGinty said Mr Lewandowski's belated admission - if it were truthful - would strike at the heart of public confidence in the justice system. "This is one of the most high-profile police investigations we have seen in Western Australia, and if it was found that convictions were obtained by police fabricating evidence, the ramifications are enormous." Mr McGinty has referred Mr Lewandowski's affidavit to the royal commission into alleged police corruption, which is due to recommence hearings on July 1. The robbery on June 22, 1982, was the most audacious ever staged in Perth - an ingenious swindle which saw 49 gold bars spirited out of the impregnable Mint to a mystery hiding place. Although the evidence against the Mickelbergs was compelling - in particular Ray Mickelberg's fingerprint on one of three fake cheques used to pay for the gold - the brothers insisted from the start that the police had framed them. They said the detectives, led by Don Hancock, had lied at their trial in the District Court, had fabricated confessions by all three, and had planted the damning fingerprint. It would have been easy for the police to get hold of a mould of Ray's finger, they said. One of his hobbies was casting hands, in brass, plastic, rubber and perspex. There were about 20 of the hands in his Marmion Beach home when the police first arrived, and several were taken away for inspection. In 1989, 55 kilograms of gold pellets, said to have been from the swindle, were found outside a Perth television station, accompanied by a note protesting the Mickelberg brothers' innocence and claiming that a prominent Perth businessman was behind the swindle
Ray Mickleberg with the two Allan Lovell books on their extraordinary life: The Mickleberg Stich and Split Image
Ray and Peter Mickleberg during press interviews after their convictions were quashed by the Court of Criminal Appeal in June, 2004
Mickelbergs unstitched – 22 years too late
Congratulations to the framed Mickelbergs
allegation two weeks ago by a former detective, Tony Lewandowski, that police also framed the now-infamous Mickleberg brothers for the Perth Mint swindle
22 years too late Congratulations to the framed Mickelbergs Almost twenty years ago a woman from Perth – 5,000 kilometres away on the other side of Oz – came to my office requesting support for a campaign to free the three Mickelberg brothers. It's so long ago, I can't remember her name, nor whether she was a wife or simply a family member of one of the three. She gave me a copy of a mind-shredding new book, The Mickelberg Stitch. I recall I was impressed with her sincerity and dedication, and that, when I read it later, the book blew me away. She told me an extraordinary tale of how the Mickelbergs had been "stitched up" by the police. On my side of the continent, we say "fitted up", but I knew that she meant "framed". It doesn't matter where you are in this great country, a frame-up is a frame-up. These men's supposed crime was a fraud that involved a lot of gold bullion from the Australian Mint in her home city. She told me that one of the brothers was a plaster figurine hobbyist, and that sometimes he made latex moulds of hands, to cast in plaster. I was intrigued when she explained that the cops had used one of these latex moulds to fabricate a fingerprint that had helped fit up the brothers and send them to jail for extraordinarily long laggings (meaning "sentences", on my side of the Wide Brown Land).
Exonerated
These poor buggers have been fighting to clear their name for 22 years and finally their convictions have been quashed. In the meantime, one of the brothers has died, and one of the cops in the case was blown up in his own car. Another policeman died, but confessed before he did, which was very decent of him, for a bent copper. I've been interested in the Mickelberg Stitch for almost half my life, and wish I'd done more to help. Like the incredible Sydney Hilton Bombing case on which I've reported in the Scriptorium, it is one of the worst cases of cop frame-ups this country of daily frame-ups has ever known. But at least I can send my congratulations to Ray and Peter Mickelberg and hope that they get a helluva lot more compo for not robbing the Perth Mint than the lousy hundred grand that Tim got for not bombing the Hilton and killing two garbagemen and a cop. One hundred million would be more like it, for the suffering it must have caused the Mickelberg men and their loved ones. Let's hope the real swindlers get nabbed. And we can only hope (probably vainly) that some cops will do laggings like these blokes did for eight and six years, unlike in the Hilton case. In the Hilton, the crooked wallopers not only remain free, they have kept their promotions and bravery awards for arresting innocent men with non-existent bombs. Amazing, is it not? Just imagine how corrupt Australian police would be if we didn't have an expensive Royal Commission into every State's police force every five minutes or so.
* Ø * Ø * Ø * "After more than 20 years of maintaining their innocence, the brothers convicted of the infamous Perth Mint swindle had their convictions overturned. "Ray and Peter Mickleberg's eighth appeal against their conviction for the 1982 theft of $653,000 in gold bullion from the mint was upheld in the West Australian Supreme Court of Criminal Appeal. "In a 2-1 split decision, Chief Justice David Malcolm and Justice Christopher Steytler agreed the conviction should be quashed and no retrial ordered. "Justice Michael Murray disagreed, saying the appeal should be dismissed on the grounds that no miscarriage of justice had occurred. "Ray Mickelberg served eight years of a 20-year sentence for the swindle, while Peter served six years of a 14-year term. "The third Mickelberg brother, Brian, whose conviction was overturned after nine months behind bars, died in a light aircraft crash in 1986." Source: The Age "But where there is exercise of power there is always resistance, and despite police threats some used less than ordinary means to distribute Lovell’s book. One proprietor was selling plain paper bags for $8.95 with ‘an entirely free copy’ of The Mickelberg Stitch inside. Another provided customers with a free copy with every bookmark he sold. "However the attempted suppression was soon successful, as most of the booksellers felt they had no other choice than to remove it from the shelves. And the Mickelberg brothers remained in jail." Unpicking the Mickelberg stitch "The Mickelberg stitch has shocked many people in Perth but it is worth going back and examining the evidence to see just how shocking an affair this really was." Anatomy of a stitch-up Copies of The Mickelberg Stitch (and a subsequent book, Split Image, on the defamation actions and the Mickelberg appeals) used to be available from the Mickelberg Committee, 81 Mullalloo Drive, Mullalloo WA 6025, Australia, and may well still be.
Thu, Jun 13 2002 12:25 PM AEST
Opposition targets Kucera over mint swindle framing The Opposition is preparing to step up its attack on the WA Health Minister, Bob Kucera, over his links to the Mickleberg mint swindle. It is insisting the Minister be removed from Cabinet, for his involvement in what they have dubbed Kucera-gate. Since losing last year's election, the Opposition has not had got whiff of anything it believes can trouble the government as much as this. Liberal leader Colin Barnett will target Mr Kucera in parliament during question time again today, insisting the former policeman is in an untenable situation. "If he thought about it, it would be in his own best interest and political career to step aside," Mr Barnett said. The police royal commission will revisit the Mickelbergs' case, in light of new evidence that the two investigating officers, Tony Lewandowski and Don Hancock, lied to stitch up the Mickleberg brothers. Mr Kucera was head of Belmont CIB where their interview took place, and may be called as a witness. He is giving every indication of digging his heels in. "My principal role in government now is as a Health Minister... this is a distraction for me, but I'm focused on what I want to do," Mr Kucera said.
Micklebergs claim $14 million Monday, 9 August 2004 Presenter: Liam Bartlett The Mickelberg brothers have defended a claim for nearly 14 million dollars in compensation, after being wrongfully convicted of the 1982 Perth Mint Swindle. Ray and Peter Mickelberg last month had their convictions quashed. The Mickelbergs have told the ABC Radio they lost property, lucrative abalone fishing licences and earnings as a result of their 21 year legal fight. Ray Mickelberg says they are not being greedy in wanting to be compensated for substantial financial losses: "We say it's not unreasonable and I'm sure the majority of the community would agree that if someone takes from you something that you legitimately own and charges you with a crime you didn't commit, and then concedes that they were wrong, isn't it fair to get back what you owned when you were first taken into custody?" Western Australian Attorney General Jim McGinty says the Mickelberg brothers need to take their claim to the courts. He says the gap between what the brothers are seeking, and what the government would be prepared to pay is enormous.
Peter and Ray Mickleberg
are claiming close to $14 million dollars compensation after their 21 year old conviction was quashed.
Micklebergs continue fight to clear their name
The Mickleberg brothers are heading back to the courts as a continuation of their defence of the Perth Mint swindle. Last year, the Western Australia Court of Criminal Appeal quashed the criminal convictions of Ray and Peter Mickleberg, almost 25 years since their first trial. Following their win, former WA assistant police commissioner Mel Hay told the media that he and other police believed the Micklebergs were guilty of the swindle. The Micklebergs are suing Mr Hay, but the WA Government became the defendant as his former employer. The Micklebergs' lawyer, Martin Bennett, says the state solicitor filed the Government's defence in the Supreme Court last week, saying it will prove what Mr Hay said was true. He says the brothers welcome the opportunity to air new evidence, but are disappointed it has come to this. "It reflects a stubborn intransigence on the part of the Government who won't deal fairly in a compensation sense with the brothers," he said. WA Attorney-General Jim McGinty says the Micklebergs have initiated the legal action and the Government is defending it.
Mr Bennett says he does not believe the matter will go before the courts this year.
What is Police corruption?
Police corruption is a specific form of police misconduct sometimes involving political corruption, and generally designed to gain a financial or political benefit for a police officer or officers in exchange for not pursuing, or selectively pursuing, an investigation or arrest.
An example is police officers accepting bribes in exchange for not reporting organized drug or prostitution rings or other illegal activities.
Police corruption can involve a single officer or group of officers, or can be the standard practice of entire police precincts or departments. In most major cities there are internal affairs sections to investigate suspected police corruption or misconduct. However, sometimes the corruption is so widespread that investigation requires an external body with far reaching powers, such as a Royal Commission.
Read Cop Watch IN THE PRESS ROOM
What are the police doing to make an extra dollar when not on duty....?
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ITV News journalist Terry Lloyd was "unlawfully killed by US forces"
when he was shot dead in southern Iraq, his inquest has concluded. The veteran reporter was killed alongside French cameraman Fred Nerac and Lebanese translator Hussein Osman in the early days of the Iraq war in March 2003. Daniel Demoustier, 44, was the only survivor of the four-man ITN team.
Mr Lloyd got caught up in US and Iraqi crossfire near Basra and was shot in the back. As he was taken away for treatment, US forces opened fire on the minibus he was travelling in and shot him in the head. Oxfordshire Assistant Deputy Coroner Andrew Walker said: "I have no doubt that it was an unlawful act to fire on this minibus." He said he would write to the Director of Public Prosecutions to call for the US perpetrators to be brought to justice.
Mr Nerac and Mr Osman, who were travelling in the car behind the minibus, both disappeared. Mr Osman's body was later found and the fate of Mr Nerac remains unknown. Summing up Mr Walker said: "It is only now that the sequence of events that led to this tragedy can be discovered, for a tragedy it is when the lives of innocent civilians are lost." He added: "I am certain that the world is a lesser place following their sad death. "Their professionalism and dedication in the face of danger is and can only be admired by those they left behind." Mr Lloyd and his team had gone through extensive preparation for their trip to Iraq in the month before leaving London, added Mr Walker. He said: "In my view on the evidence I have heard, those preparations, from the initial setting of Independent Television News, through their training of staff and equipment, was of the highest possible standard." David Mannion, the editor in chief of ITN, said the company would fully support Mr Lloyd's family to "bring those responsible for Terry's death to account before a court of law".
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People appear to be becoming less superstitious about Friday the 13th being an unlucky day. A survey of 1,000 adults shows that breaking a mirror, walking under a ladder and having a black cat cross your path were becoming less of a problem. Three out of four people questioned for Surrey theme park Thorpe Park said they had no intention of staying off work just because of the date. Peter Ronchetti, the park's general manager, said people were not as easily scared as they used to be. But he warned: "October this year happens to be one of the freakiest months, with both Friday the 13th and Halloween within two weeks of each other."
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-customers ‘forced into taking useless policies.. A Major Investigation of “rip off” insurance policies sold by banks and building societies was ordered today ......
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Flames and smoke are seen coming out of windows at the location where a small plane crashed into a 50-story residential apartment building near 71st Street and York Avenue in New York, Wednesday, October 11, 2006. New York Fire Department officials reported two deaths in the crash. (AP Photo/Dax Gardner).
NEW YORK - A small plane carrying New York Yankee Cory Lidle slammed into a 50-story skyscraper Wednesday, apparently killing the pitcher and a second person in a crash that rained flaming debris onto the sidewalks and briefly raised fears of another terrorist attack. A law enforcement official in Washington said Lidle — an avid pilot who got his license during last year's offseason — was aboard the single-engine aircraft when it plowed into the 30th and 31st floors of the high-rise on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said both people aboard were killed. Lidle's passport was found on the street, according to a federal official, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. It was not immediately clear who was at the controls and who was the second person aboard.
Investigators look for answers in NYC plane crash death.....
New York Yankee Cory Lidle slammed into a
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BILL ZWECKER
BIOGRAPHY : From the top stars of Hollywood to Chicago's best-known celebrities like Michael Jordan and Oprah Winfrey, Bill Zwecker is the expert when it comes to knowing the scoop on the rich and famous. The Chicago Sun-Times columnist -- who is also the entertainment reporter and film critic for WBBM-TV (CBS) in Chicago -- covers the globe finding out the latest news about celebrities for his readers and viewers. From 2000-2003, Bill was the entertainment reporter and film critic for WFLD-TV (Fox) in Chicago. From 1995-2005, Bill was the entertainment contributor and film critic for ''The Eric & Kathy Show'' on WTMX-FM radio. From 1993-2000, Bill was the entertainment reporter and film critic for WMAQ-TV (NBC) in Chicago. He was also a regular contributor to ''The Joan Rivers Show,'' 1990-1994. The Chicago native grew up in Oak Park and River Forest -- graduating from Oak Park-River Forest High School before heading to Princeton University where he received his bachelor's degree with honors in American History and American Civilization. He also attended the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. After working in politics (for former U.S. Sen. Charles Percy), banking and retailing, Bill turned to journalism fulltime in the early 1980s, following in the footsteps of his mother, Peg Zwecker, the nationally-syndicated, award-winning fashion editor and columnist for the Chicago Daily News and Sun-Times. Bill was associate editor and columnist for the Lerner Newspapers, 1987-92. Bill has been a frequent contributor to various national news and entertainment programs -- including Access Hollywood,'' Entertainment Tonight, Extra, Today Show, The NBC Nightly News, Biography on A&E and Larry King Live. Among numerous honors, Bill has twice been awarded the prestigious Peter Lisagor Award, Chicago journalism's highest accolade. He has been nominated for three Emmy Awards for the Midwest/Chicago region for his work at both WBBM-TV and WFLD-TV. Bill was part of the WBBM-TV news team honored with an Associated Press award in 2004 for coverage of the E-2 nightclub disaster in February, 2003. Oak Park-River Forest High School inducted Bill into its Hall of Fame in 1995, presenting him with its top alumni honor, the ''Tradition of Excellence'' award. In 2000, Bill was named ''Man of Vision'' by the Midwest Eye Banks for his various civic and charitable contributions. The Isreal Film Festival presented Bill with it's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2004, along with Larry King and Hollywood producer, Laura Ziskin. Bill Zwecker currently serves on the board of directors of the Chicago Academy for the Arts -- one of only four private high schools for the performing arts in the U.S. He's a board member of Off the Street Club, Chicago's oldest organization serving children and teenagers on the city's West Side; and the Advisory Board of the Midwest Eye-Banks. Past board memberships have included: Auxiliary Board, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Greater North Michigan Avenue Association, Auxiliary Board of Lincoln Park Zoo (founding member), Mental Health Association of Greater Chicago, Chicago Lung Association, Princeton Club of Chicago, Henrotin Hospital, Chicago Symphony Orchestra (Junior Governing Board), AIDS Foundation of Chicago, North Dearborn Association and the Headline Club of Chicago (Society of Professional Journalists). Bill lives in Chicago's Streeterville neighborhood and is the father of one son and recently became a grandfather for the first time.
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What The Bush Administration Won't
Tell You About The War in Iraq
The United States has thoroughly destabilized the Middle East by invading Iraq. The task of the occupying forces is no longer confined to fighting a Sunni insurrection; they have to contain an incipient civil war. The country has divided along sectarian lines and each faction has established a fighting capacity. Now the situation in the Middle East is dire. Iran threatens to become a nuclear power. The low-grade civil war in Iraq threatens to broaden into a regional conflict. We are facing a clash of civilizations and/or armed sectarian conflict. And all this in a region that is responsible for the bulk of the world’s oil supply. Something is fundamentally wrong with President Bush’s contention that he has made us safer at home by taking the war on terror abroad. There are many more people willing to sacrifice their lives to kill Americans than there were on 9/11. The Bush administration shows no awareness of the contradictions in its policies or of the negative consequences. Here is President Bush’s introduction to the 2006 National Security Strategy so that you can judge for yourself.
George Soros's new book, "The Age of Fallibility: Consequence of the War on Terror" is now available in stores. In his new book George Soros reveals the philosophy that he attributes to his successes and shows you how you can use this philosophy to make your world a better place.
"I have developed a philosophy that has played a central role in my life. It has guided me in making money and spending it, although it is not about money. I know how important that philosophy is for me personally, but I am still in the process of finding out whether it can have a similar significance for others. That is my first priority and this book is probably my final effort in this regard."
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Drastic changes in media ahead: PackerThursday November 23, 11:18 PM
James Packer forecasts the media landscape in Australia will change dramatically in the next 15 years as technology steers the industry into a new age.The chief executive of Publishing and Broadcasting Ltd (PBL) was among four of Australia's principal media leaders, also including Fairfax chief David Kirk, ABC managing director Mark Scott, and Foxtel head Kim Williams, speaking at the Oxford Business Alumni's annual forum in Sydney.
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In their discussion, on the theme The Future of Australia's Media Industry, Mr Packer said today's booming mass media tools were unheard of in the early 1990s and the scene in the 2020s would be just as different."If you look back 15 years ago, there were virtually no mobile phones, no internet, no Pay TV and they were very hard to foresee," he said."I think 15 years from now the change is going to be as dramatic as it has been in the last 15 years." Mr Kirk, whose company publishes The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian Financial Review and the Sun Herald, said the newspaper industry would live through developments in technology and thrive on the proliferation of online news."Absolutely it will survive ... but we have to make adjustments to find new products to offset some of these changes," Mr Kirk said.
He said secure display advertising and steady circulation ensured newspapers were in a strong position, but quality content was more important than the medium through which it was delivered.Mr Kirk said while consumers could determine news and programming on pay TV and the internet, and even generate their own content, readers still demanded informed and quality views and news in a convenient and well presented form."There is absolutely no doubt newspapers will have to provide greater quality. We cannot dumb down the product," he said."I firmly believe there is a real demand for high class editing."People do want an easy and comprehensive way of getting their news."Mr Scott agreed that quality content would play a bigger role in consumers' choice than technology.But he said the internet generation who "don't want to be broadcast at, they want to write their own news, contribute" will be the biggest consumer force in the next 15 years."Fifteen-year-olds today ... they are the dominant media consumers," he said."They're used to having it where they want it and when they want it and want to contribute to it. "That's a big shift that all media organisations are going to have to come to terms with."He said technology helped the ABC fulfil its charter to deliver Australian content.He cited the two million ABC podcasts downloaded around the country each month which, he said, made the national broadcaster "probably" the leading provider of podcast material in the world.Twenty-five new ABC television programs next year will also be available from video on-demand download, he said.
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Who's Watching the Watchers?
www.whoiswatchingthewatches.com
| Featuring controversial and previously banned books written by investigative journalist Avon Lovell. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Based in Perth, Western Australia there is now a convenient online or mail-order service - so you can choose which you prefer. The plan is to make these texts available to everybody, even lawyers.
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contain a link to more info.and his Mickelberg play 10th March 2009
"I was immediately interested because I greatly admired these men who stood up at the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths In Custody and gave evidence about a young Aboriginal prisoner whose murder by the prison guards they had witnessed, in spite of massive pressure (death threats) brought to bear on them by the authorities. he outcome is an explosive play which goes to the heart of corruption in the Police Force and the Judiciary of WA. Many West Australians who for years have swallowed the smear campaign run on them by certain sections of the media will be quite shocked by what they see. This is a seminal West Australian story – two innocent men (Ray and Peter Mickleberg) were sent to jail for a crime that they did not commit – who simply refuse to lay down. Two innocent men, one a returned soldier who gave his all for his country on the battle fields of Vietnam, who suddenly find themselves in
"one of the most brutal prisons in the Western world, where living conditions for the inmates are unchanged since the 1850s."..The Famous Fremantle Prison cts in the 1800's, which was originally built by the convicts, to lock themselves up in, and never remodelled, was only closed in about 1990 after being condemed for over 50 years by health authorities, where no cell had any toilets, and instead had an open bucket to go to the toilet in during the time of 4pm till 8am two to four prisoners that shared the cell were locked up there, haviing collected their evening meal on the way to their cell at 4pm. When the prisoners were let our of their cell at 8am and allowed into the open yard, which they shared with 100 prisoners, 40% white Australian of English Stock and 60% back Australian of Aboriginal Stock, they had the job of pouring what they had collected in their toilet bucket over night into an open drain, and hoping to to be able to use one of the toilets actual toilets that flushed in the yard thy ey shared with 100 other prisoners. There was a tendency to try and not "Shit in the Bicket" over night as this would stink the cell out, so the aim was to hold that part of their bowel movements until they could get to the toilet in the yard the next morning.
Note: Stephen Carew-Reid recalls the first night in a cell in Fremantle Prison which her shared that night, with another three inmates who seemed to have been there for quite some time and liekly to be there for many years to come for serious ctimes such as murder, rape, bank roberies etc, one prisoner said ina strun loud voice,
"If you shit in that bucket I will kill you"
According to Stephen Carew-Reid in hus books, he was simply too scared to shit in the bucket and never did, and simply learnt to hold this back until the next rning as everyone else did. He also recalls the same prisoner recalling that from the window of this cell he witnessed Prisoner Officer Stone, murder a prisoner in the Yard, which he of course went unpunished for. Everyone in the prison feared Prison Officer Stone, quite understandably.
( Fremantle Prison is the famous Fremantle Prison where Stephen Carew-Reid was sent to for a three and a half year jail sentence, for a crimes he did not commit. Stephen Carew-Reid was there at the same time as Ray and Peter Mickleberg and shares the same prison yard Two Division, where Stephen Carew-Reid witnessed a young part aboriginal prisoner, bite the top of Ray Mickleberg's finger off as a favour for Ron Hancock, the Police inspector that set the Micklebergs up as a warning if they kept trying to appeal their lives may be next. As a reward for biting Ray Mickleberg's finger off, the young prisoner whose name was Gary Smith, was released the next day from Fremantle Prison on probation, after having pleaded guilty for a string of breaking and enterings and house robberies. While Stephen Carew-Reid was in Fremantle Prison he worked in the Fremantle Prison Library with Ray and Peter Mickleberg and the famous Ron Morely, who robbed banks in Perth, Western Australia, known as "Grey Beard", as he used ot put on agret beard to do the robberies, ansd was always very courtious to the bank staff when he did the roberies, without using any weapon just to pay his workers in his business which was at risk of being shut down because of large Australian Federal Taxation bills he could not pay, as he has spent all his profits improving the business and emplying more people, and did not put enough cash aside for his taxation committments. Accoridning to what Stephen Carew-Reid says in his books The Triumphg of Truth (Who's Watching the Watchers?) Ron Morely was an absolute gentleman and would not hurt a fly, spoke with a posh English accent and was very intellegent. Ron Morely did not ever keep any of bank robbery money for himself and used it all to pay his workers.
The charges that Stephen Carew-Reid was worngly convicted of involved some cheques that bounced on his business bank account, only because his Gingers Roadhouse on the Brand Highway in Upper Swan, Western Australia, that was turning over $30,000 to $40,000 per week in fuel and takeway food, kwas robbed by freinds of Inspector Ron Carey, and was only found guilty due to a conspiracy between the Western Australian Australian Police, the Crown Law Prosecutors, his own lawyers, prosecution witnesses, the District Court Judge, Judge Wheeler, a set up jury, Oh Yes... in Perth the head Sheriff (Bailiff) of the District and Supreme Courts, who is the person solely in charge of selecting all jury panels for all District and Supreme Court criminal trials in Western Australia, is corrupt, ( which Stephen Carew-Reid has proven beyond reasonable doubt in certain trials and has actually has a jury member, Michale Hopkins, one the Hopkins Brothers, from the well know Perth's Hopkins Furniture Action House, admit he was set up by the Sheriff on a trial of Stephen Carew-Reid to make sure Stephen Carew-Reid was found guilty. The Sheriff is there to specially select jury members when "it is important" in for District and Supreme Court criminal trials in Western Australia, by stacking the original jury panel of 40 people that are meant to selected at random out of the electrol role. That way, when the defence and prosecution barristers select the jury out of the 40 people in the jury panel, out of numbers selected at random out of a hat by the court usher, it all looks open, uncorrupted and fair, however, the reality is, in certain important trials, when those in control on the legal system
( judges, magistrates, senior and well connected prosecutors defence lawyers and barristers, powerful politicians, powerful and senior police, senior and powerful court staff, etc)
is cases where these powerful people decide behind the scenes that a person is going to be found guilty regardless for an number of various reasons, and/or a rich person has paid big money to these people to make sure a trial goes their way, and/or a person simply is too well connected and powerful to be allowed to be found guilty of the charges, the trial outcome and/or sentencing out is set in place before the trial even commences by various means including the following:
(1) The Sheriff carefully selects and the stacks the original 40 member jury panel, so that there are enough people who know what they are meant to do in the jury room if selected as a jury member.
(2) As part of the stacking and manipulation of the jury as criminal trials in Western Australia, they make sure that one of the specially selected jury members pushes their way to be the head of the jury, a job that the average normal jury member does not want in any event. The average jury person selected for a jury at random, does not what to be there, let alone be the foreman and/or forewoman of the jury. These people are only there because they are forced to be there by law when selected on the jury panel. This way the foreman and/or forewoman of the jury can mentally keep pushing the undecided jury members who may be there by random selection, if any are there by random selection, to vote the way his bosses have told him to push the jury to vote. In the end the jury just want to go home to their family and friends, job, business etc and really do not want to be there any more after a long lengthy trial, and can eventually easily be pushed to vote one way or another by forceful strong minded jury foreman and/or forewoman of the jury.
(3) The listings co-ordinator in the District and Supreme Courts in Western Australia, is also corrupt and has given this very well paid and secure job, to select the right judges for particular trials "when it is Important". This way a certain judge, who also knows what he is meant it do, does his part during the trial to make sure things go the way these powerful people running the legal system wants the trial to go... sometimes they want a not guilty verdict and sometimes they want a guilty verdict. The trial judge can easily manipulate the trial in so many various ways and thus heavily effect the outcome of the trial, by refusing the defence to present certain evidence that will help the defendant and/or allow the prosecution to produce certain evidence that is not fair, just or right in law for various reasons to produce, protect prosecution witnesses from being cross examined to the fullest extent by not allowing certain questions to be asked, unfairly and wrongly not insisting that an interpretor is there explaining the whole trial to a defendant who doe snot have good command of the English Language, by wrongly and unfairly instructing the jury at the end of the trial, by allowing the prosecution to get away with all sorts of legal wrongs during the trial which would be obvious to as judge that he should have corrected and/or not allowed to happen during the trial, by not stopping the trial and ordering a new trial and new jury when the judge sees that certain legal wrongs have been so bad that the defendant could not every have a fair trial in these circumstances.. then when it comes sentencing, if there is a guilty verdict that is reached that was planned in the first place to be reached, or a guilty verdict is reached which was not panned, the judge is there to make sure the sentence is either heavy or light, depending on what was arranged to happen behind the scenes. In some cases the judge is told not to give a person a sentence, but instead, rule that the is of the belief that the defendant is likely to mentally unfit and sent down to a mental institution to be examined as to his or her mental state of health. This is a perfect way the powerful people who run the legal system in Western Australia can make sure a person who has been so wrongly and badly legally treated in his trial by the judge, the police, the prosecution witnesses, and sometimes his own defence lawyers and barristers
( who is certain circumstances will take hundreds of thousands off the defendant and his family to run the best possible defence, and still behind the scenes work with the prosecution to make sure his client is found guilty an not presenting the best possible defence by not presenting all the possible defence evidence..not fully cross examining the prosecution witnesses, not forcing the prosecution to produce embarrassing evidence they have that would ensure the defendant is found not guilty.. etc)
can never have an appeal heard to expose all these wrongful things done against him at his or her trial, because a corrupt doctor will declare the person criminally insane.... and so the defendant will never be able to mount an appeal setting out all these appeal grounds, other than in the basis he or she was insane..and end up in a mental institution forever..
