Whistleblower who exposed war crime allegations loses bid to reduce prison time
The Australian Capital Territory Court of Appeal rejected the 61-year-old former army lawyer's appeal against the severity of a five-year and eight-month prison sentence imposed a year ago.
Mr McBride said through his lawyers that Australians would be outraged by the Court of Appeal decision.
Mr McBride had argued that he leaked the documents out of a sworn duty to act in the public interest.
'It is my own conscience and the people of Australia that I answer to. I have kept my oath to the Australian people,' Mr McBride said in the lawyers' statement.
Mr McBride pleaded guilty last year to three charges, including theft and sharing with journalists documents classified as secret. He faced a potential life sentence.
Rights advocates complain that Mr McBride remains the only person to be imprisoned over allegations of war crimes committed by elite Australian special forces troops in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016.
A military report released in 2020 recommended 19 current and former soldiers face criminal investigations over 39 unlawful killings in Afghanistan.
Former Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment soldier Oliver Schulz was charged in March 2023 with murdering an unarmed Afghan in 2012. Mr Schulz pleaded not guilty to the war crime and has yet to stand trial.
Former SAS Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith, Australia's most decorated living veteran, lost an appeal two weeks ago against a civil court ruling that he unlawfully killed four unarmed Afghans.
Mr Roberts-Smith said he would appeal his loss in the High Court. He has not been criminally charged.
Mr McBride's lawyers also said they would take their appeal to the High Court.
'We believe that only the High Court can properly grapple with the immense public interest and constitutional issues at the heart of this case,' the lawyers' statement said.
'It cannot be a crime to expose a crime. It cannot be illegal to tell the truth,' the statement added.
The lawyers also called on attorney general Michelle Rowland, who was appointed after the Labor Party government was re-elected on May 3, to recommend Mr McBride be pardoned.
'It is now time for the attorney general to show leadership. To show Australians that this Labor government will no longer jail whistleblowers,' the lawyers said.
Ms Rowland did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.
The documents became the source of a series of Australian Broadcasting Corporation reports in 2017 called the Afghan Files.
The reports detailed allegations against Australian soldiers, including the unlawful killing of men and children.
Mr McBride sought to fight the charges, but the court would not allow his defence that he had had a sworn duty as a military officer to act in the public interest.
The Court of Appeal will publish reasons for its decision at a later date.
Mr McBride can be considered for parole after he has served two years and three months, meaning he must remain behind bars until at least August next year.
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Scottish Sun
13 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Full tragic timeline of 3-week hunt for Pheobe Bishop – from airport disappearance to housemate arrests and horror find
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) PHEOBE Bishop mysteriously vanished over three weeks ago in a gripping disappearance case which puzzled the world. The shocking story has been plagued by grim twists and heartbreaking pleas after the 17-year-old teenager went missing near an airport on May 15. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 16 Australian teen Pheobe Bishop disappeared over three weeks ago Credit: Facebook 16 Both of her housemates were arrested and charged with murder Credit: Queensland Police 16 An extensive search was launched in the weeks after she vanished Credit: 9 News 16 Her heartbroken mum made an emotional series of posts over the last three weeks Credit: Enterprise 16 Before she disappeared, Pheobe had been living in the town of Gin Gin, which is north of Brisbane in Australia. The sleepy neighbourhood has a population of about 1,100 people. The teenager had been living in a derelict pad - which had a foul smell and was very noisy according to neighbours. She lived there with two housemates: James Wood, 34, and Tanika Bromley, 33. On the day she went missing, Pheobe was meant to board a flight to see her boyfriend in Western Australia. Her housemates drove her to Bundaberg airport, but police said CCTV there never even saw her enter the terminal and she never actually checked in. She was on her way to Perth to visit her "high-school sweetheart" boyfriend. Pheobe reportedly made a last minute call to him at 8:30am mere moments before she was set to get on the flight to Western Australia. A family member said: "She didn't check in for her flight to visit her boyfriend who she spoke to on the phone at 8.30am." According to the Daily Mail, Wood said the couple had an explosive argument in the car with Pheobe over whether she could do her makeup before arriving at the airport. He said they pulled over just under a kilometre from their destination. Pheobe Bishop cops arrest 34-year-old flatmate who was last to see missing Aussie teen on explosive journey to airport Wood and Bromley then allegedly walked off and were away from Pheobe and the car for five minutes, according to the 34-year-old. A missing person's report was issued for her one day later on May 16. Her worried sick sister, Kaylea Bishop, sent Wood and Bromley a simple text, demanding to know the whereabouts of her sibling. She said: "Where is my sister?" On the following weekend, her desperate mum Kylie Johnson made emotional pleas for anyone with information to come forward. By May 18, over 400 missing person posters with Pheobe's photo had been plastered across the Wide Bay region. The next week, on Monday May 19, police launched their search for Pheobe. It covered land along Bundaberg's Airport Drive and the surrounding areas. 