dear all
here are some contact details for people who youse may want to send a
letter of disgust as to what happended to pete.
You should call for magistrate dick wallace to be sacked immediately, an
inquiry into the NT legal system and an official apology to Mr O'Brien, his
client and NAALAS.
* Chief Minister/Attorney General, Dennis Burke - [EMAIL PROTECTED]
GPO Box 1722, Darwin, NT, 0801. Ph. 08 89996076
* Magistrate Dick Wallace - [EMAIL PROTECTED]
* Australian Bar Association, President: Ruth McColl - [EMAIL PROTECTED]
* NT Law Society, President: Jon Tippet - [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Please cc. any letters to [EMAIL PROTECTED], and you may consider cc.
them to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and dana vale (one of the liberal backbenchers
who agreed to these diversionary programs instead of mand sent being repealed)
thanks for your support and we will keep youse posted
kilty and pete
Friday 6 July 2001 was another tragic day for the NT criminal justice
system when Peter O'Brien, a lawyer with North Australian Aboriginal Legal
Aid Service (NAALAS) was jailed for doing nothing more then providing
effective representation for his 15 year old client.
In fact, he was arguing that his client should receive the benefit of the
$20 million mandatory sentencing deal struck between the Federal and
Territory governments last year. Mr O'Brien was attempting to tell the
magistrate Dick Wallace that his client should not have been in court on
the charge. In fact, it was meant to have been dealt with by police
diversion away from court. Magistrate Wallace did not want to hear from Mr
O'Brien and asked how the client was pleading, Mr O'Brien attempted to
answer but was repeatedly cut off by the magistrate. Magistrate Wallace
then unlawfully directed Mr O'Brien to leave the courtroom, Mr O'Brien
refused stating he was not going to leave his client unrepresented. The
magistrate then directed the court constable to take Mr O'Brien into custody.
Mr O'Brien was not charged with contempt of court, nor could he have been.
His time in prison was unlawful.
It is a sad day in NT's legal system when a magistrate can jail a NAALAS
lawyer whose only crime was representing his client effectively, as any
good lawyer would. To avoid a more lengthy period in custody and the
possibility of not being able to practice law again, Mr O'Brien was forced
to apologise when the magistrate summonsed him back to court.
Both Mr O'Brien and his client were left shaken by the whole ordeal. At the
end of the day magistrate Wallace adjourned the matter for the reasons Mr
O'Brien had raised at the beginning of the day. All those involved in the
Australian criminal justice system should see to it that magistrate Dick
Wallace and the NT Justice administration are held accountable for this
appalling abuse of power. A magistrate who believes he has the power to
jail a lawyer for doing his job properly should be sacked immediately, an
inquiry into the NT legal system should be convened and an official apology
be forthcoming to Mr O'Brien, his client and NAALAS.
--
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