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After reading this article concerning such a tragic situation, I have come to the conclusion that the heading title is both inaccurate and inappropriate, particularly the choice of the word ‘over’. ‘Concerning’, ‘regarding’ ‘in relation to’ or changing the title around completely would have been better.
Here are a couple of cool t-shirt designs that i found at www.walkietalkietees.com.
Nothing like my desire for an adult jump suit, but it would still be fun to own one.
“ Before you criticize someone, you should walk a mile in their shoes, that way when you criticize them, you're a mile away and you have their shoes. ” - Jack Handy
"Our dilemma is that we hate change and love it at the same time;
what we really want is for things to remain the same but get better."
- Sydney J. Harris
I recently posted on why alarm clocks have the snooze button, but it seems there is a reason. I found this on the Busted Tees website - very funny.
“If the whole human race lay in one grave, the epitaph on its headstone might well be: ‘It seemed a good idea at the time.’” - Rebecca West
I’m assuming she’s talking about the problem of sin and corruption in the world. Otherwise I’m not quite sure what she means, as to me it seems like a pretty stupid idea for the whole human race to get into the one grave.
"I'm tired of all this business about beauty being only skin-deep. That's deep enough. What do you want--an adorable pancreas?" - Jean Kerr
Here is another business to add to my series of "Top 5 Business names that never were".
Type of Business – Sign Writing Store
Name of Business – Buy De Sign
“ Whatever doesn't kill me makes me stronger. Not lifting weights doesn't kill me. Therefore not lifting weights makes me stronger. ” - Jack Handy
Here is something for the very nerdy - a Ctrl, Alt, Del, Bowl Set. And no, I don't want one.
I’ve never really been one to pick on George W. Bush for his word gaffes, as like all politicians, there are some things to agree with and some things to disagree with. But here is one I quite enjoyed, if only for the unintended word play:
“I have opinions of my own – strong opinions – but I don’t always agree with them.”
"God is dead." - Nietzsche
"Nietzsche is dead." – God
Who do you believe?
"Success and failure are both difficult to endure.
Along with success come drugs, divorce, fornication, bullying, travel, meditation, depression, neurosis, and suicide.
With failure comes failure." – Joseph Heller
On that description, it makes me wonder, is there anything in between?
R v Millar (unreported, NSW Court of Criminal Appeal, 25/5/1998)
This is by far and away the best escape that I know of from a NSW prison.
Here are the facts from the judgment itself:
R v Dudko [2002] NSWCCA 336
Love, romance, drama, suspense, and hijacking a helicopter. This escape story has it all.
On 25 March 1999, Lucy Dudko attended the Bankstown airport for her booked ‘joy flight’ with a reputable helicopter company. Dudko had booked to go on what was called the “Harbour Bridge track”, which included a flypass of the Olympic Stadium, Harbour Bridge and Manly. However, on this particular day it also made an unscheduled stop into the grounds of Silverwater gaol.
Dudko managed to hijack the helicopter using a small pistol she had taken on board. She had also taken on board numerous parts of a much larger automatic weapon which she actually assembled, after the hijack and while flying to the gaol. When the helicopter landed, one prisoner named John Killick, Dudko’s boyfriend, ran towards the helicopter, grabbed the automatic weapon, jumped on board and away they flew.
They then landed at Macquarie university, tied up the pilot, stole a car and drove off into the sunset, as a modern day version of Bonnie and Clyde.
Unfortunately for them, they were caught after about 6 weeks on the run, but any gaol break out that involves the hijacking of a helicopter, quite easily makes it on my list of Top 5 escapes.
R v Ravet [1999] NSW Court of Criminal Appeal 63
As you can imagine, one of the weak points in securing prisoners is transporting them to and from the gaol. Extra precautions are taken, as well as extra care in the transportation. This case is a particular highlight, not because of the ingenuity of the offender, or the daringness of the escape, but because of the ease with which he completed it.
After a long day in court, during this offender’s transportation back to the gaol, this offender managed to escape. While there was some doubt as to the exact nature of the operation, the offender claimed that he was able to escape simply by pushing on the door of the van in which he was being carried.
Of course the prison guards denied that this was the case and put forward the idea that the offender had somehow managed to manipulate the lock and to force open the door. While this was theoretically possible, it appeared unlikely for a couple of reasons: firstly, the lock was wholly on the outside of the van; and secondly the offender was recaptured within minutes, after hurting himself trying to jump over a fence, with his handcuffs still on.
