Thursday, February 9, 2012

Why I Want Daniel's Law For Paedophiles

Please sign my petition.  Thank you. (see top of page click to link)

If you weep, you only weep with me - and the rest of Australia.

Daniel Morcombe's story is one that should never have had to be written.  It is also a story of something that should never happen again, not in this country. His story is one of tragedy, of the immense courage and love, of the sheer determination and perseverance of his parents and brothers.  It is a story of the immense and tireless efforts of the Police throughout eight long, harrowing years.

Daniel lived just 45 minutes from us, on the Sunshine Coast.  He was a beautiful 13 year old.  On 7th December, 2003 Daniel left home to catch a bus to do some Christmas shopping and have his hair cut.  He was never seen again.

Daniel

The last sighting of Daniel was at approximately 2:10 pm on the Nambour Connection Road under the Kiel Mountain Road overpass. The bus he was supposed to catch had broken down a few kilometres before his stop, and was behind schedule. When a replacement bus eventually arrived, Daniel hailed the bus, but it carried on without stopping, due to its delay and the fact that his stop was only an unofficial request stop. The driver of the bus radioed the depot for another bus to go and pick up Daniel. The bus driver and other witnesses later reported seeing a man standing a distance behind Daniel,  and another man slightly farther away at the time. When the second bus came a couple of minutes later, both Daniel and the man had  gone.


Police placed a mannequin at the spot where Daniel was last seen, from which they received a massive response from potential witnesses.  The SES (State Emergency Services) were called in to join the search of bushland in the area.  Grave fears were held for Daniel's safety.  Witnesses gave information that a blue 1980s model sedan, possibly a Toyota Corolla, with yellow New South Wales license plates was seen nearby at the time of Daniel's disappearance.

In December 2006,   the three year anniversary, Mr. Morcombe revealed the family's shocking belief that his son had been called by the 'pet' name  "Christmas cake" by a pedophile network which knew what had happened to him. He appealed for someone to come forward and help solve the crime.

Daniel's Parents
 
Daniel's parents worked unceasingly to keep the story in the forefront of everyone's mind, to keep the media exposure going, to find their son.  The Police were in close contact with them every step of the way. By 12th December 2008, a  reward of $1,000,000 ($250,000 from the Government and another $750,000 from private donation) had been offered. The privately donated portion of the reward expired at midnight on 31 May 2009. On this particular day, the Seven Network reported that a known paedophile (Douglas Jackway), who had been released from prison in 2003 - one month before Daniel disappeared - could be of interest to the police.

Police Minister Judy Spence said the reward was available for information that leads to the apprehension and conviction of the person or people responsible for Daniel's suspected abduction and murder, or the location of Daniel's body. 

In May 2009, a life sized clay model of a man believed to be involved in Daniel's abduction was placed at the spot from where Daniel disappeared. Within a few days there were more than 300 responses.

In June 2009, the Queensland Government came under criticism from Parliament over the release of Jackway from prison. One MP claimed the Supreme Court had presented clear evidence of his risk of reoffending. This publicity also prompted civil liberties groups to call for laws banning media outlets from naming people linked to criminal cases. (source Wikipedia)

June 2009, and Daniel's parents called for a coronial inquest, hopeful of finding answers.  They said that after five and half years, it was time an inquest was held.  Several criminals had told Police that they knew who had abducted and killed Daniel, and also where he was buried.

The inquest would have been an indescribable ordeal for the Morcombes, with a witness confessing to the abduction and murder of Daniel, only to be found lying, and acting out of revenge on a partner, and seeking attention.

Daniel’s parents, Bruce and Denise, this morning also described the next two “PoI’’ (Persons of Interest) witnesses to testify at their son’s inquest in the Brisbane Coroner’s Court as “disgusting human beings.” (Source Courier Mail)

And, unbelievably, 

A MOTHER saw Daniel Morcombe standing at a bus stop about the time of his disappearance and then heard the urgent screams of a child in distress while driving to collect her daughter from church.
Judith Van Der Meer told the Brisbane Coroner's Court she remembered seeing Daniel, a blue car and two men acting "conspicuously" under the Kiel Mountain Rd overpass about the time of his disappearance of December 7, 2003.
Ms Van Der Meer, who was running late to collect her young daughter from the nearby Christian Outreach Church, said after passing Daniel she heard a child's voice yelling.
"It was definitely Daniel there with a stick (and then) I remember hearing a boy's voice saying, 'No, I don't want to,' " she said. "It was short, it was sharp, it was urgent."
However, the mother-of-the-three said after collecting her daughter from church she "didn't think anything more of it".
 
