Latest news with #youthworker
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Big Brother star David Graham used a vile homophobic slur before assaulting a young man on his farm
A Big Brother contestant who famously came out as gay on national television called a young man who was staying at his farm a 'f***ot' before assaulting him one night. David Graham, known as 'Farmer Dave' to his fans, previously gave Daily Mail Australia his version of events leading up to the assault but didn't mention using homophobic slurs. The 45-year-old pleaded guilty to one count of common assault last Friday, when he was convicted and sentenced to a nine-month conditional release order. Graham had originally faced further charges of choking, intimidation and damaging property when he appeared at Windsor Local Court, in Sydney 's north-west, but those matters were withdrawn. A statement of facts tendered in court listed Graham's occupation as 'presenter/farmer/youth worker' but revealed his only source of income was $1,500 a week in worker's compensation. Those payments were due to post-traumatic stress disorder and went towards rent as well as raising five children and caring for seven dogs. Graham's victim, whom Daily Mail Australia has chosen not to name, was staying at his farm at Glossodia in the Hawkesbury region but moved out after the attack. The victim had been living with Graham for four months but the pair had known each other 'for an extensive period of time', according to the statement of facts. Graham told Daily Mail Australia on Monday night that he had allowed the young man to live on his farm because he 'had nowhere else to stay'. The reality television star said he met the young man through his work assisting troubled youth to train dogs and learn trades. Graham also claimed the victim 'hosted drinking parties' at his farm while he was away in Queensland visiting his terminally ill mother. 'I counselled him that he must find alternative accommodation,' he told Daily Mail Australia. Graham also claimed the young man had not fed his animals while he was away and he found one of his dogs in almost skeletal condition. The statement of facts tendered in court made no mention of alcohol, the deteriorating health of Graham's mother or emaciated dogs. According to the court document, Graham had asked the victim to charge the security cameras at his property on January 27. Graham did not believe the man had done what he was told 'and began berating the victim, yelling abuse at him, calling him a 'f***ing c***' and a 'f***ot'.' The argument 'got heated' at about 4.30pm and the victim ran to his car, attempting to leave the property. 'On doing this the accused followed him to the vehicle,' the statement of facts said. 'The accused grabbed the car door handle attempting to open it and hit the car window. 'This caused the victim to become scared for his welfare, fearing he was going to be assaulted and drove off from the location.' The victim returned to the farm about 8.30pm with a male friend to collect his belongings. While the victim was gathering up his possessions, Graham became abusive towards his friend who was standing beside a truck. The victim recorded Graham calling him and and his friend 'f***ing c***s' and 'f***king f***ots'. The victim told Graham 'Don't push him' in an effort to protect his friend, then when Graham pushed the victim he said, 'Don't touch me.' Shortly afterwards, the victim was in his bedroom when he heard a loud bang, according to the statement of facts. He then saw Graham drop his cupboard, causing a drawer to fall out and a wheel to break off. Graham said to the victim, 'Stop with the smart a*** response' and the victim replied, 'I'm not being a smart a***'. The next morning, police attended Graham's farm, where he was arrested. Asked if he had grabbed the victim the previous night, Graham said: 'To get him out of the house, 100 per cent.' Asked again about committing the assault, Graham said: 'To push him out of the house, yes.' Back at Windsor Police Station Graham became 'physically distressed' during an electronically recorded interview in which he described the assault. 'The accused stated that he felt intimidated as there were knives left lying around the house,' the statement of facts said. 'However, the accused continued to escalate the situation by yelling at the victim and entering the victim's bedroom. 'The accused made admissions to assaulting the victim while trying to physically remove the victim from the residence.' When Graham spoke to Daily Mail Australia he admitted he had done the 'wrong thing' but said he planned to appeal the severity of his sentence. Graham said that after returning from Queensland he had asked the victim to leave his home, which he did, before returning with his friend later that night. He said he pushed the victim with two open palms after the pair had refused to leave the premises. 'I was shocked and as I'm in recovery from PTSD after five years working in a high- stress work environment,' he said. 'At the time I had no way of knowing how many men were in the dark... both men were well over six foot, I was alone on my rural property and needed to assert myself and I did so. 'I accept that pushing a human is assault.' Graham said he would 'no longer give assistance to the homeless' and he had learned that 'no good deed goes unpunished'. 'This is the universe telling me I must learn to set clear boundaries and not take on other people's problems and focus on my own recovery,' he said. Graham famously came out as gay to his housemates on national television during the sixth season of Big Brother in 2006 when he finished third in the competition. In 2022, he returned for the show's 14th season and finished 13th out of 22 contestants. The reality show fan favourite started the charity RuffTrack in 2019, with the aim of connecting at-risk young people with dogs to help foster responsibility and trust. He told Daily Mail Australia last December he had walked away from that initiative after becoming burnt out. Graham is now the subject of a two-year apprehended violence order protecting the man he assaulted.