16 The 17-year-old had been living in a derelict home Credit: Enterprise 16 Housemate Tanika Bromley, 33 Credit: Enterprise 16 Housemate James Wood, 34 Credit: Facebook 16 A shock change was discovered on Bromley's car Credit: Facebook But mysteriously, police didn't find any sign of the teen or her belongings. Police, along with Pheobe's mum, described her disappearance as out of character on May 20. They also asked the public for information about the 2011 grey Hyundai ix35 hatch, owned by Bromley, that had been seen around Airport Drive at the time of Pheoebe's disappearance. The next day, police updated the case and said they were treating Pheobe's disappearance as a suspicious. They also declared two crime scenes - one being the run-down home she was living at, and the other being the infamous Hyundai she was driven to the airport in. After inspecting the foul-smelling home, police found four dead dogs rotting inside. But it was later understood that these four pups died of natural causes. Airport Drive, Samuels Road and Gin Gin were also named as locations of interest. On May 22, Detective Acting Inspector Ryan Thompson stressed the importance of public information. In a chilling plea, he said: "People don't vanish." 16 The desperate search had previously been called off Credit: 9 News 16 Bromley's Hyundai was declared a crime scene Credit: 7 News 16 Pheobe's mum said the discovery of a body had ripped her apart Credit: Facebook The day after that, police revealed they were searching through bushland and waterways at Good Night Scrub National Park, near to where Pheobe was last seen. This scan went on for the next two days, during which police dogs joined the hunt. On May 25 Bromley was arrested in a major twist after police allegedly found weapons in her silver Hyundai. On May 26, the search area was expanded - before cops made a harrowing revelation. They believed evidence had been moved from the Good Night Scrub area before they arrived there. And on this same day, a new number plate was discovered to have been suspiciously painted and taped over the notorious Hyundai's original plate. The gruelling search effort in Good Night Scrub National Park then continued from May 27 for five more days. Disturbingly, the search appeared to lose hope as police said they would no longer be doing any more physical scans for Pheobe on Wednesday, June 4. They said they would restart any searches only when they had relevant information. But in a dramatic twist on the very same day - Pheobe's housemate Wood was arrested. 16 She had saved up for months to buy a plane ticket Credit: Enterprise 16 The teenager was set to board a flight on May 15 Credit: Enterprise However, no charges were made and he was released a day later on June 5. And in yet another turn in the tale - Wood and Bromley were then both arrested and charged with murder on the same day Wood was released - exactly three weeks after Pheobe went missing. They were each charged with one count of murder and two counts of interfering with a corpse. Shocking footage released on Friday showed the moment police arrested Wood and escorted him out of an RV for the "homicide of Pheobe Bishop". Both Wood and Bromley appeared at Bundaberg Magistrates Court on Friday morning. Outside the building, Pheobe's heartbroken sister Kaylea Bishop said her sibling was 'loved and missed' dearly. Kaylea and Pheobe had a close relationship and were planning to move in together last year. And in the latest heartbreaking update, human remains were found during a search for Pheobe. They are yet to be identified, but police have spoken to Pheobe's family regarding the harrowing discovery. The body was found close to Good Night Scrub National Park, near Gin Gin, on Friday, June 6 at around 2:30pm. 16 Pheobe was last seen with Wood and Bromley on May 15 Credit: Facebook 16 Police constantly pleaded with the public to bring forward any information Credit: Facebook Pheobe's mum then made a heartbreaking statement. She said: "I didn't think my heart could break anymore than it did when you went missing, or when the charges were laid but this. "This is ripping me apart." Pheobe had previously said online that she wasn't living with her mum, and that she had been "in and out" of home for years. Cops are now set to allege that Wood, Bromley and Pheobe were all in the car when it arrived at Airport Drive near Bundaberg Airport in the morning of May 15. They believe that the trio never actually left the car. Detective Inspector Craig Mansfield said: "Our evidence will outline the fact that three people arrived near to the airport, and three people never exited that vehicle." Wood and Bromley will appear in court on August 11.
STV News
15 hours ago
- STV News
'I believe my son is innocent, is our 17-year nightmare finally over?'
