Convicted killer Bradley John Murdoch dead at 67
Bradley John Murdoch, who was serving a life sentence for the backpacker's murder, was diagnosed with terminal throat cancer in 2019.
He was transferred from the Alice Springs Correctional Centre to palliative care earlier this year.
He was 67.
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SBS Australia
13 minutes ago
- SBS Australia
Australia falls further behind on Closing the Gap targets
TRANSCRIPT Australia falls further behind on Closing the Gap targets Minimal tsunami impact following major Russian quake Kimberley Le Pienaar wins stage five of the Tour de France Femmes A new report reveals Australia is on track to meet only four of 19 national targets to close the gap between outcomes for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians. The latest Productivity Commission report presents another year of data with 16 additional supporting indicators reported for the first time. There are four targets on track to be met by 2031, including preschool program enrolments and employment, and six targets are improving, but will still fall short. These include life expectancy, healthy birth-weights, year 12 or equivalent qualifications and appropriately-sized housing. The target of youth justice has shown no change from the baseline and four targets - including adult imprisonment, suicide and children in out-of-home care - are actively worsening. Productivity Commissioner Selwyn Button says over-incarceration remains a key concern, especially for those held without a sentence. 'We know that a large majority of adults in prison are in prison unsentenced, and that's a similar story for average Trust Islander children who are in youth detention, they're in their unsentenced.' International and local criminals are suspected of working together to firebomb a synagogue, as police arrest one of three men they allege carried out the arson attack. A 21-year-old Werribee man, who is known to police, was arrested in Melbourne's west as multiple search warrants were carried out around the city on Wednesday. Two buildings of the Adass Israel synagogue in Melbourne's southeast were destroyed in December 2024, with the fire attack forcing two congregants inside to flee for their lives. The man is yet to be charged but Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner, Krissy Barrett, says no offence is off the table and she expects more people to be arrested in the future. She says police believe there was involvement by foreign actors in planning the attack. "Our investigation is not limited to Australia. It involves exploring criminals offshore and we suspect these criminals worked with criminal associates in Victoria to carry out the arson attack." A powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula that triggered tsunami warnings as far as French Polynesia and Chile, has seemingly passed without causing major devastation. The shallow quake damaged buildings and injured several people, and was followed by an eruption from the region's most active volcano, Klyuchevskoy. Evacuation orders were issued along Japan's eastern coast, still haunted by the 2011 tsunami, and in parts of Hawaii. By evening, most warnings in Japan, Hawaii and Russia had been downgraded, as well as in the United States, as Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem explains. "We're in really good shape right now. We have downgraded the tsunami threat that was established for Hawaii and some of the regions impacting Alaska as well, but we still have a warning out and an alert for the West Coast. But we anticipate it'll be minimal impact." However, authorities in French Polynesia are urging residents of the remote Marquesas Islands to move to higher ground, warning of waves up to 2.5 metres high. Israeli strikes and gunfire in Gaza have killed at least 46 Palestinians, most of them reportedly among crowds searching for food, according to local hospitals. More than 30 people were killed reportedly while seeking aid, with dozens more wounded. The Israeli military has not commented on the latest attacks, but maintains it targets only militants and blames Hamas for civilian casualties, citing its operations in densely-populated areas. The deaths come as the United Kingdom threatens to recognise a Palestinian state in September unless Israel agrees to conditions, after France said it would do so without imposing any conditions. British Foreign secretary David Lammy had this to say. "The decision that we have taken today puts us on a pathway towards recognition. And over the next eight weeks, what we are attempting to do is affect the situation on the ground. We have seen the most horrific scenes. The global community is deeply offended by children being shot and killed as they reach out for aid. The time has come for a ceasefire." Israel's foreign ministry has rejected the British statement. To sport and in cycling, Kimberley Le Pienaar has won the fifth stage of the Tour de France Femmes, making the Mauritian rider the first African to claim a stage in the Tour's history. The 29 year-old reclaimed the yellow jersey after the gruelling 165.8 kilometre day, the longest of the event so far. Multiple riders crashed, some leaving the race altogether. Le Pienaar shared her delight at reclaiming the yellow leader's jersey - and the traditional stuffed toy lion gifted to every stage winner. "Amazing. We had the plan to try and take it back today. The team rode amazingly. The plan was just to take the sprints and if it finishes in a small group try to take the victory, stage victory, and it worked out really well. I don't think it would have been possible without the team work, without Sarah (Gigante) at the end. It really was amazing, and now we have a second Simba (lion toy awarded to stage winners), so super happy." Demi Vollering is sitting in third place overall, while Pauline Ferrand Prevot is in second, sitting 18 seconds behind Le Court in the general classification.