RNZ News
4 days ago
- General
- RNZ News
Oranga Tamariki youth worker loses appeal, dismissal for excessive force upheld
By Shannon Pitman, Open Justice reporter of Youth residence Korowai Manaaki. Photo: RNZ/Marika Khabazi A youth worker who was initially awarded nearly $30,000 for unfair dismissal after pushing a teenager who called her a derogatory name has now lost her case on appeal. The Employment Court has ruled that her dismissal was justified, determining she used excessive force and should receive no compensation as a result. Ioana Hill worked at the Oranga Tamariki youth residence, Korowai Manaaki, in South Auckland between 2017 and 2021. In March 2021, Hill was in the Nikau unit alongside four male staff members and six male rangatahi. A disagreement occurred between Hill and one of the teenagers over a missing pen and the boy was told to sit at the non-participation table (NPT). According to a recently released decision, he muttered, "F***** s***" as he walked towards the table, which caused Hill to feel embarrassed, humiliated and degraded in a room full of boys. She approached the teen who continued to aggressively repeat, "You f***** s***, you're a s***, you're a s***". Fearing for her safety, she used a technique called the train stop and pushed the boy backwards. He fell onto a chair. The boy went to get up again and Hill performed a second train stop but reported her hands missed his chest and moved towards his collarbone, pushing him back further than she anticipated. Hill left the unit upset, reported the incident to a team leader and admitted she had "f***** up". Oranga Tamariki conducted a review and dismissed her after viewing CCTV that showed her hand around his neck in a back-and-forth choking motion. The letter informing her of dismissal for serious misconduct said she had initiated the altercation when there had been no lawful ground to use force. Hill took her dismissal to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) in 2024. It found she was unjustifiably dismissed and awarded her $29,000. Oranga Tamariki appealed the ERA decision recently, taking Hill to the Employment Court. Much of the ERA decision found Hill's actions were warranted as she was acting in self-defence, but Judge Merepaia King disagreed. "The purpose of a youth justice residence is to provide a safe environment and high standard of personalised care for rangatahi in Oranga Tamariki's care," she said. "Oranga Tamariki care for some of the most complex and challenging rangatahi in New Zealand. These rangatahi come from backgrounds of criminal offending, mental health or addiction issues and physical, sexual and emotional trauma. "There is an inherent power imbalance between staff and rangatahi. This is due to the legitimate and authorised power and control that Oranga Tamariki employees have over rangatahi in the youth justice residence." Although King acknowledged Hill was acting in self-defence, she said the teen did not pose any threat to Hill's safety, the safety of others or to property. "He was making offensive comments, but nevertheless he was complying with her instruction to go to the NPT in the corner of the room." Judge King ruled Hill used excessive force and the ERA erred in finding that Hill was unjustifiably dismissed. Despite this finding, Judge King found Oranga Tamariki conducted an inadequate investigation and criticised flaws in procedures, including an immediate dismissal. "Oranga Tamariki ought to have conducted a more thorough investigation before it rejected her position that she had feared for her safety at the time of the incident." Hill told NZME the four-year legal battle was about standing up for what was right. "I was invited more than once to consider an early resolution but chose to see the case through. I maintained my position throughout, and, despite the appeal, I'd rather bear the cost of pursuing justice than walk away quietly," Hill said. Iain Chapman, DCE for Oranga Tamariki youth justice services and residential care, told NZME that the safety of children sits at the core of its work and he welcomed the court's decision on this matter. "Our focus in the appeal was to ensure that the court accurately applied our regulations to this employment matter," Chapman said. "The regulations are intended to ensure force is only used in limited and appropriate circumstances." The previous order to pay $15,643.86 in lost wages and $14,000 in compensation has been set aside. * This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald .
