18 May 2007

Amber gets 15 months periodic detention

| johnboy
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The ABC has the interesting news that Magistrate has seen fit to sentence Amber Westin to 15 months of periodic detention for her fatallity inducing crimes.

She’s also barred from getting a driver’s licence for 10 years which is of small importance as she didn’t have one when she killed Heather Freeman. (That she was at the time running a red light to get away from police and was supposed to be in court at that moment is obviously of little matter)

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I fail to see how somebody of her character has spent so little time behind bars, when she has consistently landed on the ‘go straight to jail’ square.

No, they’ll let her off again…idiots.

Does that mean she’s breached conditions of some sort and will be spending time in the pokey full-time?

Growling Ferret9:25 am 03 Jun 07

And now the skanky slapper has been busted with pot and intravenous drug equipment whilst in detention. Society would be a better place if the bitch was hanged

Interesting. Is the 2year thing recent? Cause i’m fairly sure about the instance I’m thinking of, that involved more than 2 years.

Magistrates can only hand down 2yrs gaol time. For more than that it has to go to the supreme court. Which in the ACT she probably would have got off with a good behaviour bond.

Didn’t point out that Heavs said it was BS… I agreed with him.. then I was stating it was all BS. And if it is true that a magistrate can only lay down a 2 year sentence while the hell was she in the magistrates court!?!
She drove unlicence, led a police chase and killed someone.. Heck Todd Carney is probably going to get more jail time (if he does) and he didn’t kill anyone.

Heavs never said anything about it being BS. Just that the sentencing legislation defines that home life must be taken into account when sentencing.

Hasn’t passed judgement on the sentencing in any way whatsoever.

Are you sure that a Magistrate can only issue a 2 year sentence of imprisonment ? (suspended or otherwise)
I have some sort of inkling this may not be correct…

Heavs – I agree with you 100%. I think its all BS. 15 months weekend detention for taking a life.. I know people who have done more jail time for assault – the standard friday night srunken bar fights we see all too often.

I just hope the idiot misses her weekend detention and get locked up full time. I also find it hard to believe that in the next 10 years she wont get behind the wheel of a car either… The justice system is a crock of shyte!!!

VYBerlinaV8 now_with_added grunt9:04 am 22 May 07

Heavs – it may appear to be potshots from ignorance, but it IS representative of community standards, which the judiciary is supposed to relfect.

‘The fact that she had a bad home life shouldn’t have been taken in to consideration. Lots of people have bad home lives and are productive members of society.’

But it says quite clearly in the sentencing legislation that the judge/magistrate must take it into account. Easier to take potshots from a position of ignorance though.

Absent Diane7:11 am 22 May 07

rehabilitation is rare. 15 months won’t rehabilitate this piece of white trash. Once a bogan always a bogan.

VYBerlinaV8 now_with_added grunt8:16 pm 21 May 07

Someone I was talking to the other day had an interesting point of view. I don’t necessarily agree 100% but it makes for an interesting take on the problem. He suggested people who commit major crimes (including manslaughter) should be locked away, not for their own punishment/rehabilitation, but to protect society from a person who has demonstrated that they cannot operate within the rules. Like I said, I don’t agree 100%, but it does make you think.

Lots of people have had shitty lives but don’t blow them on drugs and criminal behaviour. However, people like Westin and that little twerp that killed Clea Rose will continue on with their stupid self-destructive behaviour until they have a negative consequence to their idiocy. And that doesn’t appear to be happening. When is the punishment going to fit the crime, and when will we start seriously rehabilitating these people in jail, instead of making life easy for them in there?

Weekend detention must be real tough when you don’t have a job!

And receiving parenting payments from Centrelink to fund her habits.. Perhaps the Government should get off their arse and instead of having their stupid fraudline out there to dob people in they should just cut off people like her… Force themselve tow ake up and get a job, then maybe we wont have a situation of a pathetic sentencing.

I say lock her up fulltime – she killed someone, driving unlicenced and constantly under the influence of drugs.. She has children for christs sake. Take them off her too.. Make her really suffer… (or for her would that be a relief than a punishment?) She (and the boy tha killed Clea Rose) commited vehicular manslaughter.. where’s the life sentencing ? Slaps on the wrists instead? Cant the judges make examples of these people instead of rewarding them coz they have had shitty lives???

neanderthalsis11:31 am 21 May 07

I would have thought that periodic detention would be reserved for those working members of the population who, if sentenced to full detention would lose their jobs. It makes no sense for a smack-addled nutter that doesn’t work to get the same. Fair enough from what I understand she has kids, but surely they would be better off as wards of the state than in her care.

HA the fact that Clea Rose was wandering through civic pissed is IRRELEVANT – she wasnt driving a car, so her blood alcohol level was IRRELEVANT.

Ascribing ‘blame’ to a victim of crime is poor form.

Now to Amber.

When i saw this sentence i thought – what a joke.

however, she only has to ****up once and she goes to the pokie full time.

her record on ‘second chance’ is not good.

five bucks says she will screw this up as well.

I hope she drives to her periodic detention, gets pulled over and cops the 15 months + 2 years.

VYBerlinaV8 now_with_added grunt3:31 pm 20 May 07

“What part of “separation of powers” don’t you understand? “

I don’t understand the bit about how legislators make the law the judiciary is supposed to enforce. Minimum sentencing, for example. Not for everyone, but if you’ve had multiple parole violations and someone dies, then why the hell not?