(4) Make sure the right corrupt prosecutor is selected to run the trial that is prepared to make false and misleading statements in his opening and closing addresses to the jury, that is prepared to withhold material evidence from the jury and the trial that the prosecution has in it's possession, that favours the defendant, that is prepared to coerce and/or manipulate the prosecution witnesses into telling their evidence in a fabricated and/or misleading way, and generally run the trial contrary to their oath as prosecutors, to search for the truth before, during and after a trail, and instead simply do everything in their power to make sure the person is declared guilty and/or innocent depending on what has been decided for that person behind the scenes before the trail has even commenced.
(5) Make sure that the defence team are also onside to make sure the trail goes the way these powerful people in charge of the legal system want the trail to go. Stephen Carew-Reid has clear evidence that is one of his trials and other trials in Western Australia that the defence legal team acted deliberately against himself at his trial and deliberately against others at theie trials, as a favour for the prosecution and the police. All this is exposed in Stephen Carew-Reid's seven
(the eighth volume was on the way until all the research material and drafts for for the eight volume and the original manuscripts for the first seven volumes were stolen by Queensland senior detectives Barry Zerner and Gregory Stormont on the 17-11-05 from 6 Earl Court Tallai, Gold Coast Queensland)
volumes of his books Triumph if Truth ( Who Is Watching The Watchers?).
(6) In some instances the listings co-ordinator of the court simply selects a certain judge for one of the remand hearings in the very early stages of a criminal proceedings, a long way before a trial date is set down, who says to the defendant,
"you do not look very well today Mr Carew-Reid, I am going to make orders today that you be removed from this court and sent to a mental institution to be assessed on your mental health"
and the defendant is removed from the court and taken to a mental institution where he is declared criminally insane and never released ad never attends his trail..which is adjourned sini di ( which is a legal term for an indefinite adjournment) until the defendant is declared mentally well by the corrupt government doctor.... which of course never happens.
(7) Stephen Carew-Reid has been told by a number of people in Western Australia including lawyers, that it is well known in inner legal circles that is the right money is paid to the right people, then a lawyer can arrange a court case, whether it be civil and/or criminal to go anyway they way it to go because the right judges will be selected that will do the right job "when it is important".
One lawyer has stated to Stephen Carew-Reid that his aunty Judge Antoinette Kennedy, who is a judge in the District Court of Western Australia, can be bribed and/or told when it is important to rule what ever way is necessary in a hearing.. this information was also repeated to Stephen Carew-Reid by clients of this lawyer.
Of course Stephen Carew-Reid exposes the power of the Freemasons in the legal system with over 60% of senior lawyers, barristers, court clerks such as listings co-ordinators who's job is to select a judge and magistrate for a particular hearing, magistrates, judges.. and thus to concern one has when a male judge is hearing a case..as to whether that judge and/or prosecutor and even ones own defence lawyer and barrister are freemasons..
However, what Stephen Carew-Reid goes into expose the new tactic of what he calls these "powerful corrupt people that run the Western Australian Legal System" ...is to make everyone think that the judge hearing the case is not connected in anyway to Freemasonary, and is not corrupt in any way.. they organise a female magistrate and/or judge to hear the case... however what they have done in recent times as they slowly allow females into the role as magistrates and judges because of public pressure for equality between females and makes in the legal system... they mainly select female magistrates and judges that are willing to be corrupt and play the right game they want when "it is important for the honour and security and good pay for becoming a magistrate and/or judge..they deliberately chose females that do not have integrity... that they can control.....so when a person like Stephen Carew-Reid in placed before a female judge and/or magistrate.. knowing that he will be suspicious of not obtaining a fair hearing from a Freemason magistrate or judge, and knowing that only males can be Freemasons, he will put into a false sense of security and belief that because the magistrate or judge is a female, then he will be assured of obtaining a fair hearing... which is definitely not the case ..as Stephen Carew-Reid has now discovered.
It is no wonder that all of Stephen Carew-Reid's original manuscripts of his eight volumes of his books Triumph of Truth (Who is Watching the Watchers?) and copies are removed, stolen and/or destroyed by corrupt people in charge of the legal system, the police, the courts and the government in Australia.. The information that Stephen Carew-Reid has been prepared to candidly expose without holding back in any way is enough to bring the whole legal, judicial, political, police, political etc system down in Western Australia and show to the world that Western Australia has one of the most endemic The corrupt legal system in the world.
Click here to find out more about Stephen Carew-Reid and his books
The Triumph of Truth (Who Is Watching The Watchers?) and
find out why these books are not available for sale.....
The play Mickleberg, will be produced in Fremantle by Deckchair Theatre Company August, September 2010.
INTERVIEW: Author Peter Docker discusses Someone Else’s Country and his Mickelberg play
10th March 2009
I was born into a community whose preferred method of living with Aboriginal people was apartheid.
The country towns were, and still are, a hotbed of a nasty form of racism. Perhaps it is because out there everyone knows inherently the fairy tale version of history, where the first Australians were somehow divested of all of their wealth and land with no violence, is a total fabrication.
In fact, for many whites it is like the war is still going. And because of my belief that Australians are inherently good people who genuinely believe in community values, this set up a great conflict inside of me. How could this happen? How could, for example, West Australians freeze the Nyoongar people out of our economic, education, and social systems for 150 years, and then blame Nyoongar People for the wretched state in which they find themselves?
And really, I wanted to write about how much joy and fun and belonging that I have experienced inside the other country within our country, which is Aboriginal Australia.
When Someone Else’s Country first came out I was quite nervous about how it would be received in Indigenous circles.
I had unwittingly chronicled a kind of secret history that never sees the light of day outside of certain, closed circles. Overwhelmingly the response has been incredibly positive. The reaction from white Australia was quite a different thing. I was accused in the West Australian press of being a liar, and an exaggerator. I have lost most of my white friends, and all of my extended blood family, which was unexpected, and on a personal level, fairly tough to deal with.
Unfortunately, I don’t think much has changed for Indigenous people. This is because the fundamental shift that needs to happen in this country has not happened and, as yet, is on no-one’s agenda. The dominant white culture wants the Aboriginal people to change to be more like us. This has been tried since the arrival of the first settlers, and even though it takes many forms, it is all about assimilation. There is another way.
White Australia needs to become ‘blacker’. We need to educate ourselves. We need to understand Aboriginal Law better. We need to learn about the relationship between country and story. We need to learn Aboriginal Languages so we can pay proper respect. There is vast ecological knowledge in this country – perhaps even the answers to the world’s burgeoning environmental disaster – but this knowledge is not in the English language.
I always wanted to be a writer, but somehow fell into performing because of the intoxicating rush and immediacy of the relationship with the audience. I think being a performer makes me more attuned to the drama and the urgency of any situation. Also, I play the scenes out in my head, and sometimes out loud (doing all the voices) as I am writing them. I have to really love a subject to write about it. I have to be obsessive.
After this book Someone Else’s Country was published, I was approached by Ray and Peter Mickelberg, who wanted me to write a play about their experiences with the justice system.
I was immediately interested because I greatly admired these men who stood up at the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths In Custody and gave evidence about a young Aboriginal prisoner whose murder by the prison guards they had witnessed, in spite of massive pressure (death threats) brought to bear on them by the authorities.
The outcome is an explosive play which goes to the heart of corruption in the Police Force and the Judiciary of WA.
Many West Australians who for years have swallowed the smear campaign run on them by certain sections of the media will be quite shocked by what they see. This is a seminal West Australian story – two innocent men sent to jail for a crime that they did not commit – who simply refuse to lay down. Two innocent men, one a returned soldier who gave his all for his country on the battle fields of Vietnam, who suddenly find themselves in one of the most brutal prisons in the Western world, where living conditions for the inmates are unchanged since the 1850s.
The play will be produced in Fremantle by Deckchair Theatre Company August, September 2010.
For more information please contact Claire Miller, “cmiller@fremantlepress.com.au
[2008]
THE MICKELBERG STITCH
, 1985, by Avon LOVELL.The Prosecution case was based on a mass of questionable evidence:
– unsigned 'confessions'
– fabrications, omissions
– and a forged fingerprint!
Avon Lovell's documented expose of an Australian courtroom Watergate is a triumph of investigative writing.
The facts are explosive
The story unfolds like a drama
Police methods in Australia will never be the same . .
At present Mr Lovell is writing a series of short stories, a television comedy,
{At a trial in June 1984, Raymond Mickelberg and Brian Pozzi pleaded guilty to charges of
no index, photographs, no endnotes. ISBN 0 908469 23 3
[AFTERMATH: The "Stitch" was banned for alleged defamation by court action, the sequel was published, appeal after
appeal occurred, the ban was lifted, and years later, FINALLY, "The Establishment" in the judico-politico-legal system of
the State of Western Australia admitted that the convictions were "unsafe."
And the appeal courts, grudgingly, have been finding other "unsafe" verdicts, such as murders "pinned" on John Button,
Darryl Beamish, and Andrew Mallard. One of the Mickelbergs, released from prison, was flying an aeroplane which
"ran out of fuel," fatally for him.
The Webmaster is proud to say he tried to sell the "Stitch" while it was banned and afterwards, and attended the
ceremony in a bookshop, Hay Street, Perth, at which it was officially "relaunched" after the ban ended.
One of the allegedly minor sideshow bit-part actors in the lawless destruction of Ray, Peter and Brian Mickelberg had
later entered the place where laws can be changed, and is retiring from there in 2008! ENDS.]
Estelle Blackburn, 1992,
which exposes that John Button and Darryl Beamish (a deaf-mute) went to prison for murders they did not commit.
two innocent men, John Button and Darryl Beamish (a deaf-mute) going to prison for murders they did not commit.
this wonderful book by Estelle Blackburn, BA, journalist and later public relations officer.
Some of the detectives and others involved ought to have been charged with something, and punished themselves,
because it was obvious that John Button was innocent.
The John Button miscarriage of justice was just one such by the Western Australian police force and the courts
in the 20th century.
Eric Edgar Cooke, who had a hare lip and a speech impediment, was 17½ years old on October 15, 1948, in the
first stealing incident recorded in this book. He stole a torch and a travelling clock, total value £3/13/- from a city
flat occupied by John Birman, the assistant director of Adult Education. (p 26)
The book goes on, detailing his accidents at work, his marriage and subsequent children, his night-time prowling
and stealing of small moneys etc and of cars and deliberately running people down (starting in 1958, p 46),
his regular cat burglar exploits, and then his murder of women.
He stole first one rifle, and later another, using them to shoot men and women, either in their cars or at home
or in bed (Jillian Brewer, p 88). He had spent some time in prison for some of his minor crimes.
Yet he was not even really suspected of the major killing spree, which had Perth in fear in the early 1960s,
until a woman picking bush flowers stumbled across where he had stashed the second rifle.
The book gives details of how the lives he had broken, including the families and the surviving victims, and
his own wife and children, continued afterwards.
Some of the blame must fall on his father, who had hated him from birth and had belted him repeatedly.
Cooke was the last man hanged legally in Western Australia; it was on Monday, October 26, 1964.
ISBN 0-646-36173-2; 410 pp + vi pp, soft covers, 16 x 24 x 2·7 cm (6¼ x 9½ x ~ 1 inch), contents, appendices,
photographs and photostats, map, author interviews, acknowledgements. UK £12·50, AUD $24.95, US $17.50.
(To this webpage Apr 10, 2009). [Revision 1999]
Indecent Dealing; The Nightmare of an Innocent Teacher,
1995, by Phil BURROWS.materials at his home. A search of his flat found a series of photos taken in the course of his studies into
children's playground rhymes. On the basis of one of these photos, he was charged with 3 counts of indecent dealing.
His life was turned into a living nightmare. This remarkable story tells of the acts of malice,
as well as mistakes, that can have tragic consequences. Above all, it shows how frail our rights and
liberties really are.
The Author
Phil Burrows is 48 years of age and has been teaching for 27 years of those years.
A dedicated teacher, his career with the W.A. Education Department has included appointments from
classroom teacher to Principal. His academic life has been relentless, involving over 10 years external
studies and another 6 years part time, during which he completed a Master of Education degree.
Phil has published extensively, both in his academic field of language and concerning Civil Liberties.
He has served as Secretary of the W.A. Council for Civil Liberties and feels that issues of liberty and
justice are of first importance.
Publishing details: State School Teachers' Union of Western Australia, and Foundation Press, Perth (Western Australia),
1995, 82pp, 14 x 22 cm (5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches), soft covers, illustrations, no footnotes, no index. ISBN 1 875 778 03 9, $AUD 10.00.
The Fifth Estate
, 2007, Terence J. McLERNON ©2006The Fifth Estate, Terence McLernon uses his skills and knowledge as a former police officer and
private investigator to highlight sundry rorts and scams. Often they involve the still-intact police
culture by which corruption has become ingrained in our society.
Fearsome Featherfeet, supported by a bizarre cast of miscreants from the netherworld and lower.
Frenzied nights of nuptials are entwined with bribed officials, Chinese ho's, mad terrorist
bombers and the night-time jaunts of Charlie 88 – the battered Squad Car on crawl around
the clubs, pubs and sinners of Fremantle Town. Just another day at the crazy farm.
such convictions of the innocent as John Button, Darryl Beamish, Ray, Peter and
Brian Mickelberg, and Andrew Mallard, to name but a few.
What happened to these individuals is atrocious and they should be
financially compensated immediately."
Force. It is a record in Australia yet to be surpassed. After a highly trained career in
the Royal Australian Air Force, Terry joined the Wallopers. As a mature man he was deeply
unimpressed by the Cult of the Copper whereby the power to do good was perverted to
private purposes of commerce and control. He views the sub-strata of corrupt officials and
police as being The Fifth Estate, the new 'untouchables.' This is Terry's first book.
However, he is working on a sequel, entitled Charlie 88. (From the back cover.)
Perth (Post Office Box Z 5392, Perth, WA, 6001, Australia.) ©2006, published 2007, 224pp, 15 x 21 cm (5 7/8 x 8 1/4 inches),
soft covers, photographs and photostats, contents, no footnotes, no index. ISBN 0 646 46871 5, © 2006 Terence John McLernon
LINK for book: http://www. terence jmclernonbooks. com/content/ books/5th- estate/ thefifth estate.php.
to return to Anchor List)
• Broken Lives, Estelle BLACKBURN. PERTH, W. Australia. Serial killer Eric Edgar Cooke, and the imprisoning of
John Button for a murder that Cooke had committed. Cooke and others had confessed to the same crimes!
(orig 1998) 1999
• The Burke Ambush; Corporatism and Society in Western Australia, Patrick O'BRIEN (ed.). W. AUSTRALIA. 1986
• The Burkes of Western Australia. Brian PEACHEY. ? 1990s
• Burke's Shambles; Parliamentary Contempt in the Wild West, Anthony McADAM and Patrick O'BRIEN.
W. AUSTRALIA. Labor's Brian Burke and his team, the Midland Saleyards sale, WADC, EXIM,
the Land Rights Inquiry, Burswood Casino, the M.R.P.A. – W.A. Incorporated! 1987
• Every Bit of a Circle is Bent; The Fifth Estate - Book III. By Terence McLERNON. More exposures of some police,
some politcians, and some clergy in W. Australia. 2009
• The Executive State; WA Inc. & The Constitution, Patrick O'BRIEN and Martyn WEBB (editors). W. AUSTRALIA.
$1 billion wasted. 1991
• The Fifth Estate, by Terence J. McLERNON. W. AUSTRALIA. False evidence led to the convictions of the innocent
including John Button, Darryl Beamish, Ray, Peter and Brian Mickelberg, and Andrew Mallard. © 2006; 2007
• The Fifth Estate,The Sequel; If the Hat Fits, Wear It, by Terence J. McLERNON. W. AUSTRALIA. Exposes police
false evidence, and the RC Christian Brothers' sex abuse. 2007
• The Godfather: The Life of Brian Burke; Quentin BERESFORD. 2008
• Indecent Dealing; The Nightmare of an Innocent Teacher, by Phil BURROWS. A Western Australian teacher's passion
for children's playground rhymes ended with him being charged with indecent dealing. His union and a staunch
friend stood by him. 1995
• The Mickelberg Stitch, Avon LOVELL. PERTH, W. Australia, 1985
• Rebuilding The Federation, Richard COURT, MLA, Premier of Western Australia. Many State powers have been
filched by Canberra. 1994
• The Rise and Fall of Alan Bond. Paul BARRY (of ABC TV's Four Corners in the 1990s). PERTH, W. Australia,
2000 (revised).
• Untamed and Unashamed, by Pauline HANSON. Kiss and Tell, OR, How David Oldfield entered the Hanson camp.
(Pauline Hanson's One Nation which got 1 million votes one year, gradaully spiralled downwards.) 2007
NOT DISPLAYING Dec 30, '08), Perth
(Post Office Box Z 5392, Perth, WA, 6001, Australia.) ©2007, published 2007, 200pp, 15 x 21 cm
The Fifth Estate, The Sequel; If the Hat Fits, Wear It
,? 2007, Terence J. McLERNON.If the Hat Fits, Wear It
kiddies could manage it.
The power behind the Labor throne is Jim McGinty, Premier and ex-journalist
Alan Carpenter being a compromise.
Chapters 4 and 5 are about how two prostitutes made a professional tour to Port Hedland,
allegedly with an unofficial "permission" from some police, in spite of the police superintendent's
express prohibitions of gambling and prostitution in the area. The women tried to get a sporting
club to hold a raffle, with one of them as the prize!
Chapter 6, "The Fat Wallet Mob 'Flow Charts'" details the story of people involved in mining
and other shares. Some of the people are supposedly ex-bankrupts and ex-prisoners.
In chapter 7 WA Attorney-General Jim McGinty is said to have been sent a copy of the
previous book, by a contact of Mr Ray Mickelberg, one of the family that it is said had been
wrongly convicted over the Perth Mint Swindle.
Mr McGinty allegedly returned the book in a plain envelope. Requests for a response finally
were rewarded.
The chapter exposes alleged police false evidence in the case of a failed attempt to blow up
the office where military conscription records were kept in Perth decades ago.
The author praises Brian Burke and Julian Grill for lobbying to stop the gigantic firm Xstrata
from leaving vanadium in the ground in recent years. Parliamentarian John Bowler acted to save it,
but was banished to the back bench in a hypocritical move, though he had saved the WA taxpayer
from losing the value to the people of the $32 million spent for this mine.
THE CHRISTIAN BROTHERS' ORPHANAGES
Read about a dodgy internet website, Croatia, Laurie Connell's failed investment bank Rothwell's,
a Malaysian Sting, and why Scaley hanged himself at a Christian Brothers' orphanage.
Then there's the story of Tommy Trantrum being sent from Clontarf Boys' Town, freeing him f
rom a paedophile Christian Brother, to a farm where he shot the farmer's wife and as a result
went to prison.
Then follows page after page about the four Christian Brothers' orphanages in WA – Clontarf,
Castledare (both in Perth), Bindoon, and Tardun.
Fifteen Brothers allegedly either had sex or quasi-sex, and/or gave cruel beltings to a boy
called Fred Smith. Urinating on him and bare-bottom beltings are described, with the names
of the paedophile-sadistic offenders.
The exposé of the Christian Brothers by Barry Coldrey, and the campaigning and publications
of the late Bruce Blyth are covered.
McGINTY, McVEIGH, McMAHON
Jim McGinty had spent time at a Roman Catholic seminary. His sister Susan became a nun.
Father Anthony McMahon was sent to Kwinana parish.
"Now, Jim is a cousin of mine but it could not be alleged that we are close.
No, not close at all." (p 130)
Leo McVeigh at the age of five was being babysat by the priest and the nun, and while with
the priest only was allegedly sexually abused. (The priest and the nun fell in love and married.)
He told Church authorities in 1998. He tried to get the police's sexual abuse unit to investigate,
but it didn't. The author thinks that the relationship with highflyers is why no apology was made,
nor justice served.
"Holy Double Cross" is the story of the widow Mrs Catherine Musk who in 1947 left £47,000
in trust (worth millions now) so that suitable Bindoon boys would be helped to be set up on their
own farms. (p 157) None of the money went to the boys. The Church went to court to ask it to
allow the balance, $167,000 in 2006, to be used for scholarships for deserving students to attend
at Bindoon a commercial agricultural college – run by the Brothers. Paying themselves again.
See Gary Adshead's report, The West Australian, January 24, 2006. (p 159)
Senator Andrew Murray (retired June 30, 2008) tried to help justice.
On page 174 the author writes "Mr Kucera had made a habit of falsifying witness statements.
Way back in 1972 … Mr Kucera … had a confession from Ripley. The similarity between the
fabrications in the Mickelberg case …
Ripley unjustly got 5 years jail and Kucera a feather in his cap."
knowledge as a former police officer and private investigator to unravel the corrupting structure of white collar crime.
Indeed, the visit of the Pontiff to Australia for a World Youth Day provides a vehicle for his wry observation that
if he had been Police Commissioner, "? and some short Italian with a name starting with Rat, whose predecessors
infamously used stand
over tactics to make a huge fortune from tithing, landed his jumbo jet on my beat, then, surrounded by armed bodyguards,
alighted wearing a dress and little red booties -- claiming to be JC’s representative on Earth -- I would immediately have him
arrested, drug-tested and his plane searched for missing orphans."
Extract from Chapter 11: The prosecutor was a Mr Lloyd Rayney from the office of the DPP. Now where have we heard
that name before? Mr Rayney is now probably best known, rightly or wrongly, as the only person of interest in the murder
of his wife, Corryn. Mr Rayney was so described by the Officer in Charge of the Police inquiry into the murder, one
Detective Sergeant Jack Lee. Strangely enough, as matters often are in Perth investigative circles, the said officer then
promptly took up a posting to a country Police Station to further his chances of promotion in the future. Good for him,
of course, but not so good for Mr Rayney who is still left with Jack Lee’s tag but as yet uncharged.
the Claremont serial killings only to tag and eventually name a public servant as the main suspect for over a decade only
to be wrong again. This act caused untold harm to the reputation of the public servant and wreaked havoc on his
and his family’s life.
Then again, Mr Caporn did go on to redeem himself by getting an unfortunate indigent, Mr Andrew Mallard,
sent down for the murder of a shopkeeper for 12 years hard before the real murderer was outed by someone else. I
t was whilst resting on his wonderful success in the Mallard conviction that Caporn led a decade long inquiry into
the murder of numerous young women in the suburb of Claremont, once again unsolved as investigations concentrated
on one suspect seemingly to the exclusion of others, as in Mallard, Button, Mickelberg, etcetera and so on.
INFORMATION CLEARING HOUSE NEWS FEED
STRANGE AUSTRALIAN JUSTICE
http://images.google.co.uk/
The case of the forged fingerprint
Two brothers jailed over the infamous 1982 Perth Mint swindle are suing a former government minister over their wrongful convictions. Ray, Peter and the late Brian Mickelberg were convicted in 1983 of defrauding the Perth Mint of $653,000 in gold bullion in exchange for worthless cheques.
Ray, who served eight years of a 20-year jail sentence, and Peter, who spent six years behind bars for the scam, fought for years before a legal appeal was successful and their convictions were overturned in 2004. The success of their eighth appeal was largely due to a confession by corrupt detective Tony Lewandowski, who admitted that detectives, including lead detective Don Hancock, had fabricated evidence.
After their conviction was overturned, the Mickelbergs launched a civil suit against the West Australian government and six police officers involved in their case for an estimated $11 million in compensation. News Ltd reported the Mickelberg brothers were now also suing former police assistant commissioner and Labor minister Bob Kucera over their wrongful conviction. The latest suit comes after the brothers reportedly bought for $5,000 a box of sensitive police documents that were found at Lewandowski's ex-girlfriend's home in Thailand.
Mr Kucera, who was not one of the detectives involved in the case, has been accused of being part of the police conspiracy to support the Mickelbergs' wrongful conviction. Two of the detectives closely involved in the case have since died, Mr Hancock was killed in a bikie car bomb attack in September 2001, and Lewandowski committed suicide in May 2004. Brian Mickelberg had his conviction overturned after nine months jail. He died in a light plane crash in 1986
Report here
Background on the case:
Raymond and Peter Mickleberg made four unsuccessful attempts to have their convictions overturned - three appeals to the Court of Criminal Appeal, at which Mr Lewandowski and Mr Hancock testified, and an appeal to the High Court.
Mr McGinty said Mr Lewandowski had admitted that he and Mr Hancock had fabricated confessions from the brothers, and had lied at the trial and the appeals. He had also admitted that Peter Mickelberg was stripped naked and beaten by interviewing officers during the investigation.
Mr Lewandowski had said he had not come forward earlier because he had not wanted to cross Mr Hancock, who died in a car bombing in what police believe was a payback killing by Gypsy Joker bikie gang members after the murder of a gang member in 2000. Mr McGinty said Mr Lewandowski's belated admission - if it were truthful - would strike at the heart of public confidence in the justice system. "This is one of the most high-profile police investigations we have seen in Western Australia, and if it was found that convictions were obtained by police fabricating evidence, the ramifications are enormous." Mr McGinty has referred Mr Lewandowski's affidavit to the royal commission into alleged police corruption, which is due to recommence hearings on July 1.
The robbery on June 22, 1982, was the most audacious ever staged in Perth - an ingenious swindle which saw 49 gold bars spirited out of the impregnable Mint to a mystery hiding place. Although the evidence against the Mickelbergs was compelling - in particular Ray Mickelberg's fingerprint on one of three fake cheques used to pay for the gold - the brothers insisted from the start that the police had framed them. They said the detectives, led by Don Hancock, had lied at their trial in the District Court, had fabricated confessions by all three, and had planted the damning fingerprint.
It would have been easy for the police to get hold of a mould of Ray's finger, they said. One of his hobbies was casting hands, in brass, plastic, rubber and perspex. There were about 20 of the hands in his Marmion Beach home when the police first arrived, and several were taken away for inspection.
In 1989, 55 kilograms of gold pellets, said to have been from the swindle, were found outside a Perth television station, accompanied by a note protesting the Mickelberg brothers' innocence and claiming that a prominent Perth businessman was behind the swindle.
Report here
A former teacher who had a relationship with a 14-year-old schoolgirl and then threatened her to stay silent has escaped jail after civil libertarian judge Ian Dearden [above] accepted the actions were at the "less serious end" of sexual offences. Attorney-General Linda Lavarch immediately set in train a possible appeal after Steven Peter Quick, 29, walked from Southport District Court, despite pleading guilty to indecently dealing with a child and taking an indecent image.
