Great pubs in Darwin

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

A MAN who claimed he was acting in self defence when he glassed a stranger at a Darwin pub was yesterday found guilty and will spend the next eight months behind bars.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A MAN who claimed he was acting in self-defence when he glassed a stranger at a Darwin pub was yesterday found guilty and will spend the next eight months behind bars.

 

Sean Jonathan Iles, 31, was sentenced in Darwin Magistrates Court to 12 months in prison to be suspended after serving eight months.

 

He told magistrate Tanya Fong Lim: "I got a nudge so I turned around and punched him. I was scared.''

 

He said he hit Josh Fowler, 28, in the face because he thought his pregnant girlfriend was being threatened at the Parap Tavern on September 4 last year.

 

"I didn't know I had a glass in my hand,'' he said.

 

"I was acting in self defence, I swear to God.''

 

 

But magistrate Tanya Fong Lim found Mr Fowler and his mate were not acting aggressive and Iles' girlfriend Jade Albion was not in imminent danger.

 

"I find he was untruthful in his evidence and he knew he had a glass in his hand,'' she said.

 

Outside court, Mr Fowler, who needed 19 stitches after the attack, called for glassing to be the subject of mandatory sentencing in the Territory.

 

"Glassing is a disgusting act and it should have mandatory sentences,'' he said.

 

He said the scars on his face and neck "stand out'' and he continues to get treatment for them.

 

Mr Fowler, who moved to Victoria following the assault, said he was content with the sentence imposed because he was expecting a more lenient prison term.

 

Prosecutor James Tierney said: "This is as serious as it gets.''

 

But Iles' lawyer Peter Maley said that statement was an "overstretch'' and it was simply a spontaneous response to a perceived threat.

 

"There's no suggestion my client was out looking for a fight that night,'' he said.

 

Ms Fong Lim said everyone should be able to feel safe at pubs and clubs and glassing happens "too often'' in the Territory.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/true-crime-scene/man-jailed-for-glassing-a-stranger/story-fnat7dhc-1226298775620

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

[h=1]Court rejects glassing appeal[/h]Posted April 1, 2010 20:45:00

 

• Map: Darwin 0800
  

 

 

Three judges of the Northern Territory Supreme Court have rejected an appeal from the man convicted of smashing a glass into the face of a soldier at a Darwin nightclub.

A jury convicted Te Tuhi Puru Westrupp in October last year of causing serious harm to Andrew Blain.

The soldier bumped into Westrupp in a Darwin nightclub in June 2008, starting a confrontation that ended with Westrupp throwing a punch while holding a glass.

Mr Blain lost his left eye in the assault.

Westrupp's lawyer attempted to appeal against the conviction today, telling the court four witnesses did not see Westrupp holding a glass.

But the court rejected the appeal, saying it was open for the jury to accept evidence of the victim that Westrupp did have a glass in his hand.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/04/01/2863050.htm?site=darwin

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

A FORMER prison guard has been found guilty of glassing a Darwin soldier.Corporal Andrew Blain had to have his left eye removed after Westrupp, 44, broke a handled beer glass into his face at Lost Arc nightclub in June last year.

The attack was sparked when Mr Blain bumped into Westrupp as he made his way to the dance floor.

Westrupp had pleaded not guilty to causing serious harm to Mr Blain.

"An injury like that, as significant as that, where the person suffering the injury has contributed to it to the effect that they caused it, it is a dreadfully hard thing for that person to accept," Westrupp's lawyer Peter Elliott.

"And having to tell your friends that and tell the police that and then having told people one thing, having to retract what you have said happened would be a dreadfully difficult thing to do."

 

 

Mr Elliott said it was possible the glass that broke in Mr Blain's eye was his own, not Westrupp's.

But Crown prosecutor Sally Ozolins said that version was "highly improbable".

She asked the jury to consider whether Mr Blain - significantly shorter than Mr Westrupp and carrying his girlfriend's handbag on his shoulder - would have been aggressive towards Westrupp, a rugby coach, who was with other rugby friends.

"Does that scenario have a ring of truth to it?" she asked.

Westrupp was remanded in custody for sentencing submissions next week

http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2009/10/10/91321_ntnews.html

[Guest]

Righto. So your title is rather misleading isn't it.

 

Perhaps we need to re title it 'Not so great pubs in Darwin' or something.

