The Court of Appeal has refused an application to adjourn the hearing of an appeal against the sentences imposed on nine males who gang raped a 10-year-old girl at Aurukun on the Cape York Peninsula.
Late last year, a judge handed down non-custodial sentences to three men and six juveniles after they pleaded guilty to raping the girl in 2006.
The Attorney-General is appealing against the non-custodial sentences.
The rapists' lawyers yesterday asked the court for more time to consider pre-sentence and psychological reports on the three men.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/05/02/2233638.htmNine males raped a 10 year old girl and received non custodial sentences. Judge Sarah Bradley failed to hand down sentences that reflected on the nature of the crime. This story has been written about before and the counsel for the defendants asked that an appeal be pushed back to allow for psychiatric reports. What will be just as sad if these animals are allowed to offer a defense using psychiatric reports. They knew full well what they were doing when they pack raped a little girl and now trying every trick in the book to justify the leniency of Judge Bradley's sentencing. To use the excuse they come from a community that is rampant with alcohol fuelled violence is bullshit. It matters not that these males, you couldn't call them men, come from an aboriginal community. Rape is rape and knows no race or religion. It is appalling that one uses race, background etc to try and explain such a despicable thing to do. They still are filthy pigs, be they black or white.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/aurukun-justice-groups-disbelief-over-rape-case/2007/12/18/1197740273420.html