Judge Dearden said "blind Freddy" could have seen that the relationship, which included Quick filming the girl as he caressed and sucked her breasts, was "a complete no-go zone" and a jail term would normally be imposed. But Judge Dearden, a former Queensland Council of Civil Liberties president, accepted a defence submission that there were "exceptional circumstances" that warranted Quick being given a wholly suspended 18-month prison sentence and community correctional order. These included that the offences were at the "less serious end" of sexual offending, that Quick was "crippled psychologically" by his guilt and had been publicly shamed.
Quick was a maths and science teacher in central Queensland in 2004 when he formed a "close friendship" with the girl. In the September 2004 school holidays, Quick drove the girl to a location near Bundaberg, where he filmed the girl as he sucked and caressed her breasts. When the Crime and Misconduct Commission launched an investigation, Quick rang the girl and told her to lie for him or he would "come back to hurt her".
Calling for at least three months of actual jail time, Crown prosecutor Bob Falconer said Quick had "flagrantly ignored" the trust placed in him. Defence solicitor Bill Potts said while the relationship was "very inappropriate", the schoolgirl had initiated much of the contact and she and Quick had planned to run away to "a happier place".
But Judge Dearden said he accepted a psychologist's report that Quick was "crippled psychologically" with remorse, had no pedophilia tendencies, was unlikely to re-offend and did not pose a danger to the community. Judge Dearden cited a Court of Appeal decision that set a precedent for suspended sentences for indecent dealing offences in "exceptional circumstances". He told Quick the suspended sentence "should not be seen in any way as a lessening of the punishment". A spokesman for Mrs Lavarch said she had asked the Director of Public Prosecutions for a report on a possible appeal against the decision.
Report here
More on judge Dearden
Yesterday was not the first time Judge Ian Dearden has given a controversial soft sentence. In February this year, Brisbane man Brett Ashley Connor appeared before Judge Dearden charged with with possessing 90 child porn images. The judge sentenced Connor to nine months' jail wholly suspended because of mitigating factors including Connor's co-operation with authorities and the lack of apparent distribution of the images.
In March this year, brothers Shammi and Shamal Chand escaped jail in Dearden's court after pleading guilty to savagely bashing an invalid pensioner with a baseball bat. Handing both brothers wholly suspended jail sentences, Judge Dearden said he took into account their own misery following the death of their father, the difficulties Shammi Chand faced supporting his extended family and Shamal Chand's battle with drugs and mental illness.
In August last year, Judge Dearden also said he would "take a punt" on serial fraudster Julia Antonia Villiers who faced court charged with defrauding a Brisbane beauty clinic. Despite previously serving time for stealing as a servant and breaching a subpoenaed sentence, Judge Dearden handed Villiers a 12-month intensive correctional order.
Judge Dearden's appointment to the bench in February last year was criticised by Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg, who questioned how the former Queensland Council of Civil Liberties president could remain impartial.
Report here
Ray and Peter Mickleberg who both spent year in gaol for crimes they did not commit, who were stre up by corrupt polcie, a corrupt judge and corrupt prosecutors all in aid of protecting the real criminal who comitted these crimes with other Inspector Ron Hancock, who was in charge of the actual Perth Mint Swindle Investigation that the Micklebergs where charged for..Inspector Ron Hancock took the wrong people on in the end by shooting a member of a bikie gang in Kalgoorlie after as he accused himn of insulting his daughter at a pub he owned in Kalgoolie near his gold mine..which he used as a front to sell the gold he stole from the Perth Mint with a false $1 million Perth Building Society Cheque ...the bikie gang in response planted a bomb under Ron Hancocks car outside his home and he and his freind died in the explosion...
We suppose that Ron Hancock must have lived and believed the old saying..
"live by the sword and die by the sword.."
Note: It was clear the Micklebergs had nothing to do with the death of Ron Hancock..
The Mickleberg Stitch
Mickelberg v The Queen [1989] HCA 35; (1989) 167 CLR 259
This version of the judgment has been prepared by: Dr Robert N Moles and Bibi Sangha
Underlining where it occurs is for editorial emphasis]
Australian legal cases homepage
A state of Injustice - table of contents
Losing Their Grip - The Case of Henry Keogh - table of contents
Mickelberg 2004 West Australian Supreme Court - appeals allowed
Mason CJ
This case involves the convictions of Raymond and Peter Mickelberg [RM and PM; together “the Ms”]. I am in agreement with Toohey and Gaudron JJ. My comments relate to the submission that:
this Court has power to receive fresh evidence in an appeal from a Court of Appeal [CA];
to the effect of the concession made in this Court by counsel for the respondent that pins were placed in the WABS cheque when it was photographed in Canberra by Dr Hilton Kobus and not before;
to Peter Mickelberg's contention, raised in this Court for the first time, that his convictions are unsafe and unsatisfactory;
to the test to be applied by an intermediate appellate court when deciding to set aside a conviction on the ground of fresh evidence.
The Ms sought to place before this Court additional evidence which was not before the CA. Over the years this Court has consistently maintained that it has no power to receive fresh evidence in the exercise of its appellate jurisdiction. They argued that the relevant decisions are wrong and should not be followed. Before turning to the argument, I should identify the nature of the additional evidence on which they sought to rely.
The Ms sought to establish:
That evidence given by police witnesses as to the date of the photographing of the fingerprint on the WABS cheque was wrong.
That evidence given by police witnesses that the print had disappeared when the cheque was returned by Dr Kobus from Canberra was wrong.
That the negatives tendered in evidence purporting to be the original negatives of photographs of the fingerprint taken by Dr Kobus in Canberra, are not the original negatives but are copies which must have been made by the police after the originals had been sent by Dr Kobus from Canberra. According to the Ms the originals are not in evidence.
That, following his conviction, PM gave instructions to appeal against his conviction for conspiracy.
That the chassis number said by the police to be that of a burned-out car in Wanneroo was not the chassis number of a 1965 Ford Falcon sold by Mr and Mrs Allen in May 1982. According to the Ms the significance of the new evidence is that it would throw a cloud of doubt over the inference to be drawn from the presence of RM's print on the WABS cheque. The evidence is intended to provide an explanation for PM's failure to appeal within time against his conviction for conspiracy. A subsequent application for an extension of time was refused. The evidence is intended to displace part of the evidence linking PM with the conspiracy, that is, his connection with the car allegedly used in the execution of the conspiracy.
The Crown did not accept the additional evidence and sought the opportunity to test it by cross-examination and to adduce evidence in reply should the Ms argument prevail. S73 of the Constitution confers upon the High Court jurisdiction "to hear and determine appeals from all judgments, decrees, orders, and sentences" of the persons and bodies referred to. The Ms contended that this power should be widely construed, that it contains no fetter preventing the Court from considering fresh evidence and that prima facie, apart from policy considerations, the Court is empowered to receive fresh evidence for the general purpose of doing justice.
The powers of the Court "are of the widest character which true appellate jurisdiction may possess": Victorian Stevedoring and General Contracting Co Pty Ltd and Meakes v Dignan 1931, and that s.73 contains no express fetter preventing the Court from considering fresh evidence. But unless the reception of fresh evidence is truly a part of the Court's appellate jurisdiction, then the absence of such a fetter is irrelevant.
The authorities in this Court stand clearly for the proposition that the reception of fresh evidence is not a part of the appellate jurisdiction of the Court. The Ms challenged the reasoning on which these authorities are based on the ground that the reasoning depended on old English authorities which have been overtaken by more recent decisions. They made the point that, at a time when an appeal lay from this Court to the Privy Council, the Court was influenced by the circumstance that the Court of Appeal and the House of Lords did not receive fresh evidence. As it is now clearly established that both the CAppeal and the House of Lords receive fresh evidence, there has been a material development which justifies reconsideration of the existing authorities.
In Ronald v Harper 1910 this Court unanimously rejected the submission that it had jurisdiction to receive further evidence in support of an application for a new trial; it said the Court had no such jurisdiction, and referred to Flower v Lloyd 1877 UK, where the CA decided that it had no power to receive fresh evidence and that it would be a dangerous practice to allow it. Birch v Birch 1902 UK expressed the same opinion. However, the references were not central to the reasoning in the cases and made the point of policy that it would be undesirable for the Court to exercise such a power. The other members of the Court made no reference to the position of the CA and confined themselves to the jurisdiction of the High Court under the Constitution. Barton J was "strongly disposed" to think that there was no such jurisdiction. O'Connor J observed:
"It is abundantly clear from sec.73 of the Constitution that the High Court can review a judgment of a State Court only by way of appeal. Acting on that view the Commonwealth legislature, in equipping this Court for the discharge of its duty, has recognized its authority to act in respect of the judgments of State Courts exercising State jurisdiction in no other way than by appeal. To determine as a Court of first instance the facts upon which these new grounds of appeal rest would be obviously to exceed the jurisdiction vested in this Court by the Constitution."
Griffith CJ said that it was clear that the primary judgment "would not be set aside unless there were, at least, a reasonable probability that the new evidence sought to be given would make a difference in the result". However, this was neither a statement of principle nor the formulation of a test for the receiving of fresh evidence, but merely an indication that the plaintiff had not been harmed by the Court's lack of jurisdiction.
Since Ronald v Harper, this Court has consistently maintained that it lacks power to receive fresh evidence, whether due to Constitutional limitation or to the absence of express statutory authority: see Victorian Stevedoring; Davies and Cody v The King 1937; Grosglik v Grant (No. 2) 1947; Crouch v Hudson 1970.
Underlying this uninterrupted stream of authority are 2 propositions.
1 An appellate court, in hearing an appeal, is called upon to redress error on the part of the court below. In deciding whether there was error, the appellate court looks to the materials which were before the court below. It is otherwise if, according to the statute governing the jurisdiction of the appellate court, the appeal is by way of rehearing. Then the court of appeal is not restricted to the materials on which the court below gave its decision and may receive additional evidence, including evidence as to matters which have taken place subsequent to that decision: Victorian Stevedoring contrasted the appellate functions of the Privy Council and the CA UK. The PC's prerogative jurisdiction was to decide whether the judgment complained of was right when given on the materials before the court below: Ponnamma v Arumogam1905; Donegani v Donegani 1835; but cf Judicial Committee Act 1833.
The appeal to the CA UK, on the other hand, was by way of rehearing: Victorian Stevedoring, and enabled it to receive further evidence when hearing an appeal. Thus, the Court was entitled and ought to hear the case as at the time of rehearing: Attorney-General v Birmingham, Tame, and Rea District Drainage Board 1912. But the jurisdiction of the CA differed from that of a court hearing an appeal in the strict and proper sense of the term. The Court of Appeal's discretion to receive further evidence has been much discussed in England:Curwen v James 1963; Murphy v Stone-Wallwork (Charlton) Ltd 1969; Mulholland v Mitchell 1971; McCann v Sheppard 1973. But that discussion throws no light on the answer to the question presently under consideration. It seems that the House of Lords has power to receive further evidence in civil appeals. Just what is the source of the power is not altogether clear. Murphy v Stone-Wallwork: "Your Lordships' House has no similar rules of procedure governing your Lordships, but I have no doubt that your Lordships have ample power to admit further evidence ..."
The Directions as to Procedure applicable to Civil Appeals to the House of Lords provides for the making of an application for leave to introduce fresh evidence. The Rule appears to assume the existence of an authority to receive such evidence but the authority is not identified.Barder v Caluori 1988: "In appeals from the High Court to the CA, and from the CA to your Lordships' House, there is a discretion to admit evidence relating to supervening events where refusal to admit it would plainly cause serious injustice." The reference was to a supervening event which invalidates an assumption or estimate made at the time of the hearing of a matter. The calculation of damages may be based upon an assumption which is invalidated or falsified by subsequent events. That is a special situation because the court below has made an assumption or estimate as to a specific matter which has later been proved to have been erroneous.
The principle that justice requires cases to be decided as far as practicable upon the basis of facts, rather than assumptions or estimates in relation to those facts and subsequently found to be incorrect, may require such cases to be treated differently. The House of Lords' power to receive further evidence, is not, in my view, a reliable guide to the jurisdiction of this Court under s73 of the Constitution. The power of the English courts to set aside orders or to order new trials on the basis of further evidence was significantly affected by the Supreme Court of Judicature Act 1873 (UK) which vested in the CA the jurisdiction to order a rehearing; Re Barrell Enterprises 1972. The developments in the law in this respect in England are therefore not of direct relevance to the interpretation of s.73 of the Constitution which governs the appellate jurisdiction of this Court.
The second basic proposition underlying the stream of authority already mentioned is that s.73, in conferring appellate jurisdiction on this Court, contains nothing to suggest that the Court is "to go beyond the jurisdiction or capacity of the Court appealed from": Victorian Stevedoring,. Indeed, by differentiating between original and appellate jurisdiction and by making different provisions for their exercise, the Constitution reinforces the notion that, when it refers to the appellate jurisdiction, it is speaking of appeals in their true or proper sense.
Isaacs J (dissenting) in Werribee Council v Kerr 1928 stated that no appeal from a State court exercising federal jurisdiction could be a rehearing because it would involve this Court exercising original jurisdiction as State judicial power. Whether this could be done under ss75 and 76 and 51(xxxix) of the Constitution is not a matter that needs to be discussed. Victorian Stevedoring referred to The Commonwealth v Brisbane Milling Co Ltd 1916 which inclined to the view that it was not possible to confer the additional power on the Court by way of a grant of original jurisdiction. There are two statements which may appear to be inconsistent with the course of authority in this Court. The first is Scott Fell v Lloyd 1911: "If necessary in the interests of justice the Court could send the case back to the Supreme Court for the purpose of obtaining further evidence." There may well be cases where this course may properly be followed: Pantorno v The Queen 1989. But it must be read subject to the cases which follow it and especially Ronald v Harper.There is no foundation in M's submission that the decisions of this Court are based upon misconceptions about the powers of the English Court of Appeal or that the jurisdiction of that Court is a reliable guide to the appellate jurisdiction of this Court under s73.
It remains for me to consider the argument that the grant of appellate jurisdiction necessarily gives the appellate court power to do complete justice between the parties and that such a power entails the power to receive further evidence.
There is force in the argument that, in the light of contemporary notions of justice, a grant of appellate jurisdiction to a court should be understood as empowering the court, in its discretion, to receive further evidence with a view to determining whether the decision of the court below was erroneous and, if so, what order should be made in its place. On the other hand, the authorities make it clear that in 1900 a mere grant of appellate jurisdiction would not be understood as carrying with it a power to receive further evidence. Moreover, the division between the original and appellate jurisdiction of the Court makes it all the more difficult to sustain this aspect of the argument. As noted inVictorian Stevedoring, to do complete justice between the parties litigant by making an order which the court below had not jurisdiction or power to make "smacks rather of original jurisdiction". However, it may be that the existence of a discretion to receive evidence of supervening facts on matters which were the subject of assumption or estimation in the courts below: Barder v Caluori; is properly part of appellate jurisdiction. It may be that appeals in Constitutional cases stand in a different position; the Court possesses an original jurisdiction in Constitutional matters. For the purposes of disposing of the present case, it is not necessary to decide these questions. Accordingly, I reserve my opinion on them.
My conclusion is that the Court has no power to receive the further evidence which the applicants seek to adduce . That conclusion should not be understood as denying the capacity of Parliament to confer on the Court power to receive fresh evidence in appeals, at least in those appeals which involve the exercise of federal jurisdiction.
Closely related to the further evidence which Ms sought to introduce was the use which they attempted to make of a concession made by the Crown that pins had not been placed in the WABS cheque before it was sent to Canberra on 16 July and that pins were placed in the cheque when it was photographed in Canberra by Dr Kobus. Both elements of the concession are relevant to the question: when was the photograph of the cheque which was admitted into evidence at the trial taken? The Crown submitted that the concession itself amounted to fresh evidence.
True it is that the presence of the pin marks in the cheque was not observed at the trial and that it could have been noticed then. To the extent that the evidence relates to the actual presence of pin marks in the cheque, the evidence is not fresh. But the facts which are the subject of the concession are facts which were not proved or admitted at the trial or in the Court of Criminal Appeal. No doubt material which explains or records what happened in the courts below, including the trial court may be introduced in an appeal in this Court. But the concession is not material which falls into this category. Although the concession seeks to explain something that was put in evidence at the trial, it asserts new facts relevant to the issues which arose for determination at the trial. The concession amounts to further evidence. The fact that it is undisputed evidence does not suffice to give this Court jurisdiction to consider its effect.
I agree with the conclusion of Toohey and Gaudron JJ that the CA failed to determine the whole case referred to it and that the question whether PM's convictions are unsafe and unsatisfactory is fairly arguable. I agree also that special leave to appeal should be granted to PM to enable the Court of Criminal Appeal to consider, by reference to the whole of the evidence, excluding of course the further evidence sought to be adduced in this Court, whether his conviction for conspiracy is inconsistent with the acquittal of BM and whether his convictions are unsafe and unsatisfactory, notwithstanding that the convictions were not challenged in the CA on these grounds. Although the failure to argue the points in that Court would in other circumstances be a strong reason for refusing special leave to appeal, the fact that the Executive Government referred the whole case to the CA for determination under s21 of the Criminal Code (WA) is a decisive countervailing factor.The reference indicates the existence of public concern about the propriety of the convictions. That concern will not be satisfied unless there is a judicial decision resolving the contention that the convictions are unsafe and unsatisfactory, when that contention is fairly arguable. Largely related to that question is the argument that PM's conviction for conspiracy cannot stand alongside BM's acquittal.
Whether or not the reluctance of this Court to grant special leave to appeal on the basis of argument presented for the first time in a case before this Court is founded upon the nature of its appellate jurisdiction or, as I am inclined to think, the exercise of discretion is a question which was not argued before us. But it would be surprising if there was a want of jurisdiction when the Court has made many statements dealing with the way in which a discretion may be exercised to allow a point not argued in the courts below to be raised within this Court for the first time. It is clear that only in exceptional circumstances is special leave to appeal granted when the point relied upon was not taken at trial or in a Court of Criminal Appeal: Millard v The King 1906; Giannarelli v The Queen 1983. Equally, a point cannot be raised for the first time on appeal when it could possibly have been met by calling evidence below: Coulton v Holcombe 1986; Water Board v Moustakas1988; Pantorno v The Queen. However, that is not the case in relation to the points which PM now seeks to raise. They are points of law based necessarily upon the facts as proved in evidence in the courts below, and as such may be entertained in this Court in the interests of justice: O'Brien v Komesaroff 1982; Pantorno v The Queen.
It is unnecessary to decide the question in order to grant special leave to Peter Mickelberg. The points relied upon in this Court for the first time fell within the scope of the reference to the CA and should have been pronounced upon by that Court as part of its consideration of the whole case. This Court therefore possesses jurisdiction to consider the matter on appeal for the same reasons as I have already given in favour of the grant of special leave.
The final matter concerns the appropriate test to be applied by an appellate court in deciding whether to set aside a conviction on the ground of fresh evidence. It is established that the proper question is whether the court considers that there is a significant possibility that the jury, acting reasonably, would have acquitted the appellant had the fresh evidence been before it at the trial. This test was endorsed in Gallagher v The Queen 1986: "no form of words should be regarded as an incantation that will resolve the difficulties of every case"; the court would need to conclude that "a jury might entertain a reasonable doubt about the guilt of the appellant"; the use of the expression "significant possibility" did not involve a different standard. I am in agreement with those statements. We were not asked to reconsider the correctness of the decision in Gallagher. I would grant the application by PM for special leave to appeal and allow the appeal to the extent necessary to allow consideration whether his conviction for conspiracy is consistent with the acquittal of BM and whether his convictions, or any of them, are unsafe or unsatisfactory. I would refuse the application by RM for leave to appeal.
Brennan J
Toohey and Gaudron JJ have canvassed the grounds of appeal which were argued in this case. I agree with the conclusions which they have arrived at. This Court has uniformly refused to receive fresh evidence in the exercise of its appellate jurisdiction in criminal cases. The principle was stated in Davies and Cody v The King 1937: "The only power of the court as a court of appeal is to consider and determine whether the judgment of the court appealed from was right upon the materials before that court ... In this case the court is invited to consider fresh evidence. The court has no power to consider that evidence."
The cases in this Court have spoken uniformly on this subject. I am unable to agree with Toohey and Gaudron JJ that, although this Court generally has no power to consider fresh evidence, the concession made in this Court by counsel for the Crown as to the photograph of the print on the cheque can be regarded in deciding whether the decision by the CA was correct. The jurisdiction of this Court is to pronounce the judgment which the CA should have pronounced: Craig v The King 1933; Pantorno v The Queen 1989 and therefore this Court is required to determine "whether the judgment of the court appealed from was right upon the materials before that court". That function cannot properly be performed by reference to materials that were not before the court appealed from. This Court is not a court of criminal appeal and it is not fitted to receive, test and evaluate evidence which has not been considered in the court appealed from. In an appeal which challenges the evaluation by the CA of the sufficiency of evidence to support a conviction or the cogency of fresh evidence not produced at the trial, this Court cannot have regard to facts which were not before the CA. The notion that the correctness of the decision of the court appealed from can be determined by reference to materials not before that court is inconsistent with the appellate nature of the jurisdiction exercised by this Court.
Their Honours leave open the question whether there is any practical difference between the formulations of the test for determining whether fresh evidence is such as to warrant the quashing of a conviction. The formulation which, in my respectful opinion, was settled by this Court inRatten v The Queen 1974; and in Lawless v The Queen 1979, is whether the jury, if the fresh evidence had been laid before it together with the evidence given at the trial, would have been likely to have entertained a reasonable doubt about the guilt of the accused. That was the formulation to which I adhered in Gallagher. The test has sometimes been expressed not in terms of "likely" but in terms of "might" Stafford v DPP 1974 UK; Gallagher; or in terms of "significant possibility"; Gallagher. Although I agree with Toohey and Gaudron JJ. that it is not necessary to elaborate in this case upon the differing nuances of these formulae or to decide between them, my preference for the "likely" formula remains.
That said, I come to the same conclusions as their Honours - indeed, I come to the conclusion in the case of RM more readily. In the case of PM, it is apparent that the evidence against him has not been subjected to the critical examination necessary to determine whether his convictions are supportable. I agree that the reference of PM's case to the CA required that examination to be made and that the matter should be remitted to that Court accordingly. That Court has authority to consider fresh evidence. In so saying, I do not imply any departure from the distinction to which I referred in Chamberlain v The Queen (No.2) 1984; between a case where the CA is satisfied that, on the evidence before the jury, it would be unsafe, unjust or dangerous to allow a verdict of guilty to stand and a case (such as Ratten) where the CA is satisfied that, had fresh evidence been available and produced at the trial, a different verdict would have been likely.
I would refuse RM leave to appeal. I would grant special leave to appeal to PM and allow his appeal, setting aside the order made by the CA in his case and remitting his case to the CA for determination in accordance with the judgments of this Court.
RON HANCOCK ?
The last of the Hard Men
Verbals were the order of the day and plenty of Hancock’s followers were ready and willing to oblige. Just fill in the empty gaps with snippets of half evidence that the court accepts on the bent copper’s word that it is a confession. Throw in a couple of random beltings, reports of perpetrators breaking out in tears of remorse and “Wham Bam, thank you Ma’am”, a successful collar goes down, Guilty.
Hancock went to his grave as the only murder suspect over the shooting of a man in the back from ambush at night in the dark from a distance, all allegedly over a few words to a barmaid. The barmaid was Hancock’s daughter working in the family pub. There was a farcical inquiry led by his old drinking buddies and as they went round and round the garden like pet ducks all the evidence disappeared and Hancock walked away, free.
There were two competing sets of rules for this high ranking and highly rank cop, one for him and his feckless lot and another for the rest of the community. Cop it sweet.
Infamously Hancock was once recorded by Ray and Peter Mickelberg on a covert tape that is illuminating of his techniques, bullying and scornful disregard for lawful conduct. It was played to the High Court of Australia.
His words, to coin a phrase, speak for themselves …
Hancock: I don’t know what you expect.
Ray: To live by certain rules.
Hancock: Well, are there rules?
Ray: You tell me there are.
Hancock: No. There might be guidelines but no rules. I could have gone harder.
Ray: Do you think it would have been wise?
Hancock: Pride comes into it. Don’t ever challenge me to do something because I’ll fucking well do it all right. You can rest assured about that.
Ray: You’re mean, Don.
Hancock: I’m not a mean person, but I’ll tell you what, I’ve done things in my life that you never did, and harder things, worse things, and if I’ve got to do them again, well, I’ll do them.
Ray: In the line of duty?
Hancock: That’s it, yes. What I believe is my line of duty – to get the job done.
It was a pretty bizarre statement that Hancock considered himself to be a harder and tougher man than Ray Mickelberg who had served as a frontline SAS commando in action in Vietnam.
The term Hard Men should be reserved for men named in the following true story of bravery. Hancock surrounded himself with men like Lewandowski and Colin Circles Pace, hardly inspirationally brave men themselves, either. Pace was allowed to resign from the force labelled as crooked as a dog’s hind leg and corrupt to the core. ‘Weak Men’ is more apt a title befitting these Bent Cops. I do not pretend to talk for the Good Lord but it would appear he frowns on the corrupt members of the Police force. Lets face it, Hancock died a horrible death by bombing, Lewandowski hung himself, and the Pace ending is yet to unfold.
Maybe their victims are the hard men, some spent 12 years or more in jail and summoned the strength to stay alive in horrible conditions of degradation and pain. Others lost families, fortunes and futures due to these alleged Hard Men taking short cuts rather than doing their jobs properly. They are given enormous powers in the cause of good but that is not enough and they exaggerate themselves as some kind of saviours; vigilantes in the cause of themselves!
These very men rarely feel the true sting of justice. The general community waits patiently but hopelessly for the administration of an all embracing and equal application of Justice.
The likes of McGinty and Cock and the judiciary fail to punish the well known perpetrators of official evil. The judges only see what is put before them.
To finish this series of three books I wish to detail a story showing not all cops are bad, only a very few, hence the following story of bravery, loyalty and honesty. Even the gunman could be said to be brave and honest ‘to his own choice of lifestyle’. Problem was, he kept coming back on most weekends for a couple more potshots at the local coppers. There could only be one ending.
It is a true story of Hard Men.
There was this tough local guy who had done some heavy time in Victoria’s infamous Pentridge Prison. Coming back to the West after his extensive jail training he was imbued with an abiding hatred of ‘coppers’. He blamed them for his bad luck, although he was not much of a thief. He was much better as a stand over man using his guns to intimidate victims. Donald Harley Stewart started his violent life of crime as a car thief, moving to Melbourne in his teens, using a stolen car. He was stopped in South Australia and a rifle was found in the car. His two year stint in a reformatory was cut short when he escaped and continued to Victoria, always using stolen cars. Eventually the Victorian police caught up with him and instead of sending him back to South Australia to complete his time there, they had a bundle of their own charges and he went down for six months. Almost immediately after release he went back inside again on car theft charges. Throughout this period his family supported him and encouraged him to go straight which, for a time he did.
But within two years he was back to his car thieving. He had ‘acquired’ a car which he hid in the bush. Police were staking it out, waiting for the thief to return. Alert as a prowling animal, he sensed the presence of the police, but this time he was armed with a pistol. Not knowing this, the police called to him to stop when he was only a short distance from the car. Stewart took to his heels with the police in pursuit. He turned and fired about six shots at the detectives, one of whom answered with a similar barrage. Stewart was unharmed but Detective Lloyd Taylor was hit in the leg.
Just 20 years of age, Stewart was now being pursued by armed squads of police who were now fully appraised of his venomous intent to harm them.