 

Some of the above stories you've posted actually date from 2008 (your second post) and the 3rd post story from 2009. The first one appears to be more recent, with the article from earlier this year. So not actually that recent.

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

Righto. So your title is rather misleading isn't it.

 

Perhaps we need to re title it 'Not so great pubs in Darwin' or something.

 

Some of the above stories you've posted actually date from 2008 (your second post) and the 3rd post story from 2009. The first one appears to be more recent, with the article from earlier this year. So not actually that recent.

 

Title was meant to be sacrastic as going for a night out in Darwin is like a bad night in Kabul.

 

 

I used the series of articles to illustrate this theme.

 

Apologies if I am being a bit cryptic but I would hate anybody to move here under the misaprehension that the place is civilised.

 

See article below.

 

A WOMAN had her ear bitten off in a booze-fuelled night of violence at pubs and clubs in the Top End.The attack at a Darwin pub was just one of a string of incidents that kept police in Darwin busy on Friday night.

The incident at Kitty O'Sheas was reported to police at 12.55am.

The 44-year-old woman was discharged from Royal Darwin Hospital late yesterday following surgery.

A 45-year-old man, believed to be the woman's partner, fled the scene and was arrested after he was found in a nearby suburb yesterday.

He was charged with assault causing serious harm, and assault.

 

 

He was bailed to appear before the Darwin Magistrates Court on May 26.

After being contacted by the Sunday Territorian, the NT Police released a statement confirming the incident.

Meanwhile, a woman lay on the side of the road in front of Crocosaurus Cove after she was allegedly punched in the face inside Shenannigans about 1am.

The woman, who was reported to be an employee at the bar, was taken to RDH.

It was unclear if any arrests had been made last night.

The Sunday Territorian was told of at least three other assaults in the early hours of yesterday by witnesses at licensed premises across Darwin.

A man was punched in the face on the outdoor area of Kitty O'Sheas after a woman was pushed and stumbled down stairs about midnight.

A man was heard unleashing a foulmouthed tirade at The Vic as he confronted security about entering.

He screamed insults regarding homosexuality as he walked away from the Smith St premises. And a fight broke out at Throb after two people were dragged from the club about 3am.

A witness said as the brawl erupted, a man jumped on the back of a security guard and they fell to the ground where the man punched the guard before police arrived.

http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2009/05/10/50301_ntnews.html

[Guest51810]

Wow you really like your news articles dont you..

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

Wow you really like your news articles dont you..

 

I do indeed.

 

I think that they give a good picture of life in the Top End.

[Guest51810]

Sounds a bit like London or Glasgow on a saturday night.

[Guest]

You are giving the negatives only as you are unhappy for whatever reason.

 

Crappy news stories can be found for no end of places all over the world.

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

You are giving the negatives only as you are unhappy for whatever reason.

 

Crappy news stories can be found for no end of places all over the world.

 

Have you actually been to NT?

 

I had to sell the business in Alice Springs after I put in 85 insurance claims in for plate glass and break ins in a single year. You can't walk after dark there because there are gangs of youths armed with knives. The place is going down the pan fast.

 

Darwin is nearly as bad but not quite.

 

[h=2]http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2012/s3528915.htm

Transcript[/h] LEIGH SALES, PRESENTER: The town of Alice Springs was once the quaint capital of Australia's red centre, but today Alice is caught in a spiral of alcohol-fuelled violence and crime. It was highlighted earlier this month when two foreign tourists were attacked and raped while sleeping in their car. Aborigines are blamed for much of the trouble, and they say it is time to tackle the root causes, but residents just want a crackdown, as Mike Sexton reports.

 

MIKE SEXTON, REPORTER: Winter has arrived in central Australia, and each evening as the sun drops, so does the mercury. The night brings with it subzero temperatures, and a full police contingent onto the streets of Alice Springs. Recently, 14 new police recruits arrived in Alice Springs, in an effort to get on top of a crime spree that is eating away at the town.

 

On this shift, police are confronted with the gruesome consequences of a night of heavy drinking.

 

MICHAEL MURPHY, NT POLICE: He has a head wound; it is bleeding quite profusely. We've got a bandage on, and have applied pressure. He is conscious, talking; he is intoxicated; obviously, the urgency level is probably... not was first thought. Unfortunately, the sad fact is assaults are quite common in these areas. As you can see there is no formal housing established here; it's a camp-type facility.