ABC News
39 minutes ago
- ABC News
Review into over-representation of First Nations people in ACT justice system makes almost 100 recommendations
A damning review into the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the ACT criminal justice system has recommended sweeping changes. The more-than-500-page report by the Jumbunna Institute at the University of Technology Sydney made almost 100 recommendations, including "priority" systemic racism reviews of ACT Policing and Canberra's jail, and an inquiry into recent deaths in custody. The ACT has the highest rate of Indigenous imprisonment of any state or territory, and First Nations people in the ACT are more likely to receive a custodial sentence than non-Indigenous defendants found guilty. The Jumbunna review identified systemic racism within ACT schools, government directorates, courtrooms, Canberra's jail, and in ACT Policing's approaches. "Racism occurs at an individual and systemic level, within specific agencies and across broader government approaches: for example, not trusting Aboriginal people to lead solutions to over-representation," the report said. A major criticism of the government was that many approaches to date had not included First Nations people or prioritised their self-determination. ACT Indigenous Affairs Minister Suzanne Orr said the government had made progress, and it would now work on an interconnected response. 'Singling out one thing in isolation isn't actually the best way to proceed, and I think this goes to the point that's made in the report, that it's actually a joined-up response and a coordinated response that's needed,' Ms Orr said. 'We're dealing with some pretty long history here and a lot of responses that we haven't had to grapple with before. "So, we have made progress in sort of parts, and we've not shied away from that, and I've not shied away from that.' The report authors heard evidence that Indigenous people in the ACT "continue to be targeted, and continue to experience excessive use of force" by ACT Policing. "Police target your name because of the history that's involved with, maybe not incarceration, but with contact with police," a First Nations organisation told interviewers. Those interviewed also spoke about a lack of transparency in making complaints about police. Many believed complaints would not be followed up on, or there would be repercussions. "The unique arrangement in the ACT — whereby community policing is contracted out to the Australian Federal Police — was perceived to be a significant contributor to the problems of accountability," the report said. "We recommend the establishment of an independent oversight body with the statutory authority to investigate complaints against ACT Policing, and to compel action in response to its investigations." It also recommended clearer guidelines for the use of body-worn cameras, including that they must be activated when "exercising police powers, or when it is likely that an interaction may lead to the exercise of police powers". Also, it recommended that there be a process for individuals to access relevant footage. The report authors said "urgent attention" was also needed relating to evidence around a perception that child services and ACT Policing had worked together to "punish victim-survivors for 'failing to protect' their children". They heard ACT Policing had placed "the onus on victim-survivors to leave violent relationships and environments". There was also evidence that police were using adverse discretion "in matters such as the use of diversion, use of arrest over summons, access to police bail, the use of minor offences, police stops and use of force". In a statement, an ACT Policing spokesperson said it was aware of the Jumbunna review, but it would not be appropriate to comment ahead of a government response. The report authors recommended that the ACT Education Directorate avoid unnecessary contact with police over school-based incidents, which "increases the likelihood of further contact [for students] with the criminal legal system". The review, which has recommended the "priority" establishment of a First Nations Education Advisory Body, heard evidence of systemic racism in ACT schools. "There were perceptions that First Nations students are more likely to be suspended or excluded than other students. This was seen as being race-based or as poor responses to disability related behaviour," the report found. "And concerns raised during the review process identified Education Directorate staff as over-reporting First Nations students and families to [the Community Services Directorate]." "They used to suspend my son, like, every week. And when they didn't have a reason to actually suspend him, when they weren't allowed to suspend him because it wasn't bad enough, they'd make him sign a mutually agreed leave form," the report authors were told. Interviewees in the ACT's youth detention facility, Bimberi, spoke of interrupted schooling. This prompted a recommendation for day-release options so those in detention can attend school or work. "Consideration should be given too to whether a trade skill centre can be set up at Bimberi," the report suggested. "These opportunities give a young person hope, direction, and break negative cycles." The report highlighted the over-representation of Indigenous ACT children in child protection and out-of-home care systems, and said the issue was linked to racist systems that "continue to position First Nations families as risky". It said children in care were more likely to get attention from police, with the issue dubbed care criminalisation. "Community members spoke at length about a well-established residential care to youth justice to adult incarceration pipeline," the report said. For young people in youth detention, the report recommended increased funding for the Restorative Justice Unit, a specialised children's solicitor, and a requirement for ACT Policing to make public the reasons why diversionary options are not used for young people. It further recommended that the ACT government undertake an independent review of the use of remand for children, particularly First Nations children, to reduce unnecessary custody. The report recommended ACT Corrections Minister Marisa Paterson consider establishing an independent inquiry into the "deaths of seven men in adult correctional custody between February 2023 and February 2025". It further recommended that the ACT government and the ACT coroner expedite coronial investigations into deaths in custody. "It is difficult to imagine an issue of more concern to the First Nations community in the ACT than Aboriginal deaths in custody, particularly when three deaths occurred within the space of seven months," the report authors said. Regarding issues within the prison, the authors said they were "disturbed" to see the rate of discontinued cultural programs within the AMC. The review recommended that the jail introduce more structure to the days of inmates with "purposeful activities" that must meet the cultural needs of First Nations inmates. "The effects of boredom are multifaceted, potentially increasing the likelihood of conflict among detainees and with staff, negatively impacting on self-worth and motivation, increased drug use, and diminishing the likelihood of rehabilitation and preparedness for release," the report authors said. The report said a systemic racism review of the AMC should probe "the use of segregation, the use of force, security classifications, recognition of cultural rights and the interaction of staff with First Nations detainees". It recommended the extension of the weekend bail court to include Sunday to "reduce unnecessary custodies". It further recommended wastewater testing at the jail to gauge the prevalence and type of drug use, as well as a regular civil law clinic to deal with "sleeper issues," including housing matters, child support, and debts. The government is expected to provide an interim response in September.
News.com.au
39 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Probe after man fatally shot by police at Yarra Junction
Police say the man was seen assaulting a woman before being fatally shot by an officer at a property in Victoria. A man has died after being shot by police in Victoria's east. Officers were called to a home on Warburton Hwy at Yarra Junction - about 68km east of Melbourne - near 5.30pm on Wednesday, after reports a man was assaulting a woman. A statement from Victoria Police says two officers went to the scene and saw a woman being assaulted by the man. 'As a result of the confrontation, a police officer has discharged their firearm,' the statement read. Paramedics treated the man at the scene but he could not be revived. The woman was flown to hospital and treated for serious injuries. The man and woman are believed to be known to one another, police say. The homicide squad has launched an investigation with oversight from the Professional Standards Command. The state coroner, Judge John Cain, was also at the scene.