Eventually, after eight long years, a 41 year old man, a former truck driver, Brett Peter Cowan, was arrested.  He was PoI7, and Police had been watching him for some time. 
 
UNDERCOVER police officers lived for months at the same Perth caravan park as the man accused of murdering Daniel Morcombe.
Brett Peter Cowan had no idea that almost every moment of his life was being monitored by detectives living just metres from him.
 
The surprise arrest came after police lured him back to Queensland from Perth under a covert and complex strategy.  Brett Peter Cowan was charged with murder and other offences, including child stealing, deprivation of liberty, indecent treatment of a child under 16, and interfering with a corpse. 

Artist Impression of Cowan/Cohen
 
Following the arrest a massive search, including the dog squad and police divers,  was undertaken at the Glass House Mountains. Mrs. Morcombe wept as she told of how difficult this task would be. "During the floods, this spot had 10m of water through it," she said.   The SES and Police vowed they would not give up until they had scoured every inch of the area.   On  21 August 2011, two shoes and three human bones were found. Forensic testing confirmed that the bones were Daniel's.  Three bones and two shoes.

Going through inch by inch

Creek in the search area
 
Brett Peter Cowan? He is the father of three children. He is also known as Brett Peter Cohen.  He was sentenced in 1994 to seven years in jail, with three and a half years without parole.  He is a repeat offender, one victim was a 6 year old boy, who, after being assaulted by Cowan wandered into a service station, naked and bleeding.  His other victim was a 7 year old boy, and he served fourteen months in Brisbane for molesting the boy.
 
This evil evil creature was able to move freely about the country, live where he wanted and be secure in the knowledge that the public were unaware of his exact nature as a child sexual predator. This is wrong.  Our country needs to have laws in place that equate with laws in the USA - we have a right to know if a predator lives in our neighbourhood.  We have a right to protect our children of whatever age. And we have a right to know that these creatures will be put away for a very very long time.  Once a paedophile - always a paedophile.  This evil, foul excuse for a man just kept on reoffending until he committed the ultimate crime.  Queensland's most massive manhunt should never have happened.
 
I want Daniel's law.  Will you please help me to get it?
 

 

Boyfriend Threw Baby And Tortured Him

I read this story, a little late (from 8 February) and I wasn't just horrified, I was fuming, absolutely grinding my teeth with fury.

It all happened in County Clare, not that the location means a lot.  The baby in question was 10 months old at the time.  His mother was 19 and the boyfriend 20. The boyfriend has been jailed for ONLY three years, because he pleaded guilty.  The Circuit Court Judge, Judge Moran said: 

if Connors had not pleaded guilty, he would have been sentenced to near the maximum seven years in jail for the offence.

What the hell?  He will be out in a few months, right?  What did he do?  What didn't this animal do is the question. Remember, this is a 10 month old baby.

he "slapped, kicked, punched and threw" a 10-month-old baby around an apartment "like he was a toy".
The child was taken to A&E with injuries including two broken forearms, a dislocated right elbow, a significant brain bleed, a bite mark to his right cheek, a burn mark from an iron to his calf and multiple bruising across his body, a court heard yesterday.

LARRY CONNORS - THE FACE OF AN EVIL MONSTER
 
I am beginning to wonder if the mother of the baby is a little mentally ill, you know?  She said:
 
her then partner "became psychotic and he would lock himself into the room with the child and he would start to scream and roar at the child".
She said: "It was the most incredible difficult thing to go through as I knew that Larry was hurting the child and I couldn't do anything about it.
"Larry Connors abused my child for a three-week period and there was nothing I could do about it.
 
Nothing she could do about it?  Hows about calling the cops?  Hows about kicking the damned door in and rescuing your kid?  How about booting the evil shit out?  This little tot was subjected to this horrific abuse in December 2010 to January 2011.  He now requires speech therapy because of a tear injury to his mouth, and later this year he will have to have his elbow broken where it was dislocated, so that it can be reset.   He has nightmares.
 