 

MIKE SEXTON: Emergency service workers take the injury man to hospital while two suspects are detained, all overseen by the Northern Territory's Police Commissioner John McRoberts.

 

JOHN MCROBERTS, NORTHERN TERRITORY POLICE COMMISSIONER: There has been social dysfunction in Alice Springs for well over 30 years. This is not a new or emerging issue. This is a situation that has flourished for many years. I have heard loud and clear the message from the citizens of Alice Springs - that they are fed up with the situation in the town.

 

DALE WAKEFIELD, ALICE SPRINGS WOMEN'S SHELTER COORDINATOR: If we get an emergency in the middle of the night, we're going to have to put someone on the couch.

 

MIKE SEXTON: Dale Wakefield runs a high security shelter for women and children fleeing domestic violence. If this year is like the last, the facility will house almost 900 people - 95 per cent of whom will be indigenous.

 

DALE WAKEFIELD: We are finding that our self-referrels to the service have gone in four years from 12 per cent to 58 per cent of all our referrals, so women are really seeking a service and seeking a place of safety, thich we feel is very positive, but I think it does show that there is a large un-met demand out there.

 

MIKE SEXTON: Although Alice Springs is a town worn down by daily crime, a recent event shocked even its most hardened citizens.

 

ABC NEWS, MAY 2, 2012: The spiralling crime rate continued in Alice Springs overnights. The women have told police they were sleeping in their car when they were attacked by three men.

 

MIKE SEXTON: The alleged rape at gunpoints of two European backpackers has led to three teenagers being detained.

 

STEVE BROWN, ALICE SPRINGS COUNCILLOR: Let's hope it is a one-off, but it is an escalation.

 

MIKE SEXTON: Steve Brown is born and bred in Alice Springs, and successfully ran for the town council on a law-and-order ticket. While he applauds the Police Commissioner's visit, he believes the recent crackdown must be permanent.

 

STEVE BROWN: We are looking for the police to do it all the time, not some of the time. We have this sort of boom and bust cycle, where they police and say, "Look, we're done, we've quieted it all down"; they pack everything up and go to Darwin, and then they wait until we are in absolute crisis point again, which they've done to us this time - and we really are in real crisis point - and they come in and say they're gonna rescue us again.

 

MIKE SEXTON: The Territory has more police per capita than any other jurisdiction in Australia. It always has the highest rate of recidivism in the country. According to the Central Australian Aboriginal Legal Aid Service, imprisonment rates have increased by almost 50 per cent in the past decade without having any impact on crime rates.

 

MARK O'REILLY, ABORIGINAL LEGAL AID: There is a disturbing resignation about the people may spend some time in custody. It's arguably less of a deterrent in a jurisdiction like this where it's so common.

 

MIKE SEXTON: Many believe crime is the result of years of social neglect that has been accelerated by a population drift from remote communities into town, and a baby boom in the 1990s that has produced a population bubble of teenagers.

 

STEPHANIE BELL, DIRECTOR, CENTRAL AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL CONGRESS: Young adults in their early 40s and mid 40s are grandparents. That's a demographic and an identified need that, in my view, requires the Government to have a differential response.

 

MIKE SEXTON: Indigenous leaders believe the crime rate will only fall when advances are made in disadvantaged communities. One of the most obvious is housing - and to illustrate the point, 7.30 was invited to one of the town camps, a five minute drive from the Alice Springs CBD.

 

ALISON ANDERSON, NORTHERN TERRITORY MP: We come to Hobby's camp and this is Ticky Brown's house, and all the time inside this house is over 30 people; it's a two bedroom house.

 

MIKE SEXTON: As some adults sleep inside the house, outside in the freezing morning air, more than a dozen women and children eat breakfast, including Territory MP Alison Anderson. Despite campaigning for better conditions, she's seen her grand-nieces, such as Imogen, growing up in squalor.

 

ALISON ANDERSON: She's still here. This is the sad thing, that they are still here living in the same situation as they were living in three years ago. If we are serious about closing the gap in Aboriginal disadvantage, there has to be a serious consultation with people.

 

MIKE SEXTON: The 17 town camps where are where people from remote communities stay when they come to Alice Springs for services. Among them are young people, often looking for excitement in town.

 

AMOS ANDERSON, ALICE SPRINGS RESIDENT: ...done to kids, you know. More activities. At night, more kids. Mothers and fathers are not controlling or they're not boss themself or the kids.