A short time later he was surprised in a house which he was in the process of burglarizing. The occupant took off after Stewart but gave up the chase when a bullet whizzed past him. A high speed car chase around the inner Perth suburbs ended when he crashed off the side of the road. Running to a house, the woman inside was quick enough to lock her door and keep Stewart out. Police surrounded him and called for him to surrender. Even then Stewart went for his gun until he was knocked down with a bullet in the back.
Astonishingly, he was scarcely hurt because of the faulty charge in the police bullet.
With the multiplicity of charges against him, the sentence of ten years did not seem excessive to the police and public. The sentencing Judge told the gunman, “It seems that you will let nothing stand in the way of your criminal intentions and you will use a firearm whenever it suits your purposes.”
At this point, Stewart’s father abandoned him and told a Perth newspaper that he no longer had a son. He attributed his wife’s early death to her son’s criminal conduct and disowned Stewart.
With remissions for good conduct, Stewart was freed after six years. He began legitimate work and was probably the victim of genuine bad luck. There was an allegation of theft at his work, seemingly not to involve him, detectives thought. However, he was sacked shortly after. It was the fulcrum point of his life after which he embraced entirely a life of violent crime and passionate hatred of all police. He was set for revenge. He connected with a career criminal from Sydney who was soon arrested and turned on Stewart to reduce his time in jail. The police were now equally as focused on Stewart as he was on them. A showdown was inevitable.
After serving a four month sentence for which he had been shopped by his Sydney ‘mate’, Perth detectives were distinctly uneasy because Stewart had continuously voiced his hatred to prisoners who passed the information to the screws. He specifically targeted three police in his vicious rantings: Detective Sergeants Parker, Leitch and McLernon.
Stewart collected weapons as others collect old chairs or stamps. He lived by the gun and made preparations to die by the gun. Hiding out in the Perth hills he found an isolated farm and proceeded to dig a caravan into the ground hidden by trees and shrub. Into his hidey hole he stored an arsenal of explosives, weapons and ammunition. Perhaps he was preparing for the Red Chinese invasion. And as is the want of country boys, he took to going to town of a weekend but with one major difference. He went armed and angry, looking for bear. In his twisted view of life, the police were his target, fair game, although at that time the general copper went around his beat unarmed.
On one occasion Stewart telephoned Detective Sergeant Owen Leitch, later to become Commissioner, to warn him that he was on the prowl and armed for a fight. “Just wait,” he prophesied. A local newspaper published a somewhat edited version of the conversation where Stewart asks Detective Leitch, “I heard you were looking for me.”
“Nah, Don,” replied Leitch. “We were just wondering where you were and what you were doing.”
But the police indeed had serious cause for concern. They suspected that Stewart had stolen two cases of gelignite from a quarry near Perth and their apprehension grew as several cars were blown up. They were Ford Zephyr vehicles, the same as detectives drove. Stewart was sending his message of intended violence. There was a wave of car thefts and burglaries which the police attributed to Stewart. Of more concern was the theft of a radio from a taxi that was capable of tuning into the police broadcast band. Stewart could monitor the efforts to track him down.
Then in March 1959 a beat copper in the inner north of Perth near the Museum observed a car which he soon confirmed as a stolen vehicle. The keys had been left in the ignition so the smart young constable took the keys and hurried off to Central where he reported his find to the desk sergeant. Another young constable, A.H. Howell, was sent back to the scene to keep an eye out. Stewart returned and was immediately suspicious that the keys were gone. He had his hotwiring gear and was in the process of stealing the car he had already stolen when Constable Howell arrived. Stewart took off on foot with Howell in pursuit. Stewart then stopped and turned, yelling out, “Stop, or I’ll let you have it!”
Howell kept going and Stewart fired two shots at the game unarmed young cop who was unharmed, luckily. The gunman disappeared into the dark streets of Northbridge. However, he left behind a daunting treasure trove of his serious intention to create harm and havoc in Perth. In his abandoned vehicle there was a rifle, the stolen police style radio and a stick of gelignite.
Five days later Detective Sergeants John McLernon and Harry Cann saw Stewart in another stolen vehicle in an inner city street. Stewart was now in full aggression mode and had made telephoned threats against the children of Owen Leitch, John McLernon and other detectives. The detectives followed the gunman to a house in Murray Street, Perth, where he jumped from his car.
McLernon was my father and he had a pretty tough background himself. He had enlisted at the age of 20 and served four years as a sapper in the Second World War in the Australian 2/4th Field Squadron. He and his mates saw much deadly action in the New Guinea and Borneo campaigns. Many times he operated behind enemy lines. On occasion the Americans would co-opt him and for a period he was seconded to the brutal island hopping campaign in service with the US 7th fleet chasing Japanese out of the Pacific. He was decorated for valour. This was the man, one of the true Hard Men, that Stewart ill-advisedly started firing upon.
Cann and McLernon challenged Stewart, giving him a chance to throw down his arms. He opted for the hard way. He drew a pistol. As he drew down on McLernon, Cann fired and hit the gunman’s holster. McLernon then opened fire with a shotgun and wounded the tough. As the two officers closed with Stewart, he reached down and pulled a second pistol from an ankle holster and took a shot at McLernon. Undeterred, McLernon snapped down on Stewart with his 12 gauge shotgun sending the gunman to his destiny and epitaph.
An iconic photograph was published in the Perth Daily News of John McLernon with his shotgun cracked open and across his shoulders as he laconically made his way from the battleground. His hat was tilted back on his head and a cigarette dangled from a face showing exhaustion and tension. A hard man with a hard job and with equally hard men to back him in the job.
As police backtracked Stewart’s movements they located his secret base in the rough bushland of Perth’s hills at Serpentine on the South Eastern outskirts. A luxury Jaguar car was hidden in the trees under a tarpaulin and a caravan at the site was covered with camouflage material and branches. Suitcases of stolen goods and money was uncovered as well as an underground armoury which had been booby-trapped. Cake tins had been loaded up with explosives. There were trip wires and traps all around and a large cache of explosives.
Yet here were the coppers of the day, hats on as always, hanging around with curiosity and disdain for their personal safety as they looked over the shoulders of the bomb squad, still smoking the inevitable cigarette. They had no fear.
John McLernon fought against totally dedicated and skilled Japanese soldiers intent on killing him head on with anything to hand, bayonet, bomb or bullet. He was cited for valour.
Stewart knew what he was up against and went out to a certain doom, armed and up front.
Hancock, on the other hand, was sly and weak, allegedly shooting an unarmed man in the back at night at a bush campfire, using a sniper’s rifle. He and his ilk are the scourge of honour, yet he was given the hero’s funeral by his fawning colleagues under the false flag of being the Last of the Hard Men.
No, it was the John McLernon’s, the Harry Cann’s and the Frank Scott’s who were the tough, dauntless hard men who kept the peace and the law in the manner of Men of Honour. We seem to have forgotten them and the many men and women in the Police Force today who do their job with honesty and ethics, for they still exist.
“THE LAST OF THE HARD MEN!”
The Fifth Estate I
The Fifth Estate-The Sequel-If the Hat Fits, Wear It,
The Fifth Estate Book III -Every Bit of the circle is Bent by TerranceJ McLernon
“THE LAST OF THE HARD MEN!”
Chapter 2
Mad As A Cut Snake
FRANK SCOTT IS UNDENIABLY a brave man. Anyone who stands up and speaks out against corruption in our community knowing that he will become a target both literally and physically qualifies as a hero in my view. Such a man is Frank Scott, who emerged in the mid nineties as a whistleblower who had had a gutful of bent coppers during his stint in the CIB. As with earlier honest jacks who had raised the flag for honesty, he was berated, impugned, marginalized, threatened and forced from the job. As with Frank “Spike” Daniels who had blown the whistle a decade earlier, they were forced into early retirement by the oft used subterfuge of fake psychiatric reports which, naturally, led to the trumpeted conclusion by their bent colleagues to ingenuous reporters: “Bloody mad as a cut snake!”
But neither of the two brave Franks were mad. They were bold and they were honest and they paid the price of undercutting the Fifth Estate and its necessary support staff in the ranks of the WA Police Force. Years of harassment of Frank Scott have made him a stronger man although there were periods of dark and desperate despair. But Frank Scott fought on, eventually documenting his earlier days at the coal face which is related later here in this book. At this moment time has advanced to the infamous Mickelberg reversals when bent cop and belated whistleblower, Tony Lewanadowski, finally admitted on oath that he and other cops had lied and fabricated evidence to convict the Mickelberg brothers over the Great Mint Swindle. On 12 June 2002, in reaction to the affidavit of Lewandowski which had been dropped into the public mire by Attorney General Jim McGinty a few days earlier, Frank spoke to Luke Morfesse of the West Australian newspaper. It was quite astonishing really, having an ex-cop verify the basic essentials of policing in Western Australia. The investigative skills, according to Frank Scott, included bashing, fabrication and intensive research in the saloon bar of the Great Western Hotel. Frank told Morfesse that as a detective sergeant in the much vaunted CIB, he was routinely involved in bashing suspects. Keep in mind, in this Fair State a bashing is what is described in other “civilized” communities as “torture”.
Frank Scott told the newspaper that during his ten-year-stint he was taught the art and craft of bashing and fabrication by his ‘superiors’.
“I was taught that way and so I didn’t think there was anything wrong with it. Everybody did it,” he said. “I didn’t see it as being corrupt because there was no financial benefit, you were simply doing your job, which was to catch crooks. “Half the time, because of the restrictions on admissibility of evidence, a jury didn’t know what police knew. But if the jury was able to get the same information as police had then they would have come to the same conclusion.” The one-time police whistleblower is comfortable with his claims, because what he calls an investigative tool never involved verballing or giving a hiding to anyone who he believed was innocent. “It didn’t happen on a regular basis and it would never have happened, say, in the fraud squad with a white collar crook,” he said. “It really only happened with hardened crims because it was the only language they understood. That was how the game was played.” Back when the CIB was based at police headquarters in Adelaide Terrace, the game also involved spiriting away suspects to suburban CIB offices such as Belmont.
“It was not uncommon to take someone to a suburban CIB to do the interview where you could give them a hiding without everyone around the place hearing the interview,” Mr Scott said. He claims that in the 1980s it was not uncommon for the verballed confessions of suspects obtained by some of his former CIB colleagues to be used as evidence in trials, as was the case with the Mickelbergs. “Some of those blokes could solve any crime in Perth almost without leaving the saloon bar of the Great Western Hotel,” he said. “They obviously knew the person did it but they were just too lazy to do the ground work to provide proper evidence to get a conviction. Some of those blokes could solve any crime in Perth almost without their beer getting warm.” Seems like a job made in heaven.
In the following year when the Royal Commission into police corruption was wandering around with the fairies, Frank had written to the Chief Investigator, Mario Da Re, offering his specialised knowledge to assist the inquiry. “Some time ago now, I told you that I had prepared an affidavit which was going to be tabled in Parliament. This affidavit relates to a series of allegations made by Michael Murphy. One of his allegations was that the DPP improperly failed to prosecute Murphy’s business associates in stealing $30 Million worth of gold from his gold tenement. “He also alleged that Roger Bryer and a person called Waller were somehow involved with the mint swindle and his views on this matter were tabled in Parliament by John Fischer in an affidavit. My affidavit supports the fact that Roger Bryer was allegedly involved in laundering gold bullion. It was not tabled in Parliament and may be of some use to you as intelligence. I have attached the contents for your information.” His affidavit was a bit of a mind blower, coming in on top of the Lewandowski revelations.
I am a former Police Officer who served in the Western Australian Police Service for a period of twenty two years including ten years in the Criminal Investigation Branch and five years in the Liquor and Gaming Brach. I was involuntarily discharged from the Western Australian Police Service on 20 April 1993, after I had provided the Officer in Charge of the Police Internal Affairs Unit, Superintendent Ayton, with information regarding the conduct of several high ranking officers which I considered to be corrupt. One of the Officers I refer to in the above paragraph was the Officer in Charge of the Criminal Investigation Branch, Detective Chief Superintendent Donald Hancock. A comprehensive submission of my allegations of corruption by some senior police officers has been forwarded to the Royal Commission investigating Police corruption. During the early part of my Police service in the Criminal Investigation Branch, I was acquainted with a person known to me as Roger Bryer of the El Trovadore. At that time it was Police Departmental Policy to prohibit junior police officers from frequenting the Il Trovadore Club and other illegal gaming houses in the Northbridge area.
In 1979, my acquaintance with Mr Bryer was rekindled during the Miss Universe Pageant where I was a member of the police security team and Mr Bryer was a sponsor of one of the contestants. I had further and regular contact with Mr Bryer when I was transferred to the C.I.B. Dealers Squad and Mr Bryer was the proprietor of a gold bullion and second hand jewellery store called the Great West Gold Exchange situated then on the corner of Hay and William Street, Perth. I became a regular visitor to the premises during my term as a detective in the Dealers Squad and became friendly with Mr Bryer. I was transferred from the Dealers Squad to the Drug Squad in 1980.
On 2 December 1984, I was transferred to the Central Police Station in uniform branch and during routine patrols, I noticed that the Great West Gold exchange had moved its business premises to William Street, near the intersection of Brisbane Street, Northbridge. I again renewed my acquaintance with Mr Bryer in early 1995 and visited him occasionally during my patrols. During one such visit, I informed Mr Bryer that I was soon to commence my annual leave. Mr Bryer asked me if I could supervise his premises while he went on a business trip to Queensland where he was negotiating a business deal with a publicly listed company called Ariadne Limited. I took the opportunity to do so. On one day during the week whilst I was supervising the premises, a staff member drew my attention to a male person attending the business premises with a significant quantity of gold to sell. The staff member informed me that this same person had frequented the premises on about six previous occasions and had sold similar amounts of gold.
On each occasion this gold was in excess of 99% pure and she suspected it to be gold bullion melted down. The male person informed the staff member that he would return within a fortnight with two kilograms of gold of the same quality. I was told this person gave the name of Tony Carbone who I subsequently learned was an associate of John Asciak, Geoffrey Barlow and Brian Chambers, all of them being known drug traffickers. After Carbone left the premises, I examined the gold he had sold to the Great West Gold Exchange, and the register recording the past sales of gold so that I could note the previous times Carbone had sold gold bullion to the Great West Gold Exchange. I wrote down the times, dates, quantity of gold, the amount paid in exchange for the gold and also the assay results and amount paid by the Perth Mint to the Great West Gold Exchange. At the time when I took these notes, I asked the staff member to keep my inquiry confidential from Mr Bryer as I intended to have a covert investigation carried out to ascertain the origin of the gold. I strongly suspected that this gold might have been stolen from the Perth Mint some years previously.
I then contacted Detective Inspector William Round who was a personal friend of mine and was also the second in charge of the Task Force investigating the Perth Mint swindle. I advised Detective Inspector Round what had occurred and requested that he place Carbone under Police surveillance so that evidence could be gleaned regarding the suspected gold and the antecedent details obtained of Carbone’s movements. On the following day, I was contacted by Sergeant Peter Grant who called me from Kalgoorlie and advised me that he had just been transferred to the Gold Stealing Staff and that Detective Chief Superintendent Don Hancock had authorised him to return to Perth to conduct an investigation into the information I had supplied to Detective Inspector Round. I was extremely surprised that Hancock knew about this investigation as I had expected Round to only advise the surveillance team.
A day of so later Grant attended at my private residence and I reiterated to him the importance of confidentiality as I was investigating a client of the Great Western Gold Exchange without the proprietor’s knowledge and I needed to protect my informant. I informed Sergeant Grant that I had made arrangements with the staff member to contact me and advise me when Carbone was to return to the Great Western Gold Exchange, to sell the two kilos of gold. Some two weeks later the staff member called me at home to advise that Carbone had been in touch and stated that he would be in the following morning with the gold. I immediately contacted Sergeant Grant and asked him to alert the Police Surveillance Squad in readiness for their job.
The following morning I received a telephone call from the staff member who was very agitated. When I inquired what the problem was, she told me that Mr Bryer had said he had noticed two male persons loitering and acting very suspiciously near the premises and suspected that they were preparing to rob the Great Western Gold Exchange. She then advised him that the two ‘suspects’ might in fact be police officers conducting an investigation on my behalf. Shortly later when Carbone arrived at the premises these two persons entered the shop and identified themselves as detectives and apprehended Carbone. I understand that the two detectives back at HQ then requested to view the Register and compared the dates that Carbone had previously attended at the premises with the times, dates and details that I had already provided Sergeant Grant. I also understand that Carbone was taken away for questioning and his vehicle and premises were searched. I cannot recall if any charges were preferred against Carbone but in later discussions with Sergeant Grant, I was advised that no gold had been recovered. I am unaware if the two detectives took possession of, or if they photocopied the register but these details should be contained in the relevant police file recording this incident.
I have always considered that this investigation was purposely carried out in a deliberately incompetent manner with a view to compromise the investigation so that the truth and origin of this gold would never be established. In May 2004, Frank continued his account of bizarre police conduct in another affidavit including the extraordinary response to his allegations of corruption when he was appointed to investigate his own investigation and to report the outcome to one of the senior officers he had accused! During my police career, I was appointed as a probationary detective on 2 December 1974, and was promoted through the ranks of the Criminal Investigation Branch, where I worked for 10 years, reaching the rank of detective sergeant. Whilst in the CIB I worked in various squads including Midland C.I.B., motor squad, combined operations, dealers’ squad, drug squad, general crime squad and fraud squad. I was transferred to the uniform branch on 2nd December 1984 after being charged with a disciplinary offence. I remained in the uniform branch until May 1987 when I was transferred to the liquor and gaming branch. In December 1991, I went on sick leave after reporting alleged corrupt or improper conduct by Detective Chief Superintendent Don Hancock and Chief Superintendent Les McMillan to the head of the Police Internal Affairs Branch, Superintendent Ayton, who then instructed me to investigate my own allegations and report my findings to Chief Superintendent McMillan. I was discharged from the police service on medical grounds in April 1993 at the rank of First Class Sergeant.
Whilst a serving member of the CIB, I was promoted to the rank of detective sergeant on 1 April 1982 and was transferred in that capacity to the general crime squad. One of my first tasks in that squad was to investigate the theft of about $50,000 in unsigned travellers cheques from the ANZ bank situated at the intersections of Hay and Barrack Streets, Perth. My inquiries lead to the arrest of David Christopher Mills who was charged and convicted with the theft of the traveller’s cheques and received an eighteen month prison sentence. After he had been charged, I gleaned further evidence which strongly indicated that he had committed a similar offence in Sydney involving a large amount of unsigned travellers cheques. Soon after I was seconded to a task force to investigate the murder of a Mandurah woman whose skeletal remains were found in bushlands near Pinjarra. The Perth Mint swindle occurred at about the same time but I did not work on any investigation into that offence. In June 1983, I was transferred to the CIB Bank Fraud Section where detective sergeant Bill Round was the officer in charge. Bill and I became close friends and have remained that way until recently. In about June or July of 1983, David Christopher Mills was due to be released from prison and I strongly suspected that he had the travellers’ cheques stolen from Sydney hidden in a bank safety deposit box under an assumed name. I approached senior sergeant John Horton, the officer in charge of the Scientific Bureau and asked him if he could install a phone tap for me to assist my endeavours in locating the stolen travellers cheques. Strictly speaking, the phone tap was illegal, but in those days it was commonly used as an investigative tool and I considered I had reasonable grounds for using such a method in assisting my investigation. Horton told me that he could not do any more phone taps as he had received strict instructions from John Porter, the then Commissioner of Police, not to install any further telephone taps, because they had nearly been caught out installing a telephone intercept on the Mickelberg’s phone.
I continued my investigations and a provisional warrant was issued for the arrest of Mills after he was released from prison. He challenged the extradition process and lawyer, Kate O’Brien represented him in his appeal. He was unsuccessful and was eventually extradited to NSW. Sometime while I was preparing my evidence for the committal hearing in Sydney, I had a conversation with Bill Round where I told Bill what Horton had said to me about the Mickelberg’s phone being tapped. Bill expanded on what Horton had told me. He said that the technicians in the Scientific Branch possessed a red VW kombi van similar to the vans used by the “PMG”, the phone company at the time. During the installation of the telephone intercept at the closest junction box, one of the brothers had walked past and wanted to know what the technicians were doing. I don’t know what information was obtained about the Perth Mint swindle from the phone taps, but during that conversation, Bill said to me that he, and the other officers involved in the Mint investigation, knew that the Mickelbergs were guilty and that they just had to give them a little bit extra to get them over the line. Bill also told me that senior members of the police CIB hierarchy regularly installed listening devices in squad rooms so that they could glean information of corruption and misconduct which could then be used to blackmail the officers concerned
In December 1984, I was transferred from the CIB fraud squad and did not have much contact with Bill until about July 1987 when the Police Minister had received information regarding the alleged corrupt activities of Colin Pace who was the senior sergeant in charge of the fraud squad when Bill and I worked together in the cheque section. An investigation was carried out into the possible corrupt association between Sergeant Colin Pace and race horse trainer Bob Meyers and one of the allegations related to a dishonoured cheque presented by Bob Meyers which had been forwarded by the complainant to fraud squad for investigation. I was the officer in charge of the CIB Bank Fraud Section at that time and both Bill and I provided information to senior police investigators which could have established that there was a corrupt association between Pace and Meyers. The investigation exonerated Pace of any malfeasance and in October that year Bill and I went to Hong Kong together on a holiday. There we discussed the corrupt manner in which that investigation had been carried out.
Bill advised me that he and Alan Bickford started the West Australian Bureau of Criminal Intelligence and one of their major targets was Bruce Moms who was a member of the Mr Asia Drug Syndicate. Bill told me that they conducted illegal telephone taps and he made extracts of those intercepts which were kept at the office of BCI. Further, he said that during the illegal telephone taps, they received information which revealed that there was a corrupt association between Bruce Morris and other organised criminals with several high ranking police officers including Colin Pace. Upon returning to work, I made inquiries at BCI and located the file which Bill referred to. I photocopied some extracts which would corroborate what he told me in Hong Kong. I carried out further investigations and was able to obtain overwhelming evidence which would establish a corrupt association between Colin Pace and Bob Meyers. I reported my findings to Peter Ward, a ministerial adviser to the Police Minister as I had no trust in senior police officers. On 7 September 1995 I made my allegations of corruption by senior police officers public and the details of some of my allegations including the illegal telephone taps were published in the West Australian newspaper which resulted in the Commissioner of Police establishing a joint task force of State and Federal Police to investigate my complaints. It took some two years before the task force reported the findings of their investigation to the Minister for Police.
On or about 26 June 1996, I spoke to the then labor opposition leader, Mr. Jim McGinty and advised him that John Porter, an executive member of the Official Corruption Commission and former Commissioner of Police knew of, and condoned the installation of telephone intercepts on Mickelberg’s phone. Porter resigned from the Official Corruption Commission shortly after the leader of the opposition raised some issues which showed that the former Commissioner of Police would have a conflict of interest because of calls for a judicial inquiry into the Perth Mint swindle. Prior to being interviewed by the task force, code named “Tartan”, Bill Round allegedly told me that he would lie to the investigators about his involvement in illegal telephone taps as any admission by him would result in him being charged and the corrupt police officers who were the subject matter of the illegal telephone taps would get away with their crimes. After a discussion with Bill regarding the consequence of any admission, I was present when he drafted a letter to the Commissioner of Police seeking indemnity from prosecutions. Some time later he told me that he had been informed by the investigators attached to “Operation Tartan” that his request had been considered by John McKecknie, the then Director of Public Prosecutions and that McKecknie had refused his application for an indemnity from prosecution.
When the Labor Party won the next elections, I approached the Attorney General, Jim McGinty and provided him with a copious amount of documents which would support my allegations of police corruption and he publicly announced that he had forwarded these documents to the Royal Commission for examination. On 4 February 2003 I met with two Royal Commission investigators who told me that my specific allegations would not be examined by the Royal Commission but there was a possibility that the treatment I received at the hands of senior police officers after I had attempted to expose senior police corruption would be investigated.
Somewhat ironically, Frank concluded his extraordinary affidavit with this observation: I was extremely surprised that the Attorney general did not include my allegations in the terms of reference for the Police Royal Commission as both he and the Premier called for my allegations to be investigated when the Labor Party was in opposition. Frank made a further effort to expose and have investigated his very serious allegations when he wrote to the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) which was now rebadged as the newly painted and refitted Corruption and Crime Commission, CCC. This time he expressed considerable dissatisfaction with the conduct of the Attorney General Jim McGinty. In response to the Corruption and Crime Commissions’ recent call for submissions dealing with the unauthorized release of confidential information by Government Agencies, I wish to lay a formal complaint alleging improper or corrupt conduct by the Attorney General, Mr. McGinty.
As you are aware, the Labor Party pledged to hold a Royal Commission into allegations of corruption within the West Australian Police Service in the lead up to the last State elections and then when it was successful in forming Government, it delayed the establishment of the Royal Commission for some twelve months. During this period of time, I had regular contact with the staff of the newly appointed Attorney General, Mr. McGinty and provided him with copious amounts of documents which supported my claims of corruption by senior police officers. I expected that the Attorney General would examine these documents when formulating some of the terms of reference to be investigated by the Royal Commission. Of particular concern to me, was the association of several high ranking police officers with members of the Mr. Asia Drug Syndicate and some of the documents which I supplied Mr. McGinty clearly showed that the West Australian police service regularly installed illegal telephone intercepts to glean information.
During some of these illegal telephone intercepts, information was obtained that the Mr. Asia Drug Syndicate was laundering large sums of money through the Perth racing industry and was assisted in this criminal activity by some police officers attached to the CIB consorting squad who received corrupt payments. When in opposition, both Mr. McGinty and Dr. Gallop were very critical that the Government had failed to establish a Judicial Investigation into allegations of police corruption after the Tomlinson Report was tabled in Parliament, and on or about 26 June 1996, I telephoned Mr. McGinty and advised him that the Commissioner of Police had condoned the installation of an illegal telephone intercept on the Mickelberg’s telephone.Despite the fact that he knew in June 1996 that the Police Service had acted corruptly in the manner in which evidence was obtained to convict the Mickelberg brothers of the Perth Mint swindle, he failed to refer this matter to be investigated by the Royal Commission. Furthermore, when Tony Lewandowski, a member of the police investigation team that charged the Mickeberg brothers confessed that he and Don Hancock had assaulted and fabricated evidence against one of the brothers to sustain a conviction, the Attorney General immediately showed the affidavit prepared by Lewandowski to his ministerial colleague and former Assistant Commissioner of Police, Bob Kucera who is one of the officers who is suspected of committing perjury during the many appeals by the Mickelberg brothers’ against their conviction. My specific complaint against the Attorney general is that by showing that affidavit to Kucera, when he was fully aware that some police had acted corruptly and that Kucera was one of the officers suspected of committing perjury, he had compromised any further investigation and maybe guilty of attempting to pervert the course of justice. I understand that he and Mr. Kucera are close friends and are now related through marriage and this may be the reason why this investigation was thwarted.
I am also concerned that the Attorney General may have colluded with Kucera in a similar fashion when dealing with the documentary evidence which I bought before him and therefore the manner in which the Terms of Reference for the Police Royal Commission were selected could also be perceived as being corrupt. I have attached two sworn affidavits which I have prepared in relation to this matter and I have also included correspondence between myself, Mr McGinty, Mr Kucera and the shadow Police spokesman for your examination. I feel this matter should be investigated by the Corruption and Crime Commission and I look forward to being advised the results of such investigation. Fortunately Frank didn’t hold his breath awaiting an outcome as he became more and more marginalized by the Fifth Estate. By now he was pretty much in the state of agitation that he was accused of by his corrupt ‘colleagues’ in the CIB being Mad as a Cut Snake!
