Latest news with #ChrisMasters
ABC News
28-05-2025
- General
- ABC News
Jailed whistleblower David McBride loses appeal against severity of sentence
Former military lawyer David McBride has lost his appeal against the severity of his sentence for sharing classified documents with journalists. McBride pleaded guilty to theft and distributing the documents to three journalists, and was sentenced last year to five years and eight months jail, with a non-parole period of two years and three months. The appeal had a two-pronged approach, targeting the sentence and a ruling by the judge that he could not rely on an argument that it was his duty to reveal the information in his defence. McBride wanted to argue the duty came from the oath he swore to the Queen when he joined the military. When the court refused to allow the argument, McBride said he had been stripped of his defence and his only option was to plead guilty. Around 2013, McBride began copying material, putting it on his own computer, printing and taking it home in his backpack. He ended up removing 235 documents, 207 of which held secret classifications. The documents were stored in plastic bins in his cupboard. He offered the material to three journalists, Chris Masters, Andrew Clarke and the ABC's Dan Oaks. During the court hearings the details emerged. Chris Masters and Andrew Clarke did nothing with the material. Mr Clarke told McBride in 2015 he had destroyed the documents. Only the ABC used the material, to produce the Afghan files, which detailed allegations of unlawful killings by Australian soldiers. But the story the ABC told was totally different to the one McBride wanted told. He had hoped that by giving the material to the journalists he would expose his own concerns that there was too much scrutiny of soldiers. Knowing charges were inevitable, McBride hung out in Spain for a while, before returning to Australia for an event at his daughter's school in 2018. When he tried to leave the country again, he was arrested at Sydney Airport. He faced the ACT Magistrates Court charged with theft and sharing the material in March 2019. But he had already set off a chain of events with wide-ranging consequences, as the ABC was raided by Australian Federal Police officers looking for material. And then came the pandemic. It was years before the case reached the trial stage in 2024, with McBride unable to meet his lawyers face-to-face because of travel restrictions. In the end the trial never really started, after ACT Supreme Court Justice David Mossop refused to allow what McBride said was his key defence: that he had a duty to release the information. His lawyers lodged a last ditch appeal, but lost that too, and he pleaded guilty. That decision was one of the issues raised in today's appeal. McBride's lawyers said their proposed appeal to the High Court was necessary because of the ramifications McBride's case has for other Australians. "We believe that only the High Court can properly grapple with the immense public interest and constitutional issues at the heart of this case," his lawyers said in a statement. They also called for the federal government to pardon McBride. "It is now time for the attorney-general to show leadership. To show Australians that this Labor government will no longer jail whistleblowers." Through his lawyers, McBride said Australians would be outraged by the Court of Appeal decision. "It is my own conscience and the people of Australia that I answer to. I have kept my oath to the Australian people," he said in the statement. McBride has been in Canberra's jail since October last year. His appeal was heard in March. For each and every appearance McBride has been buoyed by a loyal group of supporters who gathered again today outside the ACT courts building. McBride was in court in person for the ruling which threw out his appeal, with his supporters, including his wife, in the public gallery. He has now been returned to Canberra's jail and his lawyers say they will prepare for a High Court challenge.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Yahoo
Sad but simple explanations in veteran's lost appeal
Fear of reprisal drove soldiers serving alongside disgraced veteran Ben Roberts-Smith to look the other way as he committed war crimes, appeal judges have found. The Federal Court on Tuesday published its reasons for dismissing Roberts-Smith's appeal against the finding he was responsible for the murder of four unarmed civilians in Afghanistan. The incidents, first reported by journalists Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters in Nine newspapers in 2018, sparked a years-long defamation fight. Justice Anthony Besanko in 2023 found the claims were substantially true. The court dismissed the Victoria Cross recipient's appeal against that finding on Friday, adding to a legal bill expected to run into the tens of millions of dollars. Roberts-Smith argued the judge erred in finding he killed a man with a prosthetic leg and ordered the execution of another, elderly man at a compound called Whiskey 108 in order to "blood the rookie". The judge failed to give weight to official records suggesting the pair were insurgents legitimately killed while fleeing the compound, or adequately deal with the improbability of a widespread conspiracy to conceal the truth when those records were made, the appeal argued. Rather than a widespread conspiracy, the court ruled there were other, simpler explanations. "It can be explained by the more pedestrian, if disappointing, path of widespread individual failure. "All the