I also have to wonder what planet some of the judiciary and lawyers are from, because of what was said:
 
Defence lawyer Brian McInerney said: "Connors has a very poor level of education. He comes from a very dysfunctional family background. . .
 
"It is not an excuse for this kind of conduct."
 
He added: "He realises that he is going to prison and hopes that this will be the first step on the road to recovery for him."
 
Judge Moran said that the case was "fairly shocking" and the injuries were suffered by "a defenceless baby".
 
If his background is NOT an excuse, why bring it up in the first place?  And as for Judge Moran's comment about the case being "fairly shocking", well geee whiz I would think that is possibly the understatement of the year.  
 
This guy is another one I am awarding a bullet to.

In The Orifice

Here I am, at the desk in my orifice, blethering away about the most frustrating few days I have had since...whenever.  I only wanted a few pieces of paper, you know how it is?   I used to be organised, but I haven't even done any shredding for years (ahem). And by the look of it, no filing either. (ahem again)

So.  I wanted these bits of paper, but last year some time (or maybe the year before?) we had all our floors tiled.  So when it came to what room is next we would have about 24 hours to clear the room.  What a shambles.   Came time for the orifice and all sorts of fun was had.  Had to empty files, and dismantle furniture and move 5,000 books.  All the paperwork sort of got shoved here and there and there and here.  Into boxes and rubber bands and pillow cases.

When it was all moved back in we had some pieces of new furniture, so there are a bazillion things that don't have homes now. Sigh.  They just got shoved anywhere.  God help us all!


Ah. Now I need these pieces of paper, do you think I can find them?   I realise I still have paperwork from the year 2000.....oh the shame.   And every year is muddled into every other year. Oh. my. god.  What a bloody mess, and there is a pile 2ft high on the filing cabinet, another one 3ft high on the desk, a further 2ft high on the bookshelves.  A plastic storage box crammed to the top. Another pile on the sewing table. Picture it if you can. And I can't find any rubber bands.

Much muttering and sighing and a few tears, many foul words and four days later, shifting papers hither and yon and back again, totally confused to the point where I can't even remember what the hell I wanted in the first place.   Suddenly - hey! there is a box in the cupboard with paperwork!  Shit.  I bet the pieces are in there, what do you bet?   Last place you look, well it was last because it was hidden - but there the pieces were.   I spent 2 more days sorting through that pile, found the papers and promptly lost them in a great deluge when everything avalanched off the desk. Puts head on arms and weeps ...


Now I have everything out of the cupboard, littering the floor, and there are still piles of paper everybloodywhere.

Maybe I should get organised.  Maybe I should just throw it all out the window and burn the freaking lot. Especially since I can't remember now why I wanted the pieces of paper. Sigh.




The Iron Strikes Back

I bought a new iron.  It' s the slam! It really is. It has all these little holes in the bottom, and steam comes out of them!  Yes, yes, I know about steam irons, but my old one didn't any more. There was more steam coming out of me ears from frustration than there was coming from the iron.

 
That little squirty thing was all blocked up too so you couldn't spray a wrinkle.  I was reduced to going pthui phtui on the wrinkle, which takes a long time to wet it really.  Bit like the good old days when you used to spit on the iron to see if it was hot.  If it went 'ssssssssss'  you knew it was ok to go ahead.


As for a shot of steam?  Well you probably have guessed?   Press le button and voila!  Lots of little tiny grey flakes all over the shop.  They must breed in the tank I think, because every iron I have had ended up shooting my clothes with little grey specks.  And sometimes sort of brown rusty marks. That always makes me ears steam too.

Anyhow, this iron is molto good, it is pretty as anything, has green bits and all on it.  And it is a nice calming green.  For once the designers thought about it - I mean, your state of mind when you have to iron calls for calming, doesn't it? 

 
Maybe I should be taking a listen to the THIB (Thinks He Is Boss) and just not bothering.  After all, he says, the wrinkles will fall out when you wear it! (doesn't work for my face, I can tell ya)



When I have finished admiring my new iron, with the super dooper long cord, I might even fill it, plug it in and iron a t-shirt.  Maybe.