 

MIKE SEXTON: The Federal and Territory governments have spent millions of dollars upgrading some houses and building new ones, but housing is only one disadvantage. Others are education, health and employment. Which is why a group of Indigenous service agencies has formed a coalition to better address social issues.

 

STEPHANIE BELL: For me, I think it is about embracing where governments have made positive change, but they have to equally recognise where the positive change and the impact of years of neglect and failure of services and programs is now at a point where it is escalating beyond everyone's capacity, and we have to work collaboratively to address it.

 

MIKE SEXTON: There are 190 officers for the estimated 27,000 people who call Alice Springs home. The police are not commenting on whether they are having ongoing extra operations, but their chief officer believes their most important task is building a foundation for social reform.

 

JOHN MCROBERTS: The future of Alice Springs lies in all of our hands. If we don't do anything about it, don't give this a go, I suspect in 12 months we will be saying the same thing as they were 30 years ago, and I don't think that's good enough.

[Guest]

No. I have family living up there who are happy enough.

 

I read your posts and you just sound very bitter. It actually doesn't help your case in my eyes. I appreciate you've had a crap time but your experiences are not other peoples. It would take more than one person posting as many (old) negative news stories as they can to sway me. I'd be sure to research fully.

 

I have thoughts on how harsh it may be living somewhere in the NT and that progression there may be different to other parts of Aus. And that it has it's problems but that doesn't mean for everyone it's awful or a really bad place to live for everyone moving there or living there already.

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

 

Sounds a bit like London or Glasgow on a saturday night.

 

[Guest51810]

If you hate it so much then why dont you try another part of Australia if you can?

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

If you hate it so much then why dont you try another part of Australia if you can?

 

I ask myself the same question.

[Guest51810]

Lifes too short to stay in one place if your really that unhappy. I know not everybody can move but if you can then its worth a shot

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

Lifes too short to stay in one place if your really that unhappy. I know not everybody can move but if you can then its worth a shot

 

To be honest, I'm just trying to balance the "Jeez it's great here stories" with a bit of reality. The NT is what it is, a bit of a dump and last chance saloon for many. I had rocks in my head when I decided to move here, but had spent a few years here in the mid 90's and it was a nice place to live then.

 

However, the place is in decline and reminds me of Pretoria in many ways. Fortunately, firearms are not widely available to the local antisocial elements, but I can see that changing, and if it does then the place will simply be too dangerous to live in.

[Lambethlad]

I'm going back to Darwin in October for the first time in 32 years. Lim's Pub in Rapid Creek was a great place back in those days where I witnessed cultural activities like barefoot mud crab tying contests and naked women wrestling.

[Perthbum]

Sounds a bit like London or Glasgow on a saturday night.

Here we go, another uk v oz thread.

[Guest51810]

Here we go, another uk v oz thread.

 

Oh shhhh

[Perthbum]

To be honest, I'm just trying to balance the "Jeez it's great here stories" with a bit of reality. The NT is what it is, a bit of a dump and last chance saloon for many. I had rocks in my head when I decided to move here, but had spent a few years here in the mid 90's and it was a nice place to live then.

 

However, the place is in decline and reminds me of Pretoria in many ways. Fortunately, firearms are not widely available to the local antisocial elements, but I can see that changing, and if it does then the place will simply be too dangerous to live in.

Sounds like hillbrow jo,berg

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

I'm going back to Darwin in October for the first time in 32 years. Lim's Pub in Rapid Creek was a great place back in those days where I witnessed cultural activities like barefoot mud crab tying contests and naked women wrestling.

 

The pub is called "The Beachfront" now and is about the only pub in Darwin that doesn't have topless barmaids or strippers.

 

Lot of druggies seem to go there now.

[Perthbum]

The pub is called "The Beachfront" now and is about the only pub in Darwin that doesn't have topless barmaids or strippers.

 

Lot of druggies seem to go there now.

Wow sounds like my type of town

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

Wow sounds like my type of town

 

Wanna buy a house and business? You'll love it here, honest you will, cross my heart.

[Perthbum]

Wanna buy a house and business? You'll love it here, honest you will, cross my heart.

Sound like Northbridge Perth, I will think about it...honest.

[Guest WishIdneverleft]

 

Just for you.

 

 

Sound like Northbridge Perth, I will think about it...honest.