soldiers that knew or suspected looked the other way," Justices Nye Perram, Anna Katzmann and Geoffrey Kennett said in the published findings. Soldiers told the court they feared reprisal. "I was afraid what would possibly happen to me if I was seen to be the bloke who was speaking out about incidents and not playing the team game," one said. "The primary judge's conclusion that the soldiers had reasons not to speak out was, as His Honour correctly observed, part of the sad facts of the case," the appeal judges said. Roberts-Smith bringing the prosthetic leg back to Australia and encouraging other soldiers to drink beer out of it was also found to be substantially true by the primary judge and was among the findings for which appeals were dismissed. The appeal court found no errors in Justice Besanko's finding that Roberts-Smith had murdered a man named Ali Jan by kicking him off a cliff and ordering another soldier to shoot him. The September 11, 2012, incident in the Afghanistan village of Darwan was among other reported claims found to be substantially true that conveyed to readers that Roberts-Smith was a war criminal who had disgraced his country and its army. Similarly, no errors were found in a finding Roberts-Smith ordered another soldier, through an interpreter, to shoot a detained man in nearby Chinartu about a month later. An argument Justice Besanko failed to apply legal principles for determining truth was also rejected. The court ruled he had carefully and repeatedly adhered to them, discussing them at length in his reasoning. The trial judge was "acutely conscious of the seriousness of the findings", resisting some when nonetheless compelling evidence was insufficient, the appeal court said. He had also rejected evidence from Roberts-Smith and others as false. Two errors in the primary judge's reasoning were detected but ruled immaterial on the appeal. The trial ran for 110 days, stretched out over more than a year. More than a thousand documents were tendered and 44 witnesses were called. The appeal itself took 10 days, with numerous pre-trial and post-trial hearings, taking the case's total estimated bill north of $30 million. Roberts-Smith plans to appeal to the High Court. "I continue to maintain my innocence and deny these egregious, spiteful allegations," he wrote in a statement on Friday. Lifeline 13 11 14 Open Arms 1800 011 046
The Guardian
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ben Roberts-Smith loses defamation appeal; Pesutto to pay $2.3m; and flushing worm wins photography prize
Welcome, readers, to Afternoon Update. Ben Roberts-Smith has lost his appeal against a defamation case ruling, with three judges of the federal court unanimously upholding a 2023 decision that he was not defamed by Nine newspapers and journalists Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters when they published reports in 2018 which claimed he had committed war crimes. In a summary of the judgment, the justices wrote that they were 'unanimously of the opinion that the evidence was sufficiently cogent to support the findings that the appellant murdered four Afghan men'. Roberts-Smith has always denied the allegations against him. The latest ruling means that only the high court can now overturn the findings he committed war crimes. It also opens the way for a potential criminal investigation by the Australian federal police and the Office of the Special Investigator. This marks a key moment in a marathon legal battle that has spanned seven years, believed to have cost more than $25m. Bankruptcy fears as John Pesutto ordered to pay $2.3m in costs over Moira Deeming defamation Man arrested after Adelaide school community led to believe food was poisoned NSW workers' compensation overhaul would make it 'virtually impossible' to lodge successful claims, experts warn 'Rough end to the weekend': wintry weather on the way for south-east Australia James Comey investigated over seashell photo claimed to be 'threat' against Trump Australia Eurovision entry Go-Jo fails to wow judges and misses out on grand final From a sea dragon to flushing worms, the winning images from this year's Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation Environmental Photography award have been revealed. Selected from a pool of more than 10,000 entrants, winners were awarded for putting their creativity to good use in raising awareness of the importance of environmental protection. 'This isn't about a few hateful comments. It's about a culture of abuse that has become normalised.' A new report by Ofcom and Kick It Out has found the amount of 'vile' online abuse directed at people in sport is getting worse and is having a 'devastating impact' on their lives, livelihoods and families. The Kick It Out chair, Sanjay Bhandari, criticised 'a social media ecosystem that too often enables and amplifies abuse'. Ten years ago, just one in 10 homes around the country had broken the million-dollar threshold, but new data shows surging demand and slow-growing supply has worsened housing affordability. Sign up to Afternoon Update Our Australian afternoon update breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Amid a backslide in the fashion industry's commitment to body and age diversity, at Australian fashion week some designers are taking a different approach to casting. This practice seems to come from two places: creating better vibes on the runway and backstage, and wanting to showcase clothes on bodies that reflect their customers. Today's starter word is: VIA. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply. Enjoying the Afternoon Update? Then you'll love our Morning Mail newsletter. Sign up here to start the day with a curated breakdown of the key stories you need to know, and complete your daily news roundup. And follow the latest in US politics by signing up for This Week in Trumpland. If you have a story tip or technical issue viewing this newsletter, please reply to this email. If you are a Guardian supporter and need assistance with regards to contributions and/or digital subscriptions, please email