A fail for both the offender and the prison guards.
While I am on the topic here is my vote for the best named police station in Australia:
Runaway Bay Police Station - Check it out here on the Queensland Police website
R v Aslett (unreported, NSW Court of Criminal Appeal, 16/10/1998)
This escape happened at the Prince of Wales Hospital Randwick, after the offender had injured his right arm which necessitated his admission. It was 1.30am in Ward 2 of the hospital and the offender was in the custody of several prison officers. He requested permission to visit the ‘facilities’, which was granted so long as two prison officers stood guard outside the toilet. Well, a short time later the toilet door burst open and the offender exited the toilet and ran out of the ward and down a fire escape to the southern end of the Hospital, all while being hotly pursued by two officers (the same two who were supposed to be standing guard at the door). The facts continue here in the judgment:
“One of the officers, from the rear of the chase, called upon the applicant to ‘Stop or I'll shoot’ and a warning shot was fired near the applicant. The prison officer continued chasing the applicant and knocked him to the ground by kicking his legs from under him. The applicant regained his footing and was chased by both prison officers who lost sight of him for a short time. A car alarm was heard sounding from the carpark a short time later approximately 1.50am and the applicant was located by an officer under a building near the carpark.”
I can’t imagine what it must have been like being either one of the other patients or a staff member at the hospital, particularly since: “… at the time of his escape the offender wore only his underpants”. While barely an escape at all, it gets number 4 on my list of Top 5 escapes.
R v Smith [2004] NSW Court of Criminal Appeal 69
Reading through this case is like watching an extensive and intricate set up of dominos toppling over. Every step of the way had been carefully planned and in my view wonderfully (albeit criminally) executed. Here are the facts from the judgment, (which can be found here):
So it was that there was an element of planning in this escape. The appellant left a note for the Governor, in which he apologised for any inconvenience that he had caused, and in which he expressed an assurance that no prison officers or inmates knew of his escape plans.”
As I begin this series of posts on the top 5 escapes from NSW prisons, please do not at any stage be alarmed (feel free to be alert, as our country needs more lerts) but do not be alarmed. Do not worry about prison escapees, do not be concerned about axe-murderers on the loose, and do not go to bed wondering whether an escapee is looking into your bedroom window with the intention of committing further crime. Why? Primarily because of all the offences under the NSW Crimes Act, section 310D, namely the offence of escape lawful custody is one of the rarest (except perhaps for the offences of bigamy, section 92, stealing cattle, section 126, and impersonating a police officer, s 546D). The fact is, that hardly anyone escapes and when they do, apart from maybe stealing a car (or two), they generally try to maintain a low profile (for what I think are quite obvious reasons).
But if you are still worried about escapees – don’t be, as you may or may not be surprised to learn that for the period from April 2006 to March 2008, the New South Wales Local Courts sentenced 15,884 people for common assault, 5,993 for possess cannabis, and 13,900 for low range drink driving, but only a mere 58 people for the offence of escape lawful custody. So the point is stop worrying about escapees and start worrying about cannabis smoking, drunk drivers who may get out their car and belt you one.
However, in case you’re still reading this post, you may be wondering why I am writing this series. Well, despite the fact that people escape for all sorts of reasons, in all sorts of ways, and from all sorts of places, and despite the criminality of such acts, which of course should be heavily condemned and severely punished as a deterrent for other would-be escapees, some of the cases are really quite funny.
So over the next few days I will be listing what in my opinion are the Top 5 escapes from New South Wales Correctional Centres and providing a link to the corresponding judgment (from either the Supreme Court website itself, or a website called Austlii, an online free-access resource for Australian legal information). They will be listed not in order of seriousness, or on the length of time at large, or even on the ultimate penalty imposed, but they will be listed on the sole basis of enjoyment level, that is enjoyment to the reader.
So, before it escapes my attention, all I have to say is enjoy.
“Love looks through a telescope; envy, through a microscope” – Josh Billings
Sounds vaguely familiar to the saying by Jesus in the gospel of Matthew at Chapter 7:
"Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?
“If you can’t sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there and worrying. It’s the worry that gets you, not the loss of sleep.” – Dale Carnegie
And perhaps the loss of sleep if you don’t make it back in bed at some stage or another.
Does this mean the employee is three times more valuable than the customer?
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