Australia: Woman hit by taxi says charges to be dropped
Jenny Franco says her worst fears have been realised after she was told that charges against the taxi driver accused of running her down will be dropped. Stuart Russell Graham, 55, was behind the wheel of a cab that allegedly struck the 23-year-old at Miranda, in Sydney's south, on February 20 last year. Ms Franco, who was dragged 150 metres along the road, lost her left eye and spent three months in hospital. Graham was charged with dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm and with failing to stop and assist.
In November, the Downing Centre Local Court heard that Graham's lawyer, Brett Thomas, had asked the Director of Public Prosecutions to drop the charges against him. The court was told police investigations were continuing and the DPP was awaiting a psychiatric report while considering Mr Thomas's request. Yesterday, a spokeswoman for the DPP said she could not comment on whether the case against Graham would be dropped, as the matter was before the courts. Mr Thomas could not be reached for comment.
However, Ms Franco told Channel Seven the DPP had told her the charges against Graham would be dropped. She is reportedly due to meet the DPP on Monday, with the charges to be formally dropped during a court hearing on Tuesday. "It was actually my worst fear," she said. "It scares me to know that this accused taxi driver gets to walk scot-free, possibly return to his work and . possibly hurt someone else."
Ms Franco's mother, Ludy, said her daughter was too traumatised to go back to where the accident happened. She said her daughter had been living in an apartment in the city, away from the family's Miranda home and the scene of the accident.
Report here. (Via Australian Politics)
http://images.google.co.uk/
AFTER spending more than a decade behind bars for the murder of a Perth jeweller, Andrew Mallard last night walked from prison a free man.
The 42-year-old was released from maximum security Casuarina Prison after prosecutors withdrew a murder charge against him yesterday afternoon.A calm, smiling and relieved Mr Mallard emerged from prison flanked by family and supporters, eager to head home in a limousine ordered for the occasion.
"I just want a good night's sleep, free from officers jeering in the port and keys jangling and all that sort of thing," he said.
"I have been preparing for this for some time - nearly 12 years actually."
Outraged at an assertion in the West Australian Supreme Court that he remained the prime suspect in the 1994 murder of Pamela Lawrence, Mr Mallard's sister Jackie accused police of conducting an inept investigation, claiming evidence was presented three years ago that should have set her brother free.
"The police should now do their job properly, as they should have in the first place, and find out who really did this," she said.
Two appeals failed before Mr Mallard's conviction was quashed by the High Court in November. He was due to face trial later this year, but at a hastily convened sitting of the Supreme Court yesterday, Director of Public Prosecutions Robert Cock QC withdrew the prosecution.
Lawrence, a 45-year-old mother of two, was found dying in a pool of blood in her jewellery shop in the western suburb of Mosman Park on May 23, 1994.
The High Court ruled Mr Mallard's conviction after a 10-day Supreme Court trial in 1995 was a miscarriage of justice because the prosecution failed to disclose, or had suppressed, important evidence.
Mr Cock said the reason for withdrawing the prosecution related to the admissibility of alleged confessions made by Mr Mallard during several interrogations - including an eight-hour unrecorded interview - in 1994. Mr Cock said because of retrospective 1996 laws at least some of the police interviews should have been recorded on video.
The court was told Mr Mallard - an itinerant suffering bipolar disease - alleged he had been induced to do one of the interviews, was assaulted, verbally intimidated and fed detailed information about the case; allegations denied by police.
Mr Cock said Mr Mallard's alleged confessions were complex and there were other obvious difficulties with the case, including no forensic evidence linking him to the murder. "It does not leave us with a case upon which there is a reasonable prospect of obtaining a conviction," he said.
He said Mr Mallard remained the prime suspect, promising the prosecution would be pursued if further evidence came to hand.
Deputy Police Commissioner Chris Dawson stood by the investigators. "There is no information which suggests that these officers acted corruptly or maliciously," he said. There were no plans to reopen the investigation.
`I thought the system was out to get at me' By COLLEEN EGAN
ANDREW Mallard has spoken up about the 12 years he spent behind bars for a murder he says he did not commit.
Mr Mallard, who was released from prison this week after a charge of wilfully murdering Mosman Park jeweller Pamela Lawrence was dropped, wept with relief and sadness as he spoke of his time in jail.
Now 43, he says he was under a lot of stress at the time of the 1994 murder, with mental-health problems and rampant marijuana use that made him act suspiciously and left him vulnerable to police manipulation.
Born in England, Mr Mallard was an extraordinarily tall teenager, with low self-esteem. He joined the army as a young man to impress his father, a long-time soldier with British forces, but hated the regimented life and was discharged with a sleeping disorder.
He slipped into a deep depression, exacerbated by heavy marijuana use. In a feeble attempt to escape Perth, he went to Kalgoorlie where he was caught stealing a motorcycle.
He spent two weeks in prison; the only time he served before the Lawrence murder.
After short stints in the eastern states and Britain, he had a nervous breakdown and went to live with his parents. He stopped smoking marijuana and spent a year under the care of a clinical psychologist.
But he moved back to Perth and before long started smoking pot again.
"I kept on going to job interviews and getting rejected," he said. "All my money was going on marijuana. It all went downhill. My flatmates asked me to move and I had nowhere to go."
In the month before the murder, Mr Mallard racked up a criminal record for petty theft and dishonesty.
He attached himself to a girl who lived in Mosman Park, around the corner from Lawrence's jewellery shop, and scored marijuana for her in exchange for a place to sleep.
In a condition that was later diagnosed as manic-phase bipolarity, Mr Mallard claimed his name was "Andre" and he was working undercover for Interpol.
"I was always trying to impress people by exaggerating or giving a false name," he said. "I wasn't in a fantasy world. I knew what was real. But I didn't want to deal with the reality that I was on the street, I had no money and I felt like a failure. I was trying to impress people and get them to like me."
Mr Mallard said the crime that brought him to the attention of police, for which he was in the lock-up the morning of the murder, was part of this cycle.
He pretended to be a drug squad detective and kicked in the door of the woman's former boyfriend's flat.
It resulted in him being assessed at Graylands Psychiatric Hospital, where detectives visited him about a week after the murder. As one of 136 suspects, he gave several alibis, but they all turned out to be things he'd done on different days.
Before long he was out of Graylands and straight into a police interview room, where a video-record button was never pressed. But detectives later claimed he confessed.
"I was just freaking out," he said. "I tried everything I could to convince them I was innocent and to answer every question. The detective said, `I know you're a cold-blooded killer'.
"He brought a photograph of Mrs Lawrence's bloody head and shoved it in my face. I felt awful, horrible. I can't comprehend how someone could do that to someone else."
The detective has denied showing the photograph.
Mr Mallard was released into the night and, unbeknown to him, befriended by an undercover cop. He didn't even think to get a lawyer.
"I was trying to survive with no food or money," he said. "I was thinking, `I'm a man. I can handle this'."
Brought in a second time, Mr Mallard did a short video interview "to clear my name" and thought the ordeal was over until a detective re-entered the room. "He said, `We think you did it. You're sick and you're blocking it out of your mind. You need help', " Mr Mallard said.
He was given a Legal Aid lawyer who had never worked on a murder trial. He asked for a QC, but the judge refused. He was convicted and sentenced to life in jail.
Mr Mallard coped with prison by drifting into a fantasy world where he believed he was the victim of a vast conspiracy. He gained a reputation for being mad, which he believes stopped him being picked on.
"I was frightened of being raped, of being killed," he said. "I just kept my head down and was polite. I didn't talk to anyone.
"By the time my appeals failed I believed I was a scapegoat for a huge organised crime conspiracy and that Casuarina Prison was a huge facility for brainwashing innocent people. I believed they were trying to brainwash me into believing I was a killer.
"I thought my cell was fitted with a camera and microphones, and that while I was asleep they would whisper in my ear to convince me I was guilty. I would point to the ceiling and say, `You won't get me, you bastards'. It made me look like a real nutter."
Mr Mallard was known for standing all day behind a solitary tree in the middle of the exercise yard and spending endless hours on intricate Celtic art. Records show he was disciplined for cutting the Ministry of Justice logo out of his towels "because he was innocent".
He said he was beaten up once and threatened with death at knifepoint.
"I believed that was part of the conspiracy as well, so I just told them to go ahead and do their worst," he said. "In hindsight that probably helped with my reputation, too."
Mr Mallard's deep paranoia led him to cancel visits with his family because he believed they were being threatened and manipulated by corrupt police. In early 1998, his beloved father died of cancer, but he thought the news was part of the conspiracy.
He did not go to the funeral and for the next two years continued writing to his father in the belief he was not dead.
NEXT WEEK: How Andrew Mallard and a support team fought to reopen his case.
. Colleen Egan has been investigating the Mallard case since 1998. During those years she has been a supporter of Mr Mallard's family and his legal team.
Innocent victims hit back By JOHN FLINT - 26feb06
THE year Andrew Mallard was born, John Button was escorted in handcuffs to the hellhole that was Fremantle Jail to begin his stretch for killing his girlfriend.
He was innocent of the crime, but it took 40 tortured years to remove the stain.
On Friday, he was back at the old jail – he now has a lifetime free pass to the tourism attraction – to pose for today's front-page picture.
But there is more connecting the men in the picture than their notoriety as victims of miscarriages of justice who, between them, did 32 years' hard time.
Mr Button, 62, played an active part in Mr Mallard's campaign for innocence, even travelling to the UK, Mr Mallard's birthplace, to lobby British MPs.
He was in court on Monday to hear Department of Public Prosecutions head Robert Cock announce there would be no retrial for Mr Mallard, meaning he was a free man after nearly 12 years behind bars.
One of the first phone calls to congratulate Mr Mallard, 43, came from Peter Mickelberg, who with brother Ray knows a thing or two about fighting the system.
Led by Mr Button, all four men are keen to assist in the creation of WA's first Innocence Project.
Innocence projects exist in every state of the US and in other countries, and some Australian states, but not here. They are community groups made up of lawyers, journalists and other outraged citizens who provide assistance to prison inmates who have strong claims of wrongful conviction.
Mr Button has been burning the midnight oil to get the project off the ground. He has been working closely with award-winning journalist Estelle Blackburn, whose book Broken Lives played a major part in exposing the miscarriage of justice in his case and that of Darryl Beamish.
He said journalist Brett Christian, who revealed flaws in the Rory Christie case, and Robin Napper, of the University of WA's Centre for Forensic Science, had shown interest in getting on board.
Mr Button said: "I have got grandchildren and I want to make this world a better place for them. I spend my days now working on this (project) and going into schools on a regular basis talking to kids about the justice system.
"I have stressed the point that they are the up-and-coming generation. They are the ones who are going to fix it. We can't hold our breath waiting for the people in power now to do it."
Mr Button said the demand from schools was unbelievable.
"I have got bookings for the next few years, from Esperance to Karratha," he said.
AN ocean dip ranks among Andrew Mallard's top priorities after 12 years behind bars for the murder of a Perth jeweller.
But in 40C heat in the coastal town of Mandurah yesterday, Mr Mallard was too busy to indulge in the simple pleasure and had to settle for dangling his feet in the river estuary south of Perth.
Unexpectedly released from maximum-security Casuarina jail on Monday after prosecutors withdrew a murder charge, Mr Mallard - who was awaiting a retrial after his conviction was quashed by the High Court in November - vowed he would not rest until the case was solved.
"The family of the victim need proper closure - they need to know that I am innocent and get this perpetrator behind bars," the 43-year-old said. "(But) I have learnt to be patient."
Mr Mallard told The Australian he was angry Director of Public Prosecutions Robert Cock QC had maintained he was still the prime suspect for the brutal bashing death of Pamela Lawrence in 1994. "I expected something like this and I expected them to try and still keep it pinned on me," he said.
But Mr Mallard's defence lawyer, Malcolm McCusker QC, was less diplomatic, labelling Mr Cock's statement "quite extraordinary" and beyond the proper function of the DPP. "It really was contemptuous disregard for the fundamental principle of justice, that a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty after a fair trial," Mr McCusker said. "They have by this statement blackened this man's name."
Mr Cock yesterday said he was duty bound to disclose to the court and the accused the intention of the DPP to prosecute Mr Mallard in the future if additional evidence was available.
"I entirely agree that this is a most unsatisfactory set of events," Mr Cock said. "It is fully unacceptable that Mr Mallard has had to remain in custody for so long in circumstances under which he is now released."
State Attorney-General Jim McGinty yesterday conceded the case had revealed an "untidy and unfortunate" series of events, saying it was up to the state's corruption watchdog to continue its investigations into the handling of the police inquiries and prosecution.
"Nobody can feel satisfied with the way in which the Mallard case has unfolded," Mr McGinty said. "It was an horrendous murder. Nobody has been brought to justice for it and now we have got allegations of improper or corrupt behaviour by police and DPP prosecutors.
"I think there is no doubt that this particular case casts a shadow over the way in which the police conducted the investigation and perhaps the way in which the DPP prosecuted this case." Mr McGinty urged police to vigorously investigate any further information that became available.
Police Deputy Commissioner Chris Dawson was quick to defend his officers yesterday, saying it was important the case did not become a measure of police competence in homicide investigations. Contradicting his statement on Monday evening that police had no intention of re-opening the case, Mr Dawson said unsolved murder cases were never closed.
Opposition backs Mallard's compo bid
Posted Sun May 3, 2009 9:00am AEST
Updated Sun May 3, 2009 9:48am AEST
Shadow Attorney General John Quigley says he hopes the Western Australian Government can learn from the mistakes of its predecessor when determining how much compensation to pay Andrew Mallard.
The Government is expected to announce soon how much compensation it will pay Mr Mallard for his wrongful imprisonment over the 1994 murder of Pamela Lawrence.
Mr Quigley says Mr Mallard has been advised by senior counsel not to settle for compensation of less than $7.5 million.
Mr Quigley says if the Government does not make a reasonable offer, Mr Mallard could also seek compensation from the Police Union like Ray and Peter Mickelberg.
In January last year, the Labor State Government awarded Ray and Peter Mickelberg a joint ex gratia payment of $1 million for their wrongful convictions for the 1982 Perth Mint Swindle.
Now, after a long-running legal dispute, the Police Union has also agreed to compensate them.
Mr Quigley, who is a supporter of Mr Mallard and a former police union lawyer, says if the Government does not give Mr Mallard a decent payout, there could be a similar outcome.
He hopes the Government has learnt from the mistakes of its predecessor.
"If they once again short change Mr Mallard, he will use what money he does get to pursue the police," he said.
"If they don't fully compensate Andrew Mallard and only give him sufficient funds to settle against the State, he'll be then left suing the police and it's all the young, honest, hard working officers of today who'll be left carrying the burden."
John Quigley calls for Mallard-like compensation
Todd Cardy, court reporter June 20, 2009 03:00pm
Labor legal affairs spokesman John Quigley has thrown his support behind Mr Ward's family and demanded the State Government offer compensation at least equal to the $3.25 million given to Andrew Mallard.
Mr Ward, whose first name cannot be released for cultural reasons, died on January 27 last year when the temperature topped 50 degrees Celsius in the pod of the privately-managed prison van.
Mr Quigley, a long time advocate of Mr Mallard's who was wrongly jailed for murder for 12 years, said the money should be offered without restrictions.
``The late Mr Ward's death is the worst death of any of the deaths that came before the Aboriginal Deaths in Custody Royal Commission,'' Mr Quigley told The Sunday Times.
``The money to Andrew Mallard should be a starting point (for compensation), maybe a bit more given that he roasted to death.''
But Mr Quigley's support drew the ire of another wrongly jailed man, Peter Mickelberg, who followed the MP through the crowd and accused him of ``using this as a cheap political stunt''.
The Deaths in Custody Watch Committee organised the rally in Forrest Chase today which drew hundreds of supporters calling for ``justice for Mr Ward''.
A large banner with the words ``It is truly too sad grandfather is dead'' overlooked the crowd who later marched the Murray St and Hay St malls.
Mardu elder Teddy Biljabu, a relative and representative of Mr Ward's family, said his people had been devastated by the loss of an elder who was described as a cultural man, dancer and artist.
``People are still dying for drunken driving, for drunken disorderly, for small crimes, small things, and people are dying - that has to stop,'' he said.
Former federal Aboriginal affairs minister and co-chair of Reconciliation Australia, Fred Chaney, said he wanted ``justice for today's generation and tomorrow's generation''.
``The terrible death of Mr Ward reflects the basic fact that we do not treat and see our Aboriginal brothers and sisters as the truly human people that they are,'' Mr Chaney said.
``No one could explain the behaviour that has occurred except on that basis.''
Associate Professor Ted Wilkes, of Curtin University, said he was not surprised no one had been charged over Mr Ward's death.
``We continue to get our guts kicked, we continue to come to these rallies to call for justice - I don't have any optimism about what is going to happen but I am hopeful,'' Mr Wilkes said.
Australia: Mickelbergs finally get a compensation payment
Peter and Ray Mickelberg say their $1 million compensation payout for being framed for the Perth Mint swindle is not enough to cover their losses. The Carpenter Government yesterday awarded $1 million in compensation - the largest payment in the state's history - to the two brothers, who were wrongly jailed for almost a decade after they were framed by police for the notorious 1982 Perth Mint swindle. Attorney-General Jim McGinty said police actions were "a perversion of the system of justice of the worst kind" and no amount of money would make up for what happened.
But the payout was criticised by Peter Mickelberg, 50, and his brother Ray, 62, as insufficient to cover the debts they accumulated during a decades-long fight to clear their names. Ray Mickelberg told The Australian they owed at least $1.2million. He said the ex gratia payments of $500,000 each were effectively gone without even acknowledging millions of dollars in lost assets, ruined careers and pain and suffering that resulted from the fit-up. He was furious also that no compensation was offered to the children of a third brother, Brian, who has since died, but was also wrongly convicted and jailed for nine months. Peter Mickelberg spent more than eight years in jail and Ray more than six.
Their convictions were quashed in 2004, 15 years after they were released, after detective Tony Lewandowski, who has since killed himself, admitted police fabricated evidence. Another corrupt officer exposed by Lewandowski, Don Hancock, was killed in a car bomb attack carried out by a bikie gang member in 2001. Despite the brothers' anger yesterday, Mr McGinty said the payments brought to an end the State's involvement, following $658,672 they received to cover the costs of two appeals. The Mickelberg brothers were convicted of defrauding the mint of $653,000 in gold bullion by issuing worthless cheques. After his arrest, Peter was stripped, beaten and forced to sign a false statement by the two corrupt officers. The pair failed in a series of appeals over decades because police continued to provide false evidence.
The extraordinary case even involved more than 58kg of bullion being dumped at the Seven Network's Perth studios in 1989, shortly after Peter's release, in an apparent attempt to implicate him. It was later shown to be South African gold that was not related to the case. Ray Mickelberg said he and Peter were forced to agree to the $1 million payout after Mr McGinty told them to take it or leave it. "In the end, we had no choice," he said. The pair criticised the decision to have taxpayers foot the bill. They said the money should have been seized from the superannuation funds of the corrupt officers. Angry WA Police Union president Mike Dean has labelled as "incompetent and irresponsible" the record $1 million payout to Peter and Ray Mickelberg announced yesterday. The state police union was also on the warpath after Mr McGinty confirmed the brothers were free to continue civil claims against police allegedly involved in their case. The Government initially tried to force the brothers to drop civil action against the seven former officers in return for the ex-gratia payments but failed. The civil action was initiated 18 months ago, and includes claims against the estates of the two dead officers, Lewandowski and Hancock. The terms of the $1 million ex-gratia compensation payout for wrongful conviction and jailing over the infamous 1982 Perth Mint Swindle does not prevent the brothers from taking further civil action against former police officers. They include former assistant commissioner and current Labor MP Bob Kucera.
The Life of Brian Burke The Godfather,
ex Premier of Western Australia, who was put on power by the Catholic Mafia heaed at the time by
Sam Fanchina the real Godftaher for many years in Perth, Western Australia.. for more details see
books by Stephen Carew-Reid, The Triumph of Truth (Who Is Watching The Watchers?)
Click here for more information in these books
Mallard offered $3.25m for 12 yrs' jail
Updated Tue May 5, 2009 6:41pm AEST
The Western Australian Government has offered a man wrongfully convicted of murdering a Perth woman a multi-million dollar ex-gratia payment.
Andrew Mallard spent more than a decade behind bars for the 1994 murder of Mosman Park jeweller Pamela Lawrence. His conviction was later overturned.
The state's Attorney-General, Christian Porter, today announced Mr Mallard has been offered $3.25 million as what he describes as a 'gift' from the Government.
The offer is the largest in the state's history and comes after months of negotiations.
Mr Porter says it is up to Mr Mallard to accept the money, but if he does, that figure will be deducted from any other settlement he may reach in the courts.
"What path Mr Mallard chooses from here is entirely his own choice, and what we have done from here does not limit his choices in any way or form," he said.
He says the sum offered is a life-changing amount of money and Mr Mallard might never have to work again.
The Premier, Colin Barnett, has described it as a historic offer, and is urging Mr Mallard's friends and supporters, including the Shadow Attorney-General John Quigley, to accept the deal.
Mr Quigley says the amount offered is grossly insufficient and Mr Mallard will continue with legal action against those involved in his wrongful conviction.
"I don't think there's anyone in the community that would accept $3.25 million as fair compensation for being snatched off the street today, jailed for 12 and a half years and have their whole life destroyed," Mr Quigley said.
Mr Mallard says he's disappointed by the offer.
"This is a very, very delicate situation and and I will be conferring with my lawyers," he said.
Last year, Ray and Peter Mickelberg were awarded more than $1 million for their wrongful conviction over the 1982 Perth Mint swindle.
Strange Australian Justice for the well connectedIndulgence for well-connected young drunk-driver in Australia
Being good at sport earns forgiveness for appalling behaviour
An international lawn bowler who ran a red light at 90km/h over the speed limit while drunk and hit another vehicle has walked free from court, after glowing references from a former National Crime Authority chief and a one-time director of the Immigration Department. Nathan Kane Swincer, 21, was spared a 27-month sentence yesterday, despite seriously injuring another driver while driving at more than 150km/h, with a blood alcohol level of 0.14. M
It seems that nobody cares in Australia
The family of a popular young man who died in an unprovoked attack said yesterday they were "sickened" by a Court of Appeal decision not to increase the killer's sentence. "What you hear is 'how good is the bloody criminal' – don't it make it sick?" the victim's devastated father Roy Markham said outside the court. "The system is rotten, rotten to the core." Court of Appeal president Margaret McMurdo had dismissed an appeal by Attorney-General Linda Lavarch, who wanted to increase the jail sentence for university student Moses Rupert Katia, 19, to 10 years.
Earlier this year, Katia was jailed for eight years with a recommendation for parole after three years when he pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of the Gold Coast concreter, 23. The court was told Katia had drunk 15 rums and cola and was walking with a friend through the city shortly after 5am. They came across Markham, who had passed out, sitting on a bench outside the Embassy Hotel in Elizabeth St. They were seen taking his mobile phone and shoes. Katia returned a short time later, punched Markham and stole his watch before fleeing. Markham died in hospital the next day.
Choking back tears, the mother of Paul Bernard Markham, Pam Markham, said: "I'm tired of being told what a nice person Moses is – nobody in this whole time has said what a nice bloke my son was. He was a delight and I haven't got him any more."
Judge McMurdo said Markham's death in February last year was a stark warning to all in the community about binge drinking. In dismissing the appeal by Mrs Lavarch, who had sought a 10-year jail term for Katia, Justice McMurdo attacked the binge drinking culture which she said could make pleasant and amiable people behave aggressively and out of character. She said Markham was an affable man of good character but had been grossly intoxicated and an easy target for predators. "His intoxication was almost certainly why a relatively minor punch to the head caused devastating vertebral artery rupture and a resultant serious brain injury which led to his death," she said. Justice McMurdo said alcohol abuse was also how Katia – a talented university student of good character when sober – came to rob, steal, assault and kill Markham.
Julian Assange says he could be killed in US jail
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange outside Beccles
police station in Suffolk, which he has to visit every day as one of the
terms of his bail. Photograph: Paul Hackett/Reuters
The Guardian article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/
The Guardian article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/
Julian Assange: my fate will rest in Cameron's hands if US charges me
WikiLeaks founder says it would be 'politically impossible' for Britain to extradite him to the US
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 23 December 2010
Julian Assange said today that it would be "politically impossible" for Britain to extradite him to the United States, and that the final word on his fate if he were charged with espionage would rest with David Cameron.
In an interview with the Guardian in Ellingham Hall, the Norfolk country mansion where he is living under virtual house arrest, the founder of WikiLeaks said it would be difficult for the prime minister to hand him over to the Americans if there was strong support for him from the British people.
"It's all a matter of politics. We can presume there will be an attempt to influence UK political opinion, and to influence the perception of our standing as a moral actor," he said.
Assange is currently fighting extradition to Sweden. He strongly denies allegations of sexual misconduct with two Swedish women. But he believes the biggest threat to his freedom and to WikiLeaks, his whistleblowing website, emanates from a wrathful United States.
There is no evidence of any imminent US move to indict him. But according to Assange, the Obama administration is "trying to strike a plea deal" with Bradley Manning, the 23-year-old intelligence officer and alleged source of the more than a quarter of a million US diplomatic cables embarrassingly leaked last month. The US attorney general, Eric Holder, wants to indict Assange as a co-conspirator and is also examining "computer hacking statutes and support for terrorism", Assange claims.
Sitting in front of a log fire, his Apple MacBook Pro perched on his lap, Assange said his recent nine-day spell in Wandsworth jail had prepared him for the possibility that he might spend a long period in prison if indicted by the US. He said the prospect of solitary confinement was no longer an "intellectual abstraction" but a reality. The high court bailed him to Norfolk last Thursday, with his extradition hearing scheduled for 6-7 February.
He said: "Solitary confinement is very difficult. But I know that provided there is some opportunity for correspondence I can withstand it. I'm mentally robust. Of course it would mean the end of my life in the conventional sense."
If the US succeeded in removing him from the UK or Sweden, Assange said there was a "high chance" of him being killed "Jack Ruby-style" in the US prison system.
Since moving to Ellingham Hall, a Georgian country house and organic farm owned by his friend and supporter Vaughan Smith, Assange has given numerous media interviews. But he said he was fed up with the press and described an interview with BBC Radio 4's Today programme – in which John Humphrys grilled him on how many people he had slept with – as "awful".
Assange also took issue with a lengthy report in Saturday's Guardian setting out the prosecution allegations against him in Sweden. Assange acknowledged that the Guardian had a right to publish the material, dealing with his alleged encounters with the women. But he said it had been "sub-selected" and not placed properly in context. Swedish prosecutors have demanded that he return to Sweden to face further questions about the allegations.
Assange also said WikiLeaks did not have enough money to pay its legal bills, even though "a lot of generous lawyers have donated their time to us". He said legal costs for WikiLeaks and his own defence were approaching £500,000. The decisions by Visa, MasterCard and PayPal to stop processing donations to WikiLeaks – apparently following US pressure – had robbed the website of a "war chest" of around €500,000, he complained. This would have been enough to fund WikiLeaks' publishing operations for six months. At its peak the organisation was receiving €100,000 a day, he said.
According to publishing sources, however, Assange can take cheer from the fact that he has secured a seven-figure advance for a book about WikiLeaks and his life story. The sources suggest he is likely to receive £250,000 himself, allowing him to pay off some of his debts and to settle his personal defence fund, currently "paralysed". The book is to be published in the spring by Knopf in the US and Canongate in the UK, the sources suggest.