The Guardian
16-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ben Roberts-Smith loses appeal against defamation ruling he committed war crimes in Afghanistan
Ben Roberts-Smith has lost his appeal against a defamation case ruling, with three justices of the federal court agreeing he was not defamed by Nine newspapers and journalists Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters when they published reports in 2018 which claimed he had committed war crimes. The decision was handed down on Friday morning in Sydney and marks a key moment in a marathon legal battle that has spanned seven years. The ruling upholds the decision of justice Anthony Basenko in 2023 who found that Roberts-Smith had, on the balance of probabilities, committed war crimes while deployed in Afghanistan. The federal court decision affirms that claims made in news reports by McKenzie and Masters in 2018 that Roberts-Smith was responsible for the murder of four unarmed civilians when deployed in Afghanistan were substantially true. Roberts-Smith, 46, is one of Australia's most decorated soldiers. He was awarded Australia's highest military honour, the Victoria Cross, in 2011, for single-handedly taking out machine-gun posts to protect pinned-down colleagues in Afghanistan. He has always denied the allegations against him. He appealed Basenko's ruling, and the appeal was heard in the federal court over 10 days in February 2024. More than a year later, the court handed down its ruling. The decision means that only the high court can now overturn the findings he has committed war crimes. It also opens the way for a potential criminal investigation by the Australian federal police and the Office of the Special Investigator. The cost of the long-running legal proceedings are believed to exceed $25m. Now that Robert-Smith's appeal has failed, he could be ordered by the court to pay these costs. The court also refused Roberts-Smith's application to reopen the appeal over a secret recording he claims reveals an alleged miscarriage of justice. In a recording of a phone call between McKenzie and one of the witnesses in the trial, McKenzie can be heard telling her that Roberts-Smith's ex-wife and her friend were 'actively briefing us on his legal strategy' during the initial trial. Sign up to Morning Mail Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion McKenzie has denied claims he obtained privileged information while investigating Roberts-Smith. Additional reporting Australian Associated Press
Newsweek
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
AEW Star's Injury Worse Than Expected: Report
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. AEW will be without one of its stars longer than expected, as the injury is worse than hoped for after surgery. Recent reports from Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter have shed light on the severity of Cage's recent injury, revealing it to be a torn quadriceps muscle rather than an initial diagnosis of a knee issue. This extends the anticipated recovery period, typically around a year. However, Cage is reportedly determined to defy these timelines and return to in-ring action as soon as possible. Meltzer's report detailed the circumstances leading up to the injury, stating, "Regarding Brian Cage, it appears his injury was a torn quad and not a knee injury. That's usually a one-year recuperation period, but he vows to return quicker. He had an injury in his leg for months that he'd been working on. He didn't realize it was as bad as it was. He was working an indie in Los Angeles against Chris Masters and went for a spinebuster. On the initial pickup, the left leg buckled and he felt the tear bad." He described it as feeling like a piece of paper tearing in half. It had nothing to do with the match or the spot during a match with Chris Masters in Los Angeles. More news: WWE News: Steve Austin Reveals Real-Life Vince McMahon Confrontation Cage previously confirmed that he had undergone surgery and had already begun his rehabilitation process by returning to the gym. Cage has been regularly used since his impactful debut at Double or Nothing in May 2020, where he won the Casino Ladder Match, earning an immediate AEW World Championship opportunity. All Elite Wrestling ALL IN at Wembley Stadium in London on August 27, 2023. All Elite Wrestling ALL IN at Wembley Stadium in London on August 27, 2023. Courtesy of AEW Throughout his AEW tenure, Cage has held the revived FTW Championship, aligning himself with Taz before eventually parting ways with Team Taz. He also became a part of Tully Blanchard's stable, which transitioned into The Embassy under Prince Nana's guidance and later merged into The Don Callis Family. Beyond AEW, Cage has also achieved success in Ring of Honor (ROH), holding the ROH World Television Championship and the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship on two occasions as part of The Embassy with Kaun and Toa Liona. We wish Cage a speedy recovery. More WWE News: For more on WWE, head to Newsweek Sports.