The mum of a serial killer nurse says she hopes her '17-year nightmare' is finally ending after an appeal into her son's murder conviction drew to a close on Friday. Glaswegian Colin Campbell – formerly known as Colin Norris – was convicted in 2008 of murdering four women, and attempting to murder another, by injecting them with insulin at a hospital in Leeds, West Yorkshire. But the Court of Appeal has heard that new expert knowledge may mean the former nurse's conviction is unsafe. June Morrison, Colin's mum, told STV News that she has always believed in her son's innocence. 'We have never believed that he is guilty of any of this,' she said. 'We have always believed these women were not murdered. There were other things going on with their health. They had a lot of underlying conditions. 'Whatever decision is made about Colin, it affects the whole of our family. It affects the rest of our lives. If it does not go the way we want it to, we are going to have to start thinking about another campaign because we cannot just stop there. STV News June Morrison. 'We need to keep fighting. I think we can appeal against this appeal, but again, you have got to go through the process of having new evidence or new arguments. 'I have not been able to sleep because of the stress. I am not eating properly. He is on my mind constantly. When I do sleep, I wake up thinking about Colin.' Norris was convicted of killing Doris Ludlam, 80, Bridget Bourke, 88, Irene Crookes, 79, and 86-year-old Ethel Hall at Leeds General Infirmary and the city's St James' Hospital in 2002. He was also found guilty of attempting to murder 90-year-old Vera Wilby. All the women were elderly inpatients in 2002 on orthopaedic wards where Campbell worked and each developed severe, unexplained hypoglycemia. STV News (Left to right) Ethel Hall, Bridget Bourke, Irene Crookes and Doris Ludlam. Campbell was alleged to have been present when or shortly before each of the patients suffered hypoglycemia and, because of the rarity of such a cluster of cases happening within a short space of time, prosecutors said the nurse must have been responsible. A total of 20 experts gave evidence during a five-month trial at Newcastle Crown Court after which Campbell was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 30 years. The judges – Lady Justice Macur, Sir Stephen Irwin and Mr Justice Picken – will now retire to consider their verdict on whether the evidence that led to Colin's conviction was unsafe. June said: 'It still doesn't feel as if it's real. It is a scary time. We are hopeful as well, but it has been quite frightening at times. You are left feeling is this finally it? 'Is this nightmare that we have been going through for over 17 years finally ending? It has been going on for longer than that, but Colin has been in prison for 17 years. Norris has been serving life imprisonment at HMP Frankland in County Durham since an investigation concluded that the women in his care developed unexplained severe hypoglycaemia while in hospital. 'A lot of these families, they believed that their loved ones died naturally and then they were told there was a nurse that had murdered them,' said June. 'Me as a mother, I know my son is not capable of anything at that. It breaks my heart to think of these families and what they are going through. 'There are no winners. Because at the end of the day, if and when my son gets released, they are going to have to go through the process again of if my mother wasn't murdered, what are they to believe? I can't think for other families but for myself, no one wins.' 'I do think nurses need better protection in court. Some kind of expert that can represent them at a court because they don't have anything at the moment. 'They do have professional bodies but practicing nurses on wards need something more to help, to ensure that no other nurse or family has to go through this again.' While the court was off, June went down to Durham to see Colin in prison. 'I think he is just taking things day by day and hoping,' she said. 'What is it they say? Prepare for the worst and hope for the best. This is what we're hoping for. STV News 'I know the trial and a hearing are totally different, but being down in London, sitting on the court benches, it brings it all back. Colin is not there. He is on a TV screen so it is just a small picture that I can see. 'During the trial, I couldn't see Colin either because there was a screen between us. If I looked up, I could just see him. When you hear from the prosecution experts and they start saying 'my opinion is', it does take you right back. 'I have allowed myself to have thoughts of 'when he gets out, what we could do?' That is all a challenge. I have also had thoughts of 'what if he doesn't get out?' How do we start campaigning again? Who do we get on board? What happens with the legal team? 'All that goes through your mind, but at the moment I just get through the day. Coming into this, as a family, we had never been in trouble with the police. 'We never had any dealings with courts or anything like that, so it was hard to accept this was what was going to be happening for the next few years.' On the final day of Campbell's appeal in London on Friday, judges heard closing submissions from barristers representing the Crown Prosecution Service, who are opposing the appeal. In written submissions, James Curtis KC said the jury in Campbell's trial had the 'exceptional assistance of a meticulous, systematic and detailed summing up' from the judge. He added: 'They were provided with the necessary relevant facts and issues, from a plethora of highly qualified and clinically experienced witnesses. 'The judge carefully summarised and explained these, and accurately directed the jury as to how to approach them.' Michael Mansfield KC told the court on Thursday that Campbell's appeal is a 'straightforward case', and that judges 'must conclude that these convictions are unsafe'. Campbell has denied any wrongdoing and says he did nothing to cause hypoglycemia in any of the patients. He unsuccessfully appealed against his conviction in 2009 and applied to the Criminal Cases Review Commission in 2011. His appeal was heard after a review from the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) said new evidence created a 'real possibility' his conviction was unsafe. The CCRC referred his conviction to the Court of Appeal on the basis of new medical evidence in February 2021. It was agreed the new evidence could prove that natural causes may account for the hypoglycaemia in the four patients other than Mrs Hall. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Daily Mirror
15 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
Conor McGregor's BKFC faces ban as Australian leader slams 'brutal' sport
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