Assange – who has to wear his electronic tag in the bath, and report every day to Beccles police station – confessed he has no idea where he will be in a year's time. He described the next chapter in his life as "not yet predictable.
"Legally the UK has the right to not extradite for political crimes. Espionage is the classic case of political crimes. It is at the discretion of the UK government as to whether to apply to that exception."
He argued that Cameron and Nick Clegg were in a stronger position than the previous, Labour government to resist his extradition by Washington. "There is a new government, which wants to show it hasn't yet been co-opted by the US," he said, claiming that the security services – British and Australian – had a history of spying on and unduly influencing Labour politicians.
Many WikiLeaks supporters have now gone home for Christmas, leaving Assange with a scaled-down team over the holiday period, on an estate where the pheasant and grouse greatly outnumber the humans.
His immediate plan, he said, was to rest after a gruelling couple of months and then to continue with the staged global release of redacted US state department cables in the new year. Physically, he appeared somewhat wrung out, although very much composed and in good spirits.
Assange defended one of WikiLeaks' collaborators, Israel Shamir, following claims Shamir passed sensitive cables to Belarus's dictator, Alexander Lukashenko. Lukashenko has arrested 600 opposition supporters and journalists since Sunday's presidential election. The whereabouts and fate of several of the president's high-profile opponents are unknown.
Of Shamir, Assange said: "WikiLeaks works with hundreds of journalists from different regions of the world. All are required to sign non-disclosure agreements and are generally only given limited review access to material relating to their region. We have no reason to believe these rumours in relation to Belarus are true."
Over the past month the Guardian has published more than 200 articles based on the trove of US diplomatic dispatches obtained by WikiLeaks, and 739 of the cables themselves. All cables published by the Guardian and the four other international news organisations who had exclusive early access to the material have been carefully redacted to protect sources who could be placed in danger, and the redacted versions have been passed to WikiLeaks.
WikiLeaks now plans to begin sharing the cables with a wider group of regional news organisations. Julian Assange says all future cables released by WikiLeaks will either be redacted by other partner news organisations, or by WikiLeaks itself. The Guardian and its partners in the project, the New York Times, Der Spiegel, El Pais and Le Monde, will continue to share redactions with WikiLeaks for any cables they publish in future.
http://www.
Julian Assange says he could be killed in US jail
WIKILEAKS chief Julian Assange says there is a "high chance" he would be killed in a US jail if he were to be extradited from Britain on espionage charges.
The Australian is on bail in Britain fighting a bid by Sweden to extradite him over sex assault claims, but Washington is believed to be considering how to indict him over the leaking of thousands of US diplomatic cables.
Mr Assange added that if the United States succeeded in getting him extradited from Britain or Sweden, then there was a "high chance" of him being killed "Jack Ruby-style" in an American prison.
Read more: http://www.news.com.au/
The Guardian article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/
A historical refresher for anyone who might not know what Jack Ruby did...
On Sunday, November 24 Oswald was being led through the basement of Dallas Police Headquarters preparatory to his transfer to the county jail when, at 11:21 a.m., Dallas nightclub operator Jack Ruby stepped from the crowd and shot Oswald in the abdomen. Oswald died at 1:07 p.m. at Parkland Memorial Hospital—the same hospital where Kennedy had died two days earlier.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
http://news.ninemsn.com.au/
Fri Dec 24 2010
Assange says he could be killed in jail
WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange says there is a "high chance" he would be killed in a US jail if he were to be extradited from Britain on espionage charges.
The Australian is on bail in Britain fighting a bid by Sweden to extradite him over sex assault claims, but Washington is believed to be considering how to indict him over the leaking of thousands of US diplomatic cables.
Assange told The Guardian it would be "politically impossible" for Britain to send him across the Atlantic, adding that the government of Prime Minister David Cameron would want to show it had not been "co-opted" by Washington.
"Legally the UK has the right to not extradite for political crimes. Espionage is the classic case of political crimes. It is at the discretion of the UK government as to whether to apply to that exception," he said.
He said US authorities were "trying to strike a plea deal" with Bradley Manning, the US army soldier suspected of providing WikiLeaks with the cables.
Assange added that if the United States succeeded in getting him extradited from Britain or Sweden, then there was a "high chance" of him being killed "Jack Ruby-style" in an American prison.
Ruby, a nightclub owner, shot dead Lee Harvey Oswald at a police station in Dallas, Texas days after Oswald was arrested for the assassination of US President John F Kennedy in 1963.
Ruby's alleged links to organised crime sparked conspiracy theories about his involvement in an overall plot surrounding the assassination of Kennedy.
Assange has previously said that he and other WikiLeaks staff have received death threats since the website began to release a cache of about 250,000 secret US State Department cables in November.
The 39-year-old has been staying at a friend's country mansion in eastern England since his release from jail last week on strict bail conditions that include reporting to police daily and wearing an electronic tag.
A court in London is due to hold a full hearing on the Swedish extradition request starting February 7.
http://news.smh.com.au/AFP
WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange says there is a "high chance" he would be killed in a US jail if he were to be extradited from Britain on espionage charges.
The Australian is on bail in Britain fighting a bid by Sweden to extradite him over sex assault claims, but Washington is believed to be considering how to indict him over the leaking of thousands of US diplomatic cables.
Assange told The Guardian it would be "politically impossible" for Britain to send him across the Atlantic, adding that the government of Prime Minister David Cameron would want to show it had not been "co-opted" by Washington.
"Legally the UK has the right to not extradite for political crimes. Espionage is the classic case of political crimes. It is at the discretion of the UK government as to whether to apply to that exception," he said.
He said US authorities were "trying to strike a plea deal" with Bradley Manning, the US army soldier suspected of providing WikiLeaks with the cables.
Assange added that if the United States succeeded in getting him extradited from Britain or Sweden, then there was a "high chance" of him being killed "Jack Ruby-style" in an American prison.
Ruby, a nightclub owner, shot dead Lee Harvey Oswald at a police station in Dallas, Texas days after Oswald was arrested for the assassination of US President John F Kennedy in 1963.
Ruby's alleged links to organised crime sparked conspiracy theories about his involvement in an overall plot surrounding the assassination of Kennedy.
Assange has previously said that he and other WikiLeaks staff have received death threats since the website began to release a cache of about 250,000 secret US State Department cables in November.
The 39-year-old has been staying at a friend's country mansion in eastern England since his release from jail last week on strict bail conditions that include reporting to police daily and wearing an electronic tag.
A court in London is due to hold a full hearing on the Swedish extradition request starting February 7.
Assange says he could be killed in US jail
December 24, 2010AFP
WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange says there is a "high chance" he would be killed in a US jail if he were to be extradited from Britain on espionage charges.
The Australian is on bail in Britain fighting a bid by Sweden to extradite him over sex assault claims, but Washington is believed to be considering how to indict him over the leaking of thousands of US diplomatic cables.
Assange told The Guardian it would be "politically impossible" for Britain to send him across the Atlantic, adding that the government of Prime Minister David Cameron would want to show it had not been "co-opted" by Washington.
"Legally the UK has the right to not extradite for political crimes. Espionage is the classic case of political crimes. It is at the discretion of the UK government as to whether to apply to that exception," he said.
He said US authorities were "trying to strike a plea deal" with Bradley Manning, the US army soldier suspected of providing WikiLeaks with the cables.
Assange added that if the United States succeeded in getting him extradited from Britain or Sweden, then there was a "high chance" of him being killed "Jack Ruby-style" in an American prison.
Ruby, a nightclub owner, shot dead Lee Harvey Oswald at a police station in Dallas, Texas days after Oswald was arrested for the assassination of US President John F Kennedy in 1963.
Ruby's alleged links to organised crime sparked conspiracy theories about his involvement in an overall plot surrounding the assassination of Kennedy.
Assange has previously said that he and other WikiLeaks staff have received death threats since the website began to release a cache of about 250,000 secret US State Department cables in November.
The 39-year-old has been staying at a friend's country mansion in eastern England since his release from jail last week on strict bail conditions that include reporting to police daily and wearing an electronic tag.
A court in London is due to hold a full hearing on the Swedish extradition request starting February 7.
WikiLeaks
is an international new media non-profit organisation that publishes submissions of private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources andnews leaks. Its website, launched in 2006, is run by The Sunshine Press.[4] Within a year of its launch, the site claimed its database had grown to more than 1.2 million documents.[8] The organisation has described itself as having been founded by Chinesedissidents, as well as journalists, mathematicians, and start-up company technologists from the United States, Taiwan, Europe, Australia, and South Africa.[4] Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activist, is generally described as its director.[9]
WikiLeaks has received praise as well as criticism. The organization won a number of awards, including The Economist's 2008 New Media Award.[10] In June 2009, WikiLeaks and Julian Assange won Amnesty International's UK Media Award, in the category "New Media", for the 2008 publication of "Kenya: The Cry of Blood – Extra Judicial Killings and Disappearances",[11] a report by the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights about police killings in Kenya.[12] In May 2010, New York City's Daily News listed WikiLeaks as first in a ranking of "websites that could totally change the news".[13] Julian Assange was named the Readers' Choice for TIME's Person of the Year for 2010.[14] Several U.S. government officials have criticized WikiLeaks for exposing state secrets, harming national security, and compromising international diplomacy.[15][16][17][18][19] Human rights organizations such as Amnesty International criticized WikiLeaks for not adequately redacting the names of civilians working with the U.S. military.[20] Some journalists have criticized the lack of editorial discretion when releasing thousands of documents at once and without sufficient analysis.[21] Negative public reactions in the United States have characterized the organization as irresponsible, immoral, and illegal.[22][23][24]
In April 2010, WikiLeaks posted video from a 2007 incident in which Iraqi civilians and journalists were killed by US forces, on a website called Collateral Murder. In July of the same year, WikiLeaks released Afghan War Diary, a compilation of more than 76,900 documents about the War in Afghanistan not previously available for public review.[25] In October 2010, the group released a package of almost 400,000 documents called the Iraq War Logs in coordination with major commercial media organisations. In November 2010, WikiLeaks began releasing U.S. State department diplomatic cables.
WikiLeaks was originally launched as a user-editable wiki site, but has progressively moved towards a more traditional publication model, and no longer accepts either user comments or edits. The site is available on multiple servers and different domain names following a number of denial-of-service attacks and its severance from different Domain Name System(DNS) providers.[26][27]\\
The wikileaks.org domain name was registered on 4 October 2006.History
The creators of WikiLeaks have not been formally identified.[30] It has been represented in public since January 2007 by Julian Assangeand others. Assange describes himself as a member of WikiLeaks' advisory board.[31] News reports in The Australian have called Assange the "founder of WikiLeaks".[32] According to Wired magazine, a volunteer said that Assange described himself in a private conversation as "the heart and soul of this organisation, its founder, philosopher, spokesperson, original coder, organiser, financier, and all the rest".[33] As of June 2009, the site had over 1,200 registered volunteers[4] and listed an advisory board comprising Assange,Phillip Adams, Wang Dan, C. J. Hinke, Ben Laurie, Tashi Namgyal Khamsitsang, Xiao Qiang, Chico Whitaker and Wang Youcai.[34]Despite appearing on the list, when contacted by Mother Jones magazine in 2010, Khamsitsang said that while he received an e-mail from WikiLeaks, he had never agreed to be an advisor.[35]
WikiLeaks states that its "primary interest is in exposing oppressive regimes in Asia, the former Soviet bloc, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East, but we also expect to be of assistance to people of all regions who wish to reveal unethical behaviour in their governments and corporations."[4][36]
In January 2007, the website stated that it had over 1.2 million leaked documents that it was preparing to publish.[37] An article in The New Yorker said:
One of the WikiLeaks activists owned a server that was being used as a node for the Tor network. Millions of secret transmissions passed through it. The activist noticed that hackers from China were using the network to gather foreign governments’ information, and began to record this traffic. Only a small fraction has ever been posted on WikiLeaks, but the initial tranche served as the site’s foundation, and Assange was able to say, "[w]e have received over one million documents from thirteen countries."[29][38]
Assange responded to the suggestion that eavesdropping on Chinese hackers played a crucial part in the early days of WikiLeaks by saying "the imputation is incorrect. The facts concern a 2006 investigation into Chinese espionage one of our contacts were involved in. Somewhere between none and handful of those documents were ever released on WikiLeaks. Non-government targets of the Chinese espionage, such as Tibetan associations were informed (by us)".[39] The group has subsequently released a number of other significant documents which have become front-page news items, ranging from documentation of equipment expenditures and holdings in theAfghanistan war to corruption in Kenya.[40]
The organisation's stated goal is to ensure that whistleblowers and journalists are not jailed for emailing sensitive or classified documents, as happened to Chinese journalist Shi Tao, who was sentenced to 10 years in 2005 after publicising an email from Chinese officials about the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.[41]
The project has drawn comparisons to Daniel Ellsberg's leaking of the Pentagon Papers in 1971.[42] In the United States, the leaking of some documents may be legally protected. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the Constitution guarantees anonymity, at least in the area of political discourse.[42] Author and journalist Whitley Strieber has spoken about the benefits of the WikiLeaks project, noting that "Leaking a government document can mean jail, but jail sentences for this can be fairly short. However, there are many places where it means long incarceration or even death, such as China and parts of Africa and the Middle East."[43]
On 24 December 2009, WikiLeaks announced that it was experiencing a shortage of funds[44] and suspended all access to its website except for a form to submit new material.[45] Material that was previously published was no longer available, although some could still be accessed on unofficial mirrors.[46][47] WikiLeaks stated on its website that it would resume full operation once the operational costs were covered.[45] WikiLeaks saw this as a kind of strike "to ensure that everyone who is involved stops normal work and actually spends time raising revenue".[48] While the organisation initially planned for funds to be secured by 6 January 2010,[49] it was not until 3 February 2010 that WikiLeaks announced that its minimum fundraising goal had been achieved.[50]
On 22 January 2010, PayPal suspended WikiLeaks' donation account and froze its assets. WikiLeaks said that this had happened before, and was done for "no obvious reason".[51] The account was restored on 25 January 2010.[52] On 18 May 2010, WikiLeaks announced that its website and archive were back up.[53]
As of June 2010, WikiLeaks was a finalist for a grant of more than half a million dollars from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation,[29] but did not make the cut.[54] WikiLeaks commented, "WikiLeaks was highest rated project in the Knight challenge, strongly recommended to the board but gets no funding. Go figure”. WikiLeaks said that the Knight foundation announced the award to "'12 Grantees who will impact future of news' – but not WikiLeaks" and questioned whether Knight foundation was "really looking for impact".[54] A spokesman of the Knight Foundation disputed parts of WikiLeaks' statement, saying "WikiLeaks was not recommended by Knight staff to the board."[55] However, he declined to say whether WikiLeaks was the project rated highest by the Knight advisory panel, which consists of non-staffers, among them journalist Jennifer 8. Lee, who has done PR work for WikiLeaks with the press and on social networking sites.[55]
On 17 July, Jacob Appelbaum spoke on behalf of WikiLeaks at the 2010 Hackers on Planet Earth conference in New York City, replacing Assange because of the presence of federal agents at the conference.[56][57] He announced that the WikiLeaks submission system was again up and running, after it had been temporarily suspended.[56][58] Assange was a surprise speaker at a TED conferenceon 19 July 2010 in Oxford, and confirmed that the site had begun accepting submissions again.[59]
Upon returning to the US from the Netherlands, on 29 July, Appelbaum was detained for three hours at the airport by US agents, according to anonymous sources.[60] The sources told Cnet that Appelbaum's bag was searched, receipts from his bag were photocopied, his laptop was inspected, although in what manner was unclear.[60] Appelbaum reportedly refused to answer questions without a lawyer present, and was not allowed to make a phone call. His three mobile phones were reportedly taken and not returned.[60]On 31 July, he spoke at a Defcon conference and mentioned his phone being "seized". After speaking, he was approached by two FBIagents and questioned.[60]
Assange is quoted as acknowledging that his practice of posting largely unfiltered classified information online could one day lead the Web site to have "blood on our hands."[61]
In 2010, at least a dozen key supporters of WikiLeaks have left the website.[62]
Administration
According to a January 2010 interview, the WikiLeaks team then consisted of five people working full-time and about 800 people who worked occasionally, none of whom were compensated.[48] WikiLeaks has no official headquarters. The expenses per year are about €200,000, mainly for servers and bureaucracy, but would reach €600,000 if work currently done by volunteers were paid for.[48]WikiLeaks does not pay for lawyers, as hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal support have been donated by media organisations such as the Associated Press, Los Angeles Times, and the National Newspaper Publishers Association.[48] Its only revenue stream is donations, but WikiLeaks is planning to add an auction model to sell early access to documents.[48] According to the Wau Holland Foundation, WikiLeaks receives no money for personnel costs, only for hardware, travelling and bandwidth.[63] An article in TechEYE.net wrote
As a charity accountable under German law, donations for WikiLeaks can be made to the foundation. Funds are held in escrow and are given to WikiLeaks after the whistleblower website files an application containing a statement with proof of payment. The foundation does not pay any sort of salary nor give any renumeration [sic] to WikiLeaks' personnel, corroborating the statement of the site's former German representative Daniel Schmitt (real name Daniel Domscheit-Berg)[64] on national television that all personnel works voluntarily, even its speakers.[63]
Site management issues
Within WikiLeaks, there has been public disagreement between founder and spokesperson Julian Assange and Daniel Domscheit-Berg, the site's former German representative who was suspended by Assange. Domscheit-Berg announced on 28 September 2010 that he was leaving the organisation due to internal conflicts over management of the site.[65][66][64]
Hosting
WikiLeaks describes itself as "an uncensorable system for untraceable mass document leaking".[67] WikiLeaks is hosted by PRQ, a Sweden-based company providing "highly secure, no-questions-asked hosting services". PRQ is said to have "almost no information about its clientele and maintains few if any of its own logs".[68] The servers are spread around the world with the central server located in Sweden.[69] Julian Assange has said that the servers are located in Sweden (and the other countries) "specifically because those nations offer legal protection to the disclosures made on the site". He talks about the Swedish constitution, which gives the information providers total legal protection.[69] It is forbidden according to Swedish law for any administrative authority to make inquiries about the sources of any type of newspaper.[70] These laws, and the hosting by PRQ, make it difficult to take WikiLeaks offline. Furthermore, "Wikileaks maintains its own servers at undisclosed locations, keeps no logs and uses military-grade encryption to protect sources and other confidential information." Such arrangements have been called "bulletproof hosting."[68][71]
On 17 August 2010, it was announced that the Swedish Pirate Party will be hosting and managing many of WikiLeaks' new servers. The party donates servers and bandwidth to WikiLeaks without charge. Technicians of the party will make sure that the servers are maintained and working.[72][73]
Some servers are hosted in an underground nuclear bunker in Stockholm.[74][75]
After the site became the target of a denial-of-service attack from a hacker on its old servers, WikiLeaks moved its site to Amazon's servers.[76] Later, however, the website was "ousted"[76] from the Amazon servers, without a public statement from the company.[citation needed] WikiLeaks then decided to install itself on the servers of OVH in France.[77] After criticism from the French government, the company sought two court rulings about the legality of hosting WikiLeaks. While the court in Lille immediately declined to force OVH to shut down the WikiLeaks site, the court in Paris stated it would need more time to examine the highly technical issue.[76][78]
WikiLeaks is based on several software packages, including
On 4 November 2010, Julian Assange told Swiss public television TSR that he is seriously considering seeking political asylum in neutral Switzerland and setting up a WikiLeaks foundation in the country to move the operation there.[81][82] According to Assange, Switzerland and Iceland are the only countries where WikiLeaks would feel safe to operate.[83][84]
Financing
WikiLeaks is dependent on public donations since it is a non-profit organisation. Its main financing methods include conventional bank transfers and online payment systems. Wau Holland Foundation, one of the WikiLeaks' main funding channels, stated that they have received more than €900,000 (US$1.2 million) in public donations between October 2009 and December 2010, out of which €370,000 has been passed on to WikiLeaks. Hendrik Fulda, vice president of the Wau Holland Foundation, mentioned that the donations throughPayPal was twice[vague] as through normal banks, before PayPal's decision to suspend WikiLeaks' account. He also noted that donations were never as strong as when WikiLeaks started publishing leaked diplomatic cables.[85][86]
Name servers
WikiLeaks had been using EveryDNS's services, which led to DDoS attacks on the host.[clarification needed] The attacks affected the quality of service at EveryDNS, so the company withdrew their service from WikiLeaks. Pro-WikiLeaks supporters retaliated by launching a DDoS attack against EveryDNS. Due to mistakes in the blogosphere, some supporters accidentally mistook EasyDNS for EveryDNS and attacked it. The attacks caused both EveryDNS and EasyDNS to experience outages. Afterwards EasyDNS decided to provide WikiLeaks its name server service.[87]
Name and policies
Despite using the name "WikiLeaks", the website is no longer wiki-based as of December 2010. Also, despite some popular confusion[88] due to both having the term "wiki" in their names, WikiLeaks and Wikipedia have no affiliation with each other;[89][90] i.e. "wiki" is not a brand name. Wikia, a for-profit corporation loosely affiliated with the Wikimedia Foundation, did however purchase several Wikileaks-related domain names (including "wikileaks.com" and "wikileaks.net") as a "protective brand measure" in 2007.[91]
The "about" page originally read:[92]
To the user, WikiLeaks will look very much like Wikipedia. Anybody can post to it, anybody can edit it. No technical knowledge is required. Leakers can post documents anonymously and untraceably. Users can publicly discuss documents and analyze their credibility and veracity. Users can discuss interpretations and context and collaboratively formulate collective publications. Users can read and write explanatory articles on leaks along with background material and context. The political relevance of documents and their verisimilitude will be revealed by a cast of thousands.
However, WikiLeaks established an editorial policy that accepted only documents that were "of political, diplomatic, historical or ethical interest" (and excluded "material that is already publicly available").[93] This coincided with early criticism that having no editorial policy would drive out good material with spam and promote "automated or indiscriminate publication of confidential records."[94] It is no longer possible for anybody to post to it or edit it, as the original FAQ promised. Instead, submissions are regulated by an internal review process and some are published, while documents not fitting the editorial criteria are rejected by anonymous WikiLeaks reviewers. By 2008, the revised FAQ stated that "Anybody can post comments to it. [...] Users can publicly discuss documents and analyse their credibility and veracity."[95] After the 2010 relaunch, posting new comments to leaks was no longer possible.[96]
Verification of submissions
WikiLeaks states that it has never released a misattributed document. Documents are assessed before release. In response to concerns about the possibility of misleading or fraudulent leaks, WikiLeaks has stated that misleading leaks "are already well-placed in the mainstream media. WikiLeaks is of no additional assistance."[97] The FAQ states that: "The simplest and most effective countermeasure is a worldwide community of informed users and editors who can scrutinise and discuss leaked documents."[98]
According to statements by Assange in 2010, submitted documents are vetted by a group of five reviewers, with expertise in different fields such as language or programming, who also investigate the background of the leaker if his or her identity is known.[99] In that group, Assange has the final decision about the assessment of a document.[99]
Legal status
Legal background
The legal status of WikiLeaks is complex. Assange considers WikiLeaks a whistleblower protection intermediary. Rather than leaking directly to the press, and fearing exposure and retribution, whistleblowers can leak to WikiLeaks, which then leaks to the press for them.[100] Its servers are located throughout Europe and are accessible from any uncensored web connection. The group located its headquarters in Sweden because it has one of the world’s strongest shield laws to protect confidential source-journalist relationships.[101][102] WikiLeaks has stated that they "do not solicit any information".[101] However, Assange used his speech during the Hack In The Box conference in Malaysia to ask the crowd of hackers and security researchers to help find documents on its "Most Wanted Leaks of 2009" list.[103]
Potential criminal prosecution
The U.S. Justice Department opened a criminal probe of Wikileaks and founder Julian Assange shortly after the leak of diplomatic cables began.[104][105] Attorney General Eric Holder affirmed the probe was “not saber-rattling”, but was "an active, ongoing criminal investigation."[105] The The Washington Post reported that the department was considering charges under the Espionage Act, a move which former prosecutors characterised as "difficult" because of First Amendment protections for the press.[104][106] Several Supreme Court cases have previously established that the American constitution protects the re-publication of illegally gained information provided the publishers did not themselves break any laws in acquiring it.[107] Federal prosecutors have also considered prosecuting Assange for trafficking in stolen government property, but since the diplomatic cables are intellectual rather than physical property, that approach also faces hurdles.[108] Any prosecution of Assange would require extraditing him to the United States, a step made more complicated and potentially delayed by any preceding extradition to Sweden.[109] One of Assange's lawyers, however, says they are fighting extradition to Sweden because it might lead to his extradition to the United States.[110] Assange's attorney, Mark Stephens, has "heard from Swedish authorities there has been a secretly empaneled grand jury in Alexandria [Virginia]" meeting to consider criminal charges in the WikiLeaks case.[111]
In Australia, the government and the Australian Federal Police have not stated what Australian laws may have been broken by WikiLeaks, but Julia Gillard has stated that the foundation of Wikileaks and the stealing of classified documents from the US administration is illegal in foreign countries.[112] Gillard later clarified her statement as referring to "the original theft of the material by a junior US serviceman rather than any action by Mr Assange."[113] Spencer Zifcak, President of Liberty Victoria, an Australian civil liberties group, notes that with no charge, and no trial completed, it is inappropriate to state that WikiLeaks is guilty of illegal activities.[114]
On threats by various governments toward Assange, legal expert Ben Saul argues that founder Julian Assange is the target of a global smear campaign to demonise him as a criminal or as a terrorist, without any legal basis.[115]
Insurance file
On 29 July 2010, WikiLeaks added a 1.4 GB "Insurance File" to the Afghan War Diary page. The file is AES encrypted and has been speculated to serve as insurance in case the WikiLeaks website or its spokesman Julian Assange are incapacitated, upon which thepassphrase could be published, similar to the concept of a dead man's switch.[116][117] Following the first few days' release of the US diplomatic cables starting 28 November 2010, the US television broadcaster CBS predicted that "If anything happens to Assange or the website, a key will go out to unlock the files. There would then be no way to stop the information from spreading like wildfire because so many people already have copies."[118] CBS correspondent Declan McCullagh stated, "What most folks are speculating is that the insurance file contains unreleased information that would be especially embarrassing to the US government if it were released."[118]
Investigations, censorship, harassment, and surveillance
According to The Times, WikiLeaks and its members have complained about continuing harassment and surveillance by law enforcement and intelligence organisations, including extended detention, seizure of computers, veiled threats, “covert following and hidden photography.”[119] Two lawyers for Julian Assange in the United Kingdom told The Guardian that they believed they were being watched by the security services after the US cables leak.[120]
By governments
Police raid on German WikiLeaks domain holder's home
The home of Theodor Reppe, registrant of the German WikiLeaks domain name, wikileaks.de, was raided on 24 March 2009 after WikiLeaks released the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) censorship blacklist.[121] The site was not affected.[122][123]
P.R. China
Wikileaks's website claims that the government of the People's Republic of China has attempted to block all traffic to web sites with "wikileaks" in the URL since 2007, but that this can be bypassed through encrypted connections or by using one of Wikileaks's many covert URLs.[124]
Potential future Australian censorship
On 16 March 2009, the Australian Communications and Media Authority added WikiLeaks to their proposed blacklist of sites that will be blocked for all Australians if the mandatory internet filtering censorship scheme is implemented as planned.[125][126] The blacklisting was removed 30 November 2010.[127]
Thai censorship
The Centre for the Resolution of the Emergency Situation (CRES) is currently censoring the website WikiLeaks in Thailand[128] and more than 40,000 other webpages[129] because of the emergency decree in Thailand imposed as a result of political instabilities (Emergency decree declared beginning of April 2010[130]).
United States
Access to WikiLeaks is currently blocked in the United States Library of Congress.[131] On 3 December 2010 the White House Office of Management and Budget sent a memo forbidding all unauthorised federal government employees and contractors from accessing classified documents publicly available on WikiLeaks and other websites.[132] The U.S. Army, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Justice Department are considering criminally prosecuting WikiLeaks and Assange "on grounds they encouraged the theft of government property",[133] although former prosecutors say doing so would be difficult.[106] According to a report on the Daily Beast website, the Obama administration asked Britain, Germany and Australia among others to also consider bringing criminal charges against Assange for the Afghan war leaks and to help limit Assange's travels across international borders.[134]
Iceland
After the release of the 2007 airstrikes video and as they prepared to release film of the Granai airstrike, Julian Assange has said that his group of volunteers came under intense surveillance. In an interview and Twitter posts he said that a restaurant in Reykjavík where his group of volunteers met came under surveillance in March; there was "covert following and hidden photography" by police and foreignintelligence services; that an apparent British intelligence agent made thinly veiled threats in a Luxembourg car park; and that one of the volunteers was detained by police for 21 hours. Another volunteer posted that computers were seized, saying "If anything happens to us, you know why ... and you know who is responsible."[119] According to the Columbia Journalism Review, "the Icelandic press took a look at Assange’s charges of being surveilled in Iceland [...] and, at best, have found nothing to substantiate them."[135]
In August 2009, Kaupthing Bank succeeded in obtaining a court order gagging Iceland’s national broadcaster, RÚV, from broadcasting a risk analysis report showing the bank's substantial exposure to debt default risk. This information had been leaked by a whistleblower to WikiLeaks and remained available on the WikiLeaks site; faced with an injunction minutes before broadcast the channel ran with a screen grab of the WikiLeaks site instead of the scheduled piece on the bank. Citizens of Iceland felt outraged that RÚV was prevented from broadcasting news of relevance.[136] Therefore, WikiLeaks has been credited with inspiring the Icelandic Modern Media Initiative, a bill meant to reclaim Iceland's 2007 Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières) ranking as first in the world for free speech. It aims to enact a range of protections for sources, journalists, and publishers.[137][138] Birgitta Jónsdóttir, a former volunteer for WikiLeaks and member of the Icelandic parliament, is the chief sponsor of the proposal.
By organisations and companies
Facebook Inc.
WikiLeaks claimed in April 2010 that Facebook deleted their fan page, which had 30,000 fans.[139][140][141] However, as of 7 December 2010 the group's Facebook fan page was available and had grown by 100,000 fans daily since 1 December,[142] to more than 1,300,000 fans. It is also the largest growth of the week.[143] Regarding the presence of WikiLeaks on Facebook, Andrew Noyes, the company's D.C. based Manager of Public Policy Communications has stated "the Wikileaks Facebook Page does not violate our content standards nor have we encountered any material posted on the page that violates our policies."[144]
Moneybookers Ltd
In October 2010, it was reported that Moneybookers, which collected donations for WikiLeaks, had ended its relationship with the site. Moneybookers stated that its decision had been made "to comply with money laundering or other investigations conducted by government authorities, agencies or commissions."[145]
After the US diplomatic cables leak
Following the US diplomatic cables leak, which started on 28 November 2010, several companies severed ties with WikiLeaks. After providing 24-hour notification, American owned EveryDNS dropped WikiLeaks from its entries on 2 December 2010, citing DDoS attacks that "threatened the stability of its infrastructure".[26][146] The site's 'info' DNS lookup remained operational at alternative addresses for direct access respectively to the WikiLeaks and Cablegate websites.[147] On the same day, Amazon.com severed its ties with WikiLeaks, to which it was providing infrastructure services, after an intervention by an aide of U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman.[7][148][149]Amazon denied acting under political pressure citing a violation of its terms of service.[150] Citing indirect pressure from the U.S. Government, Tableau Software also dropped WikiLeaks' data from its site for people to use for data visualisation.[151][152]
In the days following, hundreds of (and eventually more than a thousand[153]) mirrors of the WikiLeaks site appeared and the Anonymousgroup of internet activists, called on supporters to attack the websites of companies which do not support WikiLeaks,[154] under the banner of Operation Payback, previously aimed at anti-piracy organisations.[155] AFP reported that attempts to shut down the wikileaks.org address had lead to the site surviving via the so-called Streisand effect, whereby attempts to censor information online leads to it being replicated in many places.[156]
On 3 December, PayPal, the payment processor owned by eBay, permanently cut off the account of the Wau Holland Foundation that had been redirecting donations to WikiLeaks. PayPal alleged that the account violated its "Acceptable Use Policy", specifically that it was used for "activities that encourage, promote, facilitate or instruct others to engage in illegal activity."[157][158] The Vice President of PayPal later stated that they stopped accepting payments after the “State Department told us these were illegal activities. It was straightforward.” Later the same day, he said that his previous statement was incorrect, and that it was in fact based on a letter from the State Department to WikiLeaks.[159] On 8 December 2010, the Wau Holland Foundation released a press statement, saying it has filed a legal action against PayPal for blocking its account used for WikiLeaks payments and for libel due to PayPal's allegations of "illegal activity".[160]
On 6 December, the Swiss bank, PostFinance, announced that it had frozen the assets of Assange that it holds, totalling 31,000 euros. In a statement on their website, they stated that this was because Assange "provided false information regarding his place of residence" when opening the account.[161] WikiLeaks released a statement saying this was due to that Assange, "as a homeless refugee attempting to gain residency in Switzerland, had used his lawyer's address in Geneva for the bank's correspondence".[162] On the same day, MasterCard announced that it "is taking action to ensure that WikiLeaks can no longer accept MasterCard-branded products", adding "MasterCard rules prohibit customers from directly or indirectly engaging in or facilitating any action that is illegal."[163] The next day, Visa Inc. announced it was suspending payments to WikiLeaks, pending "further investigations".[164] In a move of support for WikiLeaks, XIPWIRE established a way to donate to WikiLeaks, and waived their fees.[165] Datacell, the Swiss-based IT company that enabled WikiLeaks to accept credit card donations, announced that it will take legal action against Visa Europe and Mastercard, in order to resume allowing payments to the website.[166]
On 7 December 2010, The Guardian stated that people can still donate to WikiLeaks via Commerzbank Kassel in Germany orLandsbanki in Iceland or by post to a post office box at the University of Melbourne or at the wikileaks.ch domain.[167]
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has highlighted that Visa, Mastercard and Amazon may be 'violating WikiLeaks' [e pluribus unum] right to freedom of expression' by withdrawing their services.[168]
Reception
Support
In July 2010 Veterans for Peace president Mike Ferner editorialised on the group's website "neither Wikileaks nor the soldier or soldiers who divulged the documents should be prosecuted for revealing this information. We should give them a medal."[171]
Documentary filmmaker John Pilger wrote an August 2010 editorial in the Australian publication Green Left titled "Wikileaks Must Be Defended." In it, Pilger said WikiLeaks represented the interests of "public accountability" and a new form of journalism at odds with "the dominant section ... devoted merely to taking down what cynical and malign power tells it."[172]
Daniel Ellsberg, the man who released the Pentagon Papers in 1971, has been a frequent defender of WikiLeaks. Following the November 2010 release of U.S. diplomatic cables, Ellsberg rejected criticism that the site was endangering the lives of U.S. military personnel and intelligence assets stating "not one single soldier or informant has been in danger from any of the WikiLeaks releases. That risk has been largely overblown."[169] Ellsberg went on to note that government claims to the contrary were "a script that they roll out every time there's a leak of any sort."[170] Following the US diplomatic cable release, which a number of media reports sought to differentiate from Ellsberg's whistleblowing,[173] Ellsberg claimed, "EVERY attack now made on WikiLeaks and Julian Assange was made against me and the release of the Pentagon Papers at the time."[174]
On 3 December 2010 Republican Congressman of Texas, Ron Paul, spoke out publicly during a Fox Business interview in support of Wikileaks founder, Julian Assange; "In a free society we're supposed to know the truth," Paul said. "In a society where truth becomes treason, then we're in big trouble." Paul went on to state, "Why don't we prosecute The New York Times or anybody that releases this?"[175] In another speech at US House of Representatives Paul again defended WikiLeaks against criticism for revealing the truth and warned the US administration that "lying is not patriotic".[176]
Fellow Republican congressman Connie Mack IV of Florida also praised WikiLeaks, stating that Americans have a right to know the contents of the leaks, “no matter how we acquire that knowledge.”[177]
Australia’s most senior and high-profile media professionals expressed their support for WikiLeaks in a letter to Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard.[178] The letter was initiated by the Walkley Foundation, who present the yearly Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism. The letter was signed by "the ten members of the Walkley Advisory Board as well as editors of major Australian newspapers and news websites and the news directors of the country’s three commercial TV networks and two public broadcasters." Their position (an extract from the letter) is summarized as follows:
“In essence, WikiLeaks, an organisation that aims to expose official secrets, is doing what the media have always done: bringing to light material that governments would prefer to keep secret. It is the media’s duty to responsibly report such material if it comes into their possession. To aggressively attempt to shut WikiLeaks down, to threaten to prosecute those who publish official leaks, and to pressure companies to cease doing commercial business with WikiLeaks, is a serious threat to democracy, which relies on a free and fearless press.”[179]
Following the November 2010 leak of United States diplomatic cables The Atlantic, in a staff editorial, opined "Wikileaks is a powerful new way for reporters and human rights advocates to leverage global information technology systems to break the heavy veil of government and corporate secrecy that is slowly suffocating the American press." Calling legal and physical threats against WikiLeaks volunteers "shameful" the magazine went on to state, "Not since President Richard Nixon directed his minions to go after Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg and New York Times reporter Neil Sheehan ... has a working journalist and his source been subjected to the kind of official intimidation and threats that have been directed at Assange and Manning by high-ranking members of the Obama Administration."[180]
On 4 December 2010, Reporters Without Borders condemned the "blocking, cyber-attacks and political pressure" being directed at WikiLeaks. The organisation is also concerned by some of the extreme comments made by American authorities concerning WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange.[181]
In an article titled "Only WikiLeaks can save US policy" published on the online foreign affairs magazine The Diplomat, former long-time CIA counter-terrorism expert Michael Scheuer said the source of interest in WikiLeaks revelations was in the inherent dishonesty of recent U.S. administrations. "In recent years, the US public has had to hear its leaders repeatedly tell Americans that black was white," Scheuer wrote, referencing the presidencies of Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama.[182]
Evan Hughes, editor-in-chief of wired.com published his support for WikiLeaks in an online editorial titled "Why WikiLeaks is Good for America." Despite an often contentious relationship between Wired and WikiLeaks, with the former having being accused by the latter of complicity in the identification and arrest of Bradley Manning, Hughes argued that "WikiLeaks stands to improve our democracy, not weaken it." He went on to note that "The greatest threat we face right now from WikiLeaks is not the information it has spilled and may spill in the future, but the reactionary response to it that’s building in the United States that promises to repudiate the rule of law and our free speech traditions, if left unchecked."[183]
The New York Times reported that over 200 WikiLeaks mirror sites sprang up after some hosting companies cut their services to the company.[184] On 5 December, a group of activists and hackers known as "Anonymous" called upon supporters to attack sites of companies that oppose WikiLeaks as part of Operation Avenge Assange.[185] Paypal has been targeted following their decision to stop processing donations for Wikileaks.[186][187]Gregg Housh, who previously worked on other projects with Anonymous, said that he had noticed an organised attempt taking place to attack companies that have not supported WikiLeaks. In reference to the support being shown for Wikileaks, Mr. Housh said; "The reason is amazingly simple, we all believe that information should be free, and the Internet should be free."[154] On 8 December 2010, Paypal website was victim of a Denial-of-service attack by Anonymous.[188][189][190] Later that day, Paypal announced in their blog that they will release all remaining funds in the account to the foundation that was raising funds for WikiLeaks.[191][192] On the same day, the websites of Visa and Mastercard were attacked by WikiLeaks supporters. By then over 1,200 mirror sites had been set up for hosting content no longer accessible at WikiLeaks.com. Anonymous also issued a fresh statement; "While we don't have much of an affiliation with WikiLeaks, we fight for the same reasons. We want transparency, and we counter censorship...This is why we intend to utilise our resources to raise awareness, attack those against, and support those who are helping lead our world to freedom and democracy."[193]
The Internet Society (ISOC) stated that despite the international concern about the content released by WikiLeaks, "we nevertheless believe it must be subject to the same laws and policies of availability as all Internet sites" and that “free expression should not be restricted by governmental or private controls over computer hardware or software, telecommunications infrastructure, or other essential components of the Internet”. ISOC also called for appropriate action to "pursue and prosecute entities (if any) that acted maliciously to take it [WikiLeaks] off the air” because suppressing communication would merely serve to “undermine the integrity of the global Internet and its operation”.[194]
On 8 December 2010 the international civic organisation Avaaz launched a petition in support of WikiLeaks, which was signed by over 250 thousand people within the first few hours, the total number went up to 600 thousand by 15 December 2010.[195][196][197]
In early December 2010, Noam Chomsky offered his support to protesters across Australia planning to take to the streets in defence of WikiLeaks.[198]
On 14 December 2010, Michael Moore offered $20,000 to help bail Assange out of jail.[199][200]
Awards received
In 2008, Index on Censorship presented WikiLeaks with their inaugural Economist New Media Award.
In 2009, Amnesty International awarded WikiLeaks their Media Award for exposing "extra judicial killings and disappearances" in Kenya.[201]
Praise by governments
Brazil: President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva expressed
his "solidarity" with Julian Assange following Assange's 2010 arrest in
the United Kingdom. Lula went on to state—in reference to WikiLeaks
disclosure of classified US diplomatic cables in November and December
2010—WikiLeaks had "exposed a diplomacy that had appeared unreachable."[202][203] He further criticised the arrest of Julian Assange as "an attack on freedom of expression".[204]
Ecuador: In late November 2010 a representative of the government of Ecuador made
what was, apparently, an unsolicited public offer to Julian Assange to
establish residency in Ecuador. Deputy Foreign Minister Kinto Lucas
stated "we are going to invite him to come to Ecuador so he can freely
present the information he possesses and all the documentation, not just
on the Internet, but in various public forums."[205] Lucas
went on to state his praise for WikiLeaks and Assange calling them
"[people] who are constantly investigating and trying to get light out
of the dark corners of [state] information."[206] The following day, however, president Rafael Correadistanced
his administration from the offer stating that Lucas had been speaking
for himself and not on the government's behalf. Correa then criticised
Assange for "breaking the laws of the United States and leaking this
type of information."[207]
Russia: In December 2010 the office of Russian president Dmitry Medvedev issued
a statement calling on non-governmental organisations to consider
"nominating [Julian] Assange as a Nobel Prize laureate." The
announcement followed commentary by Russian ambassador to NATO Dmitry
Rogozin who stated that Julian Assange's earlier arrest on Swedish
charges demonstrated that there was "no media freedom" in the west.[208]
Venezuela: Hugo Chávez,
president of Venezuela, stated his support for WikiLeaks following the
release of US diplomatic cables in November 2010 that showed the United
States had tried to rally support from regional governments to isolate
Venezuela. "I have to congratulate the people of WikiLeaks for their
bravery and courage," Chávez commented in televised remarks.[209]
United Nations: In December 2010 United Nations Special Rapporteur for Freedom of Opinion and Expression Frank LaRue stated
he agreed with the idea that Julian Assange was a "martyr for free
speech." LaRue went on to say Assange or other WikiLeaks staff should
not face legal accountability for any information they disseminated,
noting that, "if there is a responsibility by leaking information it is
of, exclusively of the person that made the leak and not of the media
that publish it. And this is the way that transparency works and that
corruption has been confronted in many cases."[210] High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay subsequently
voiced concern at the revelation that private companies were being
pressured by states to sever their relationships with WikiLeaks.[211]
Criticism
WikiLeaks has attracted criticism from a variety of sources.[212]
In 2007 John Young, operator of Cryptome, left his position on the WikiLeaks Board of Directors accusing the group of being a "CIA conduit". Young subsequently retreated from his assertion but has continued to be critical of the site.[213] In a 2010 interview withCNET.com Young accused the group of a lack of transparency regarding their fundraising and financial management. He went on to state his belief that WikiLeaks could not guarantee whistleblowers the anonymity or confidentiality they claimed and that he "would not trust them with information if it had any value, or if it put me at risk or anyone that I cared about at risk."[214]
Citing the leaking of the sorority rituals of Alpha Sigma Tau, Steven Aftergood has opined that WikiLeaks "does not respect the rule of law nor does it honour the rights of individuals." Aftergood went on to state that WikiLeaks engages in unrestrained disclosure of non-governmental secrets without compelling public policy reasons and that many anti-corruption activists were opposed to the site's activities.[215]
In 2010, Amnesty International joined several other human rights groups criticising WikiLeaks for not adequately redacting the names of Afghan civilians working as U.S. military informants from files they had released. Julian Assange responded by offering Amnesty International staff the opportunity to assist in the document vetting process. When Amnesty International appeared to express reservations in accepting the offer, Assange dismissed the group as "people who prefer to do nothing but cover their asses." Other groups that joined Amnesty International in criticising WikiLeaks subsequently noted that, despite their displeasure over the issue of civilian name redaction, they generally appreciated WikiLeaks's work.[216]
In an August 2010 open letter, the non-governmental organisation Reporters Without Borders praised WikiLeaks' past usefulness in exposing "serious violations of human rights and civil liberties" but criticised the group over a perceived absence of editorial control, stating "indiscriminately publishing 92,000 classified reports reflects a real problem of methodology and, therefore, of credibility. Journalistic work involves the selection of information. The argument with which you defend yourself, namely that WikiLeaks is not made up of journalists, is not convincing."[217] The group subsequently clarified their statement as a criticism of WikiLeaks release procedure and not the organisation itself, stating "we reaffirm our support for Wikileaks, its work and its founding principles."[218]
On 30 November 2010, former Canadian government adviser Tom Flanagan, while appearing on the CBC television program "Power & Politics", called for Julian Assange to be killed. "I think Assange should be assassinated," Flanagan stated, before noting to host Evan Solomon, "I'm feeling pretty manly today." Flanagan subsequently retracted his call for the death of Assange while reiterating his opposition to WikiLeaks.[219] Dimitri Soudas, spokesman to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, decried Flanagan's comments and said the former Tory strategist's remarks are "simply not acceptable." Ralph Goodale, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party in the House of Commons, called Flanagan's remarks "clearly contrary to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms."[220]
Russian investigative reporter Andrei Soldatov has criticised WikiLeaks for disclosing documents "without checking of the facts, without putting them in context, and without analysing them.” Soldatov believes WikiLeaks is "filling the gap" left by the decline of investigative journalism with a sensationalist alternative while journalistic support of WikiLeaks is motivated by anger over declining funding and resources for investigative reporting.[221]
Contrary Views. A number of authors contend that Wikileaks, contrary to appearances, is actually a charade or intelligence agency disinformation ploy conducting psychological warfare. They point to the effects on mobilizing public opinion against freedom of information and to allegations in the purported leaks which incriminate targets of US foreign policy, such as Iran. Notable critics in this vein include Michel Chossudovsky[222] and F. William Engdahl.[223]
Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger has said: "Speaking as Wikipedia's co-founder, I consider you enemies of the U.S.—not just the government, but the people." [224]
According to a telephone survey of 1,029 US residents age 18 and older, conducted by the Marist Institute for Public Opinion in December 2010, Americans are overwhelmingly critical of WikiLeaks. The poll found that 70 percent of respondents – particularlyRepublicans and older people – think the leaks are doing more harm than good by allowing America's enemies to see confidential and secret information about U.S. foreign policy. Just 22 percent – especially young liberals – think the leaks are doing more good than harm by making the U.S. government more transparent and accountable. A majority of 59 percent also wants to see the people behind WikiLeaks prosecuted, while 31 percent said the publication of secrets is protected under the First Amendment guarantee of a free press.[225]
Criticism by governments
Most of the governments and organisations whose files have been leaked by WikiLeaks have been critical of the organisation.
Australia: On 2 December 2010 Prime Minister Julia Gillard made
a statement that she 'absolutely condemns' Wikileaks' actions and that
the release of information on the site was 'grossly irresponsible' and
'illegal.'[226] Wikileaks founder Julian Assange isAustralian and he responded two days later by accusing his prime minister of betraying him as an Australian citizen.[227] However,
on 8 December 2010—after WikiLeaks published U.S. diplomatic cables in
which United States diplomats labelled him a "control freak", former
Australian Prime Minister and current foreign minister Kevin Rudd said
the leak of the US secret cables raised questions about US security.
Rudd said, "The core responsibility, and therefore legal liability, goes
to those individuals responsible for that initial unauthorised
release."[228][229] In an article in The Australian,
Assange claimed, "The Australian attorney-general is doing everything
he can to help a US investigation clearly directed at framing Australian
citizens and shipping them to the US."[230]However, Australian officials later said that Assange has done nothing illegal.[231]
France: The French Industry Minister Éric Besson said
in a letter to the CGIET technology agency, WikiLeaks "violates the
secret of diplomatic relations and puts people protected by diplomatic
secret in danger." Therefore it would be 'unacceptable' that the site
was hosted on servers based in France. The minister asked for measures
to bar WikiLeaks from France.[232]
Iran: The President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad,
also criticised WikiLeaks following the release of United States
diplomatic cables. Ahmadinejad claimed that the release of cables
purporting to show concern with Iran by Arab states was a planned leak
by the United States to discredit his government, though he did not
indicate whether he believed WikiLeaks was in collusion with the United
States or was simply an unwitting facilitator.[233]
Philippines:
President Benigno Aquino III comdemned Wikileaks and leaked documents
related to the country, saying that it can lead to massive cases of
miscommunication.[234]
United States: Following the November 2010 release of United States diplomatic cables, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clintondenounced
the group saying, "this disclosure is not just an attack on America's
foreign policy interests, it is an attack on the international
community."[235] Peter King, chairman of the Homeland Security Committee of the United States House of Representatives has
stated his support for listing Wikileaks as a "foreign terrorist
organisation" explaining that "WikiLeaks presents a clear and present
danger to the national security of the United States."[236] In a contrary statement, secretary of Defense Robert Gates has
said that concerns about the disclosures were "over-wrought" in terms
of their likely adverse impact on ordinary diplomatic activities.[237] Philip J. Crowley, United States Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs,
stated on 2 December 2010 that the US State Department does not regard
WikiLeaks as a media organisation. "WikiLeaks is not a media
organization. That is our view." Crowley said and with regard to
Assange;"Well, his – I mean he could be considered a political actor. I
think he’s an anarchist, but he’s not a journalist."[238]
US Senator Joe Lieberman, who first called on Amazon to shut down WikiLeaks and then praised the company after doing so called for other companies to follow suit.[149] He also proposed new legislation targeting similar cases—Securing Human Intelligence and Enforcing Lawful Dissemination Act,[148] also known as the SHIELD Act,[239] not to be confused with a shield law. Lieberman later said that also The New York Times and other news organisations publishing the US embassy cables being released by WikiLeaks could be investigated for breaking US espionage laws.[240]
Spin offs
Following the initial releases of US diplomatic cables, a number of other sites based on the WikiLeaks model were borne.[241]
- OpenLeaks was created by the former deputy to Assange. Daniel Domscheit-Berg said the intention was to be more transparent than WikiLeaks as "In these last months, the organisation has not been open any more. It lost its open-source promise." It planned to start in early 2011.
- Brussels Leaks was focused on the European Union as a collaborative effort of media professionals and activists that sought to "pull the shady inner workings of the EU system out into the public domain. This is about getting important information out there, not about Brusselsleaks [or any other 'leaks' for that matter]."
- TradeLeaks was created to "do to trade and commerce what WikiLeaks has done to politics." It was founded by Ruslan Kogan, a fellow Australian of Assange. Its goal is to ensure ""individuals and businesses should attain values from others through mutually beneficial and fully consensual trade, rather than force, fraud or deception."
- Balkan Leaks was founded by Bulgarain Atanas Chobanov in order to make the Balkans more transparent and to fight corruption as "There are plenty of people out there that want to change the Balkans for good and are ready to take on the challenge. We're offering them a hand."
- Indoleaks is an Indonesian that sought to publish classified documents of the Indonesian government, though the Jakarta Globe said "the [Indonesian] government claimed not to be concerned by the website."
Leaks
2006–08
WikiLeaks posted its first document in December 2006, a decision to assassinate government officials signed by Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys."[29] In August 2007, The Guardian published a story about corruption by the family of the former Kenyan leader Daniel arap Moibased on information provided via WikiLeaks.[242] In November 2007, a March 2003 copy of Standard Operating Procedures for Camp Delta detailing the protocol of the U.S. Army at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp was released.[243] The document revealed that some prisoners were off-limits to the International Committee of the Red Cross, something that the U.S. military had in the past repeatedly denied.[244] In February 2008, WikiLeaks released allegations of illegal activities at the Cayman Islands branch of the Swiss Bank Julius Baer which led to the bank suing WikiLeaks and obtaining an injunction which temporarily shut down wikileaks.org.[245] The site was instantly mirrored by supporters and later that month the judge overturned his previous decision citing First Amendmentconcerns and questions about legal jurisdiction.[246][247] In March 2008, WikiLeaks published what they referred to as "the collected secret 'bibles' of Scientology," and three days later received letters threatening to sue them for breach of copyright.[248] In September 2008, during the 2008 United States presidential election campaigns, the contents of a Yahoo account belonging to Sarah Palin (the running mate of Republican presidential nominee John McCain) were posted on WikiLeaks after being hacked into by members ofAnonymous.[249] In November 2008, the membership list of the far-right British National Party was posted to WikiLeaks, after briefly appearing on a blog.[250] A year later, on October 2009, another list of BNP members was leaked.[251]
2009
In January 2009, WikiLeaks released 86 telephone intercept recordings of Peruvian politicians and businessmen involved in the 2008 Peru oil scandal.[252] In February, WikiLeaks released 6,780 Congressional Research Service reports[253] follwed in March, by a list of contributors to the Norm Coleman senatorial campaign[254][255] and a set of documents belonging to Barclays Bank that had been ordered removed from the website of The Guardian.[256] In July, they released a report relating to a serious nuclear accident that had occurred at the Iranian Natanz nuclear facility in 2009.[257] Later media reports have suggested that the accident was related to theStuxnet computer worm.[258][259] In September, internal documents from Kaupthing Bank were leaked, from shortly before the collapse of Iceland's banking sector, which led to the 2008–2010 Icelandic financial crisis. The document shows that suspiciously large sums of money were loaned to various owners of the bank, and large debts written off.[260] In October, Joint Services Protocol 440, a British document advising the security services on how to avoid documents being leaked was published by WikiLeaks.[261] Later that month, they announced that a super-injunction was being used by the commodities company, Trafigura to gag The Guardian newspaper from reporting on a leaked internal document regarding a toxic dumping incident in the Ivory Coast.[262][263] In November, they hosted copies of e-mail correspondence between climate scientists, although they were not originally leaked to WikiLeaks.[264] They also released 570,000 intercepts of pager messages sent on the day of the 11 September attacks.[265] During 2008 and 2009, WikiLeaks published the alleged lists of forbidden or illegal web addresses for Australia, Denmark and Thailand. These were originally created to prevent access to child pornography and terrorism, but the leaks revealed that other sites covering unrelated subjects were also listed.[266][267][268]
2010
In March 2010, WikiLeaks released a secret 32-page U.S. Department of Defense Counterintelligence Analysis Report written in March 2008 discussing the leaking of material by WikiLeaks and how it could be deterred.[269][270] In April, a classified video of the 12 July 2007 Baghdad airstrike was released, showing two Reuters employees being fired at, after the pilots mistakenly thought the men were carrying weapons, which were in fact cameras.[271] In the week following the release, "Wikileaks" was the search term with the most significant growth worldwide in the last seven days as measured by Google Insights.[272] In June 2010, A 22-year-old US Army intelligence analyst, PFC (formerly SPC) Bradley Manning, was arrested after alleged chat logs were turned in to the authorities by former hacker Adrian Lamo, in whom he had confided. Manning reportedly told Lamo he had leaked the "Collateral Murder" video, in addition to a video of the Granai airstrike and around 260,000 diplomatic cables, to WikiLeaks.[273] In July, WikiLeaks released 92,000 documents related to the war in Afghanistan between 2004 and the end of 2009 to The Guardian, The New York Times and Der Spiegel. The documents detail individual incidents including friendly fire and civilian casualties.[274] At the end of July, a 1.4 GB "insurance file" was added to the Afghan War Diary page, whose decryption details would be released if WikiLeaks or Assange were harmed.[116] About 15,000 of the 92,000 documents have not yet been released on WikiLeaks, as the group is currently reviewing the documents to remove some of the sources of the information. WikiLeaks asked the Pentagon and human-rights groups to help remove names from the documents to reduce the potential harm caused by their release, but did not receive assistance.[275] Following the Love Parade stampede in Duisburg, Germany on 24 July 2010, a local published internal documents of the city administration regarding the planning of Love Parade. The city government reacted by acquiring a court order on 16 August forcing the blog to remove the documents from its blog.[276] On 20 August WikiLeaks released a publication titled Loveparade 2010 Duisburg planning documents, 2007–2010, which comprised 43 internal documents regarding the Love Parade 2010.[277][278] Following on from the leak of information from the Afghan War, in October 2010, around 400,000 documents relating to the Iraq War where released in October. The BBC quoted The Pentagonreferring to the Iraq War Logs as "the largest leak of classified documents in its history." Media coverage of the leaked documents focused on claims that the U.S. government had ignored reports of torture by the Iraqi authorities during the period after the 2003 war.[279]
Diplomatic cables release
On 28 November WikiLeaks and five major newspapers from Spain (El País), France (Le Monde), Germany (Der Spiegel), the United Kingdom (The Guardian), and the United States (The New York Times) started to simultaneously publish the first 220[280] of 251,287 leaked confidential—but not top secret—diplomatic cables from 274 embassies dated from 1966–2010.[281] WikiLeaks plans to release the entirety of the cables in phases over several months.[281]
The contents of the diplomatic cables include numerous unguarded comments and revelations: critiques and praises about the host countries of various US embassies, discussion and resolutions towards ending ongoing tension in the Middle East, efforts and resistance towards nuclear disarmament, actions in the War on Terror, assessments of other threats around the world, dealings between various countries, US intelligence and counterintelligence efforts, and other diplomatic actions. Reactions to the United States diplomatic cables leak include stark criticism, anticipation, commendation, and quiescence.
Announcements on upcoming leaks
In May 2010, WikiLeaks said they had video footage of a massacre of civilians in Afghanistan by the US military which they were preparing to release.[119][282]
In an interview with Chris Anderson on 19 July 2010, Assange showed a document WikiLeaks had on an Albanian oil well blowout, and said they also had material from inside BP,[283] and that they were "getting enormous quantity of whistle-blower disclosures of a very high calibre"[284] but added that they have not been able to verify and release the material because they do not have enough volunteer journalists.[285]
In October 2010, Assange told a leading Moscow newspaper that "The Kremlin had better brace itself for a coming wave of WikiLeaks disclosures about Russia."[286][287] Assange later clarified: "we have material on many businesses and governments, including in Russia. It’s not right to say there’s going to be a particular focus on Russia".[288]
In a 2009 Computer World interview, Assange claimed to be in possession of "5GB from Bank of America", and in 2010 told Forbesmagazine that WikiLeaks was planning another "megaleak" for early in 2011, which this time would be from inside the private sector and involve "a big U.S. bank". Bank of America's stock price fell by three percent as a result of this announcement.[289][290] Assange commented on the possible impact of the release that ”it could take down a bank or two.”[291][292]
In December 2010, Assange's lawyer, Mark Stephens, told The Andrew Marr Show on the BBC, that WikiLeaks had information it considers to be a "thermo-nuclear device" which it would release if the organisation needs to defend itself.[293]
The www.wikileaks.org domain is currently redirecting to wikileaks.info, a domain not affiliated with WikiLeaks and not included in the official list of mirrors. The Spamhaus Project has stated that the domain is hosted in a "very dangerous 'neighborhood'"
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Julian Assange
Enemy of the State Hero of the People
By Lucy Carne LONDON
SEEDS OF CHANGE: Julian Assange the boy and the thorn in the side of governments, and a rally by his Brisbane supporters this week
In front of an adoring crowd at the Frontline journalist’s club in London last month, Australia Julian Assange explained why he’s risking the wrath of the world’s most powerful governments.
In his face could still be seen traces of the sweet natured, sensitive little boy his Sunshine Coast-based mother has described and, smiling, the Queensland born 39 year old leaned into the microphone.
“They say I enjoy crushing bastards and. Yes, that’s part of my motivation,” Assange said.
“For some reason, the White House finds that offensive.”
Today, the founder if whistle blowing website WikiLeaks and the man on whom the world’s spotlight is focused, sits is a grey tracksuit in one of western Europe’s biggest prsions.
This week he was remanded in custody of rape, sexual assault and unlawful coercion stemming from alleged non-consensual sex without a condom with two women in Sweden.
Assange’s imprisonment, after he handed himself in, was met with relief in the US, where authorities were angered by his website’s release of embarrassing diplomatic cables last week.
The man who kicked the hornets’ nest had been silences they thought.
“I hadn’t heard that but it sounds like good news to me,” US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on being told of Assange’s arrest.
But while Assange grows restless behind bars – he has already complained about the “boring” daytime television and his request to be reunited with his own laptop has been denied – a global groundswell of support has grown.
The strongest act of revenge is coming from a group of ”hacktivists” known as Anomymous, which temporariiy shut down the websites of US and Swedish corporations this week.
The group also froze the websites of credit-card companies Visa and Mastercard,n which had cancelled financial donations to WikiLeaks.
Post Finance – the Swiss bank that froze Assange’s private account – was disabled too, as was the Swedish prosecution office and the Swedish lawyers representing the two women who claim to have been sexually assaulted by Assange.
The Anonymous group’s spokesman, known only as Coldblood, told reports they had not met Assange and were not connected to his organization but felt the need to defend him.
“If we let WikiLeaks fall without a fight then government will think they can just take down any sites they wish or disagree with,” Coldblood said.
In Brisbane on Thursday, some 300 protestors took to the streets in anger at Assange’s imprisonment.
Protests in London were due to be held today.
More than 35,000 people have joined a Facebook group to support Assange, with calls for all members to donate to his legal fund, while around 28,000 Australians have signed a letter to US President BARACK Obama supporting him.
In an open letter published yesterday, prominent supports, including Australia documentary film maker John Pilger, Minty Python member Terry Jones, English actress Miriam Margolyes and author Iain Banks, call for his immediate release from jail
Assange’s unusually harsh imprisonment for allegedly ignoring two women’s requests to use contraception has caused this sudden swell of skepticism and fury.
Many believe it is a flimsy excuse to keep Assange, who was placed on Interpol’s most wanted list, within reach of the US Justice Department so it can prosecute him under the Espionage Act.
Even while he is hailed by the public as a champion of transparency, to the governments of Australia and the US he remains a menace. To them he is not an innocent messenger but an anti-government terrorist who wants to harm the US and governments across the world.
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard labeled WikiLeaks’s activities illegal but, despite calls for her to do so, has failed to outline any Australian law that Assange has broken.
Federal Attorney-General Robert McClelland also has stood by his condemnation of Assange, while arch-conservative US politician Sarah Palin called him an anti-American operative with blood on his hands.”
How did the tousled-haired boy in overalls grow up to become an Andy Warhol-esque hero of the people.
“Hr can seem – with his spectral white hair, pa8iled skin, cool eyes, and expansive forehead – like a rail thin being who has rocketed to Earth to deliver humanity some hidden truth,” The New Yorker wrote in June.
Born in Townsville in 1971, Assange has described his childhood as “pretty Tom Sawyer”’ filled with horseriding, building rafts and fishing.
I was, however, far from Idyllic. By the age od 14, his family had moved 37 times, living everywhere from Magnetic Island to Byron Bay. It set the scene for his future nomadic life.
The young boy was home schooled, sporadically educated by university professors and even taught himself in hours spent alone in council libraries.
But his life changed when his mother’s abusive boyfriend tried to gain custody of Assange’s half brother in order to submit him to religious sect The Family.
His mother and her young family “disappeared”, constantly moving, never leaving a trail.
But at the age of 16, in 1987, Assange got a computer and modem and his life was suddenly transformed.
He embraced the random problem-solving and solace if life as a computer hacker.
“We were bright sensitive kinds who didn’t fit the dominant subculture and fiercely castigated those who did as irredeemable boneheads,” he wrote of himself and a teenage friend.
He was arrested in the early 1990’sw for hacking into the computer system of a major Canadian telecommunications company, but avoided a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
A brief spell in hospital for depression soon followed, as well as time spent living rough in the Dandenong Ranges National Park in Victoria and a stint motorcycling across Vietnam.
While working towards a physics degree at the University of Melbourne in 2006, He founded WikiLeaks.
It was a site for anyone wishing to “reveal illegal or immoral behavior in their own governments and corporations” he wrote at the time of the site’s launch.
“ I am the one who9 takes that risk,” he said prophetically, explaining his role at WikiLeaks while addressing the Frontline club last monthly. “As a consequence, I also get a lot of undue credit. I also get all the criticism.”
His original WikiLeaks mandate was to9 “make the news, not be the news”.
But that seems to have backfired, with Assange now a household name around the world.
“Is is weird?” an audience member asked him of his new celebrity status.
“No,” Assange shrugged.” Actually, I find it quite boring.”
Lucy Marne is The Courier-Mail’s European correspondent
Dear Friend,
Sarah Palin wants Julian Assange hunted as a terrorist.1 She's among a swelling chorus of American politicians calling for the arrest - and even the death - of the Australian citizen who runs WikiLeaks. It's a shame that real terrorists, the kind we should be focusing our attention on, don't show up at British Police stations with their lawyers, as WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange did yesterday.
Here in Australia, Prime Minister Gillard pre-emptively judged Mr. Assange "illegal," even as the Attorney General confirmed that no Australian nor international crime by WikiLeaks has been identified.2
The death penalty? Judgment before trial? This isn't the kind of justice system we have in Australia. If our Government won't stand up for the rights of Australian citizens, let's do it ourselves.
We're printing ads in The Washington Times and The New York Times with the statement our Government should have made, signed by as many Australians as possible. Will you add your name to the signatories, and invite your friends to join too?
http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/Wikileaks
The statement:Dear President Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder:
We, as Australians, condemn calls for violence, including assassination, against Australian citizen and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, or for him to be labeled a terrorist, enemy combatant or be treated outside the ordinary course of justice in any way.
As Thomas Jefferson said, "information is the currency of democracy."3 Publishing leaked information in collaboration with major news outlets, as Wikileaks and Mr. Assange have done, is not a terrorist act.
Australia and the United States are the strongest of allies. Our soldiers serve side by side and we've experienced, and condemned, the consequences of terrorism together. To label WikiLeaks a terrorist organisation is an insult to those Australians and Americans who have lost their lives to acts of terrorism and to terrorist forces.
If WikiLeaks or their staff have broken international or national laws, let that case be heard in a just and fair court of law. At the moment, no such charges have been brought.
We are writing as Australians to say what our Government should have said: that all Australian citizens deserve to be free from persecution, threats of violence and detention without charge, especially from our friend and ally, the United States.
We call upon you to stand up for our shared democratic principles of the presumption of innocence and freedom of information.We're printing this statement in The Washington Times and The New York Times early next week - and the more Australians sign, the more powerful the message will be. Please add your name by clicking below, and forward this message to friends and family:
http://www.getup.org.au/campaign/WikiLeaks
What has started with WikiLeaks being branded as terrorists won't end there.
In fact, just yesterday U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman, Chair of the Senate's Homeland Security Committee, said thatThe New York Times should also be investigated under the U.S. Espionage Act for publishing a number of the diplomatic cables leaked to WikiLeaks.4 We can help stop such plans in their tracks, by showing how they are affecting the image of the US in the eyes of their staunchest friends and allies.
Click here to sign the statement before it's published in The New York Times and Washington Times.
Thanks for being part of this,
The GetUp team
---
1 Beckford, M., 'Sarah Palin: hunt WikiLeaks founder like al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders', The Telegraph, 30 November 2010.
2 Oakes, L., 'Oakes: Gillard gushes over US leaks', Perth Now, 4 December 2010.
3 The quote is widely attributed to Jefferson, but some now dispute whether he actually said it. We know, at least, that he said "knowledge is power," even if Francis Bacon did say it first.
4 Savage, C., 'U.S. prosecuters study WikiLeaks prosecution', The New York Times, 7 December 2010.
Julian Assange from Jail to Masion
Former Guantanamo Bay detainee David Hicks. Photo: Jacky Ghossein
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Assange gets bail but still locked up (01:12)
British judge grants bail to WikiLeaks founder under strict monitoring conditions, but he remains in jail as Sweden appeals the ruling.
Assange will never receive a fair trial: Hicks
Cameron Atfield
December 15, 2010
Hicks answers the tough questions
Former terrorism suspect David Hicks has come out in support of jailed freedom-of-speech campaigner Julian Assange, saying he feared for Mr Assange's safety should he end up in American hands.
Mr Assange, the founder of the WikiLeaks website, has been returned to London's notorious Wandsworth prison despite winning bail from a British Court.
He will be held there for another 48 hours while Swedish prosecutors, who want to extradite him to Sweden to face allegations of sex crimes, mount a High Court appeal against the decision.
Supporters of Mr Assange, including his lawyer, have claimed the charges are politically motivated after the release of thousands of secret diplomatic cables, causing embarrassment for several governments.
Yesterday, Mr Hicks told Fairfax Radio he was concerned about what might happen to Mr Assange if he was extradited to the United States.
"He will never receive a fair trial," he said.
"We have already established that it's a political decision rather than a legal one. It's important that our governments are held to account for any war crimes they may be involved in and that is why the work of WikiLeaks is so important."
Mr Hicks spent six years at Guantanamo Bay, the US-run prison camp in Cuba, before he returned home to Australia to serve nine months at Adelaide's Yatala jail.
He was convicted by a US military commission of "providing material support for terrorism".
Mr Hicks said he believed future WikiLeaks releases could contain information about his incarceration.
"I will watch with interest in more leaks released because I have heard that they might contain information about my treatment in Guantanamo and the political interference in my case," he said.
"I just hope the Australian government doesn't abandon him like they did to me."
WikiLeaks: Julian Assange sex assault court case branded a 'show trial'
The Swedish authorities are turning the sexual assault case against Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder, into a "show trial", his lawyers claimed.
Mark Stephens attacked the decision by the Swedish authorities to appeal against a judge's ruling to grant the 39 year-old Australian bail.
He said their decision was now a "'persecution" rather than a prosecution and was politically motivated.
He accused the authorities of stopping at nothing to have the Wikileaks founder behind bars, a claim they denied.
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is refused bail
15 Dec 2010
WikiLeaks: summary of the latest disclosures
15 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: is 'Wikileaker' on a crusade or an ego trip?
15 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: Jemima Khan comes to aid of Wikileaks founder in Swedish extradition fight
15 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: 'don't shoot the messenger'
15 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: 'don't shoot the messenger'
Governments around the world must not "shoot the messenger" by attacking disclosures by WikiLeaks, Julian Assange said on Tuesday.
Julian Assange says his whistle-blowing website deserves protection and has not cost a single life despite the claims of critics
The former computer hacker said his whistle-blowing website deserves protection and has not cost a single life despite the claims of critics.
Writing for The Australian newspaper, Mr Assange quoted its founder, Rupert Murdoch, as once saying the truth will inevitably win over secrecy.
He said: "Nearly a century later, WikiLeaks is also fearlessly publishing facts that need to be made public."
Mr Assange said WikiLeaks has coined "scientific journalism" that allows readers to study the original evidence for themselves.
He added: "Democratic societies need a strong media and WikiLeaks is part of that media. The media helps keep government honest.
"WikiLeaks has revealed some hard truths about the Iraq and Afghan wars, and broken stories about corporate corruption."
The campaigner denied he is anti-war, but said Governments must tell the truth about their reasons for fighting.
He claimed the United States, supported by its "acolytes", has attacked WikiLeaks instead of other media groups because it is "young and small".
Branding the website "underdogs", he accused Australia Prime Minister Julia Gillard of "disgraceful pandering" to the Americans.
He said: "The Gillard government is trying to shoot the messenger because it doesn't want the truth revealed, including information about its own diplomatic and political dealings."
Mr Assange highlighted some of the most high-profile revelations made by his website over the last week.
He added: "The swirling storm around WikiLeaks today reinforces the need to defend the right of all media to reveal the truth."
In news
The WikiLeaks bunker
WikiLeaks: 10 greatest scoops
WikiLeaks: do they have a right to privacy?
The key WikiLeaks revelations
Why law is powerless to stop WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks 'will continue releasing documents'
15 Dec 2010
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is driven into Westminster Magistrates Court in London Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA
WikiLeaks 'will continue releasing documents'
WikiLeaks has pledged to continue releasing confidential documents after Julian Assange, the website's founder and chief, arrived at court for an extradition hearing.
Wednesday 15 December 2010
Richard Edwards and Nick Collins 2:53PM GMT 07 Dec 2010
Mr Assange handed himself over to police in central London on Tuesday morning after a warrant was issued for his arrest on rape charges.
But ahead of his first court appearance a spokesman for the website insisted the arrest would not prevent the planned release of further cables on Tuesday evening.
The spokesman wrote on Twitter: "Today's actions against our editor-in-chief Julian Assange won't affect our operations: we will release more cables tonight as normal."
The 39-year-old Australian was due to appear before a district judge at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday afternoon, where his lawyers were expected to fight extradition proceedings.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "Officers from the Metropolitan Police Extradition Unit have this morning arrested Julian Assange on behalf of the Swedish authorities on suspicion of rape.
"Assange is due to appear at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court today."
Supporters of Assange were told to protest against censorship outside the Horseferry Road court house on several websites.
His arrest came after an Australian newspaper published an editorial written by Assange, in which he urged governments around the world not to "shoot the messenger".
He wrote: "Democratic societies need a strong media and WikiLeaks is part of that media. The media helps keep government honest."
He accused the Australian government and prime minister Julia Gillard of "disgraceful pandering" to the Americans, adding: "The Gillard government is trying to shoot the messenger because it doesn't want the truth revealed, including information about its own diplomatic and political dealings."
Mr Assange has not been seen publicly for 31 days, since an appearance in Geneva, and was believed to have been in hiding in the south-east of England as the latest tranche of WikiLeaks material was released.
A European Arrest Warrant was issued by the Swedish last month but could not be acted upon because it did not contain sufficient information for the British authorities. A spokesman for Marianne Ny, the Swedish prosecutor, said the extra details were sent last week.
Police processed the warrant yesterday and arrangements were made with Mark Stephens, Mr Assange’s British lawyer, for the Wikileaks founder to attend a central London police station.
Mr Stephens said his client was keen to discover what allegations he was facing so he could clear his name.
"It's about time we got to the end of the day and we got some truth, justice and rule of law," he said.
"Julian Assange has been the one in hot pursuit to vindicate himself to clear his good name.
"He has been trying to meet with her (the Swedish prosecutor) to find out what the allegations are he has to face and also the evidence against him, which he still hasn't seen."
The 39-year-old Australian has been under intense pressure since the release of thousands of secret documents in recent weeks.
Kristinn Hrafnsson, spokesman for WikiLeaks, said Mr Assange had been forced to keep a low profile after several threats on his life.
Sweden’s Supreme Court upheld a court order to detain Mr Assange for questioning on suspicion of “rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion” after he appealed against two lower court rulings. He denies the allegations.
His details were also added to Interpol’s most wanted website, alerting police forces around the world.
Mr Stephens said he would fight any bid to extradite his client. He added that Mr Assange “has been trying to meet with the Swedish prosecutor since August this year”.
Mr Assange’s troubles deepened when his Swiss bank account was shut down after it was found he had given a false address. Postfinance, the financial arm of Swiss Post, said: “The Australian citizen provided false information regarding his place of residence during the account opening process.”
Mr Assange had allegedly told Postfinance he lived in Geneva but could offer no proof that he was a Swiss resident.
News of his potential arrest came as WikiLeaks was criticised for publishing details of hundreds of sites around the world that could be targeted in terrorist attacks.
Among the British sites listed are a transatlantic undersea cable landing in Cornwall; naval and motoring engineering firm MacTaggart Scott, based in the small Scottish town of Loanhead; and BAE Systems sites, including one in Preston, Lancashire.
The revelations prompted Sir Peter Ricketts, David Cameron’s national security adviser, to order a review of computer security across all government departments.
Julian Assange: Jemima Khan comes to aid of Wikileaks founder in Swedish extradition fight
Jemima Khan appeared in court to lend her support to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange as he was put behind bars over sexual allegations originating from Sweden.
By Andrew Hough, and Caroline Gammell 07 Dec 2010
Khan, the socialite and charity worker, offered to provide a £20,000 surety to prevent the 39-year-old Australian from being remanded in custody in Britain over the claims.
Swedish officials want him extradited to answer questions over the alleged rape of one woman and molestation of another while he was in Stockholm this summer.
Mr Assange, who was also supported in court by film director Ken Loach and four others, has repeatedly denied the claims.
The 36-year-old former wife of Imran Khan said she would pay “whatever sum was required” to ensure he was granted bail.
However, a district judge at City of Westminster Magistrates’ Court decided he was too much of risk as it emerged that there was no record him ever arriving in Britain.
During Tuesday's hearing he was accompanied by officials from the Australian High Commission after asking for consular assistance.
Outside court, Khan said: “I am not here to make any kind of judgement on the Julian Assange as an individual as I do not know him and I have never met him.
“I am here because I believe in the principle of the human right to freedom of information and our right to be told the truth.”
Mr Assange’s supporters believe his arrest is a political stunt to detract from the revelations being made on a daily basis on the Wikileaks website.
Geoffrey Robertson QC, a prominent Australian human rights barrister who was a defending lawyer at the Brighton Bombing trial in the mid 1980s, has reportedly agreed to act for Mr Assange in future hearings.
The former computer hacker claims he had received several death threats since the secret documents were published and that someone had called for the kidnap of his 20-year-old son in Australia.
Julian Assange in British prison on rape charge
08 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: Extradition case involving Wikileaks founder could last many months
08 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: question of consent
08 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: 'don't shoot the messenger'
07 Dec 2010
The Scarlet Pimpernel of cyberspace
07 Dec 2010
US Attorney General taking 'significant' action
07 Dec 2010
Julian Assange: is 'Wikileaker' on a crusade or an ego trip?
Julian Assange, the man who published the Afghan war files on his Wikileaks website, is unlikely to be chastened by Admiral Mike Mullen’s claims that he might now have “blood on his hands”.
Julian Assange outside court in Melbourne in 1995, where he was later convicted of hacking offences.
Julian Assange, pictured in London this week, relies on donations and the hospitality of wellwishers as he travels the globe.
WikiLeaks: summary of the latest disclosures
The latest round of WikiLeaks releases disclose more detail about the US's relationships with allies and foes across the globe. Here is a round-up of today’s headlines.
Britain
Prince Andrew criticised a variety of governments, including those of Britain and America, as corrupt, stupid and backward in a conversation with a US diplomat.
In his wave of “almost neuralgic patriotism”, the Duke also made the bizarre claim that British geography teachers are the best in the world.
Families of British servicemen killed in Sangin, Afghanistan have reacted furiously after it was claimed WikiLeaks would disclose dismissive remarks by US commanders on British efforts to secure the town.
The Welsh family of Bradley Manning, the US soldier suspected of handing the classified documents to WikiLeaks, have flown to America but been prevented from visiting him in prison.
The internet has been rife with speculation about which former Labour minister was labelled “a bit of a hound dog” with women by an American official.
David Cameron was seen as “lightweight” by Barack Obama after the first meeting between the two leaders, leaked files will show.
Prince Charles does not command the same respect as the Queen, according to a senior Commonwealth official.
International
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, dismissed claims that Arab countries had asked the US to attack his country as a deliberate attempt by the US to destabilise the Middle East.
Released Guantánamo Bay prisoners should have electronic tagging devices implanted so that they can be followed by security officials, the King of Saudi Arabia suggested to a White House official.
Silvio Berlusconi responded to leaked claims by American diplomats that he has a penchant for “wild parties” by claiming he only throws parties in a “proper, dignified and elegant way”.
One of the more unlikely stories to surface from the leaked documents was that of a 77-year-old American dentist who fled Iran on horseback after the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
American officials suspect that North Korea has been secretly aiding Iran in its attempts to build nuclear weapons under the auspices of the Chinese government.
Colonel Gaddafi was believed to be very close to a “voluptuous” Ukrainian nurse who followed him everywhere he went, a US cable claimed.
An exile from Iran was living in London when he was targeted in an assassination plot by an Iranian agent, who was later arrested in America.
Hillary Clinton asked US diplomats in Argentina about the mental health of President Cristina Kirchner and questioned whether she was using medication to help her “calm down”.
The White House has told federal agencies to tighten security around the US military computer network following the leaking of classified information.
China would support a unified Korea controlled from Seoul because it believes the North is behaving like a “spoiled child”, documents show.
Sarah Palin has accused Barack Obama of taking insufficient action to prevent the release of the latest batch of WikiLeaks files.
The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Khamenei, could die within months from terminal cancer, an Iranian informant told American officials.
Angela Merkel is the only leader “man” enough to lead the European Union, according to American cables.
The United Nations has angrily hit back at American “interference” after learning that Hillary Clinton ordered what amounted to an espionage campaign on its senior officials.
Julian Assange
The WikiLeaks founder is in hiding after an international warrant was issued for his arrest on rape allegations.
Assange’s next target will be the banking sector, with one American bank in particular to suffer from his next revelations, which he compared to the Enron scandal.
Assange has accused Barack Obama of attempting to smother the freedom of the press.
A criminal investigation is underway into how the latest batch of documents was made public, and Barack Obama could take legal action against Mr Assange.
Kazakh defence minister 'was openly drunk'
01 Dec 2010
WikiLeaks: Best quotes from Duke of York's Kyrgyzstan breakfast with US ambassador
30 Nov 2010
WikiLeaks: bereaved families' fury at US 'insult' over Afghanistan
30 Nov 2010
WikiLeaks: British and US governments stupid, says Prince Andrew
30 Nov 2010
WikiLeaks: Criminal investigation underway into leak of classified diplomatic documents
30 Nov 2010
WikiLeaks: Hillary Clinton states WikiLeaks release is "an attack"
30 Nov 2010