I would suggest that cab drivers in the interchange at night are more than well aware that pedestrians are likely to be less than sober, and drive accordingly. 15 year old car thieves are perhaps not so well educated.

Woody Mann-Caruso7:05 pm 19 May 07

If there are any local politicians or people in real authority reading this PLEASE use your influence to do something about this

What part of “separation of powers” don’t you understand?

Taxis are allowed in the interchange after midnight.

Picture of AW in the CT today, makes her look several cents short of a dollar.

Which I suppose is true.

HA, she was in the interchange – the only thing “allowed” in there are buses and the occasional police vehicle.

Besides, this is not the thread your comment should be in.

I know this isn’t directly relevant but has anyone opined (to themselves or others) why it was the Canberra Times hid within its recent coverage of the Clea Rose coronial, the evidence the young victim of the hit and run was pissed? No offence, especially to those who have died and in this case, quite unnecessarily, but how is it that those accompanying poor Clea crossing the road were able to step back in time? Would the blood alcohol level of .09 (almost double the drink-drive limit of .05) in Clea’s system have slowed down her reactions? Again, this is not mentioned here in the context of justifying the wholly illegal and abhorrent crime of stealing cars, driving away from police when caught, and then hitting a pedestrian and running from the scene.

But it is interesting that the Canberra Times (and for that matter the entirety of this little town’s media) either overlooked Clea Rose’s state of inebriation when she was hit, or purposely hid it and have not bothered to address what effect it might have had on the terrible outcome for her, her friends, and her family.

Just a thought.

The CT also pointed out that Amber arrived 20 mins late for sentencing; but it didn’t matter because Cahill was running 30 mins late himself! He was probably off grazing at a local cafe????

She’s also been banned from having a drivers licence for 10 years: not that not having a licence has ever stopped her driving anyway.

I hope they make her break rocks all day every weekend.

Then there is this little tidbit towards the end of the article:

Mr Cahill said the periodic sentence was a severe one, which would serve as a significant deterrent.

“If anyone thinks that’s not a considerable sentence, I’ll debate that with them.”

Puh-lease, debate it with us – it’s nice to know a human life is worth 15 months of periodic detention.

The fact that she had a bad home life shouldn’t have been taken in to consideration. Lots of people have bad home lives and are productive members of society.

It’s nothing more than a cop out.

From the Canberra Times…

Mr Cahill fully suspended a two-year jail sentence the longest term of imprisonment a magistrate can give…

Mr Cahill repeated remarks made at Mrs Freeman’s funeral, that she would have wanted “compassion not condemnation” for Westin, but this was not enough to spare her a substantial sentence. “Compassion in the family’s behalf cannot excuse the defendant,” Mr Cahill said.

ACT Court system is about as useful as tits on a bull. Why do they even bother. Cut the cost to the community and do away with it.

ACT Court system is about as useful as tits on a bull. Why do they even bother. Cut the cost to the community and do away with it.

Rawhide Kid No 210:38 am 19 May 07

Hang on! Hang on ! Isn’t there some law where if Children are exposed to Drugs (used, smoked or produced) in the household or the property of the Household the Children are removed? Now if the perpetrator is using illegal drugs with their children present , for that matter any member of the family or friends. Does that not mean another law has been broken?

And the other thing. When she does breach the time doesn’t convert into 15 weekends in fulltime custody. She would owe 15 months fulltime custody. Lets see how daft this bint really is.

PD is pretty easy time but if she misses she is ****ed. In the old days you could miss it all the time with no real consequences – you had to be breached, had to go back to Court and they would make the call. Now if you breach the Sentence Admin Board slot you straight away. Fulltime detention, no second chances.
With her history I reckon CM Cahill just gave her enough rope to hang herself without sentencing her to fulltime detention, knowing that any fulltime jail would have been overruled by the softhead Crispin/Higgins.

30 days of detention in total….
i’ve had worse from my girlfriend when i say the wrong thing at the wrong time….
i think i might just get back on the bongs, at least i’ll have an excuse.

auntiesocial11:23 pm 18 May 07

My money is on a no-show by the fourth weekend.

Or the fact when she was “supposed” to be repentant she breached her bail conditions not once, but twice.

At least we now know that there is precedent if we all do the same thing…

I’d almost agree with you bigred, except for the fact that when she was previously living her pathetic and sorry life she killed someone. Not something the community should have to put up with.

I am on the magistrates side here. The justice system is about punishing, deterring and rehabilitating. He couldn’t order capital punishment, locking her up would give her an easier life than she currently has so next best thing is to sentence her to continuing her pathetic and sorry life.
Let’s hope the communities’ desire for revenge is satisfied by the inevitable death by some crap she puts in her body rather than taking herself and someone else out at an intersection.

VYBerlinaV8 now_with_added grunt8:33 pm 18 May 07

Further evidence that the ACT court system is utterly useless. If there are any local politicians or people in real authority reading this, PLEASE use your influence to do something about this.

I really pity her. She’s trash that comes from a family of trash. I hope her children are spared the family heritage. A part of me wishes we had the death penalty though, so we could wash these social dregs down the drain.

Pissweak, but hardly surprising!!!

lol Smack. Thats so true!

So i can take that as proof that I can drive around like a lunatic and randomly kill people and get a few weeks total jail time. Nice one probably make a good video I can put on youtube.

How about I film you whilst you do it?

Then we can both get off with a slap on the wrist…seeing as I have 2 more kids than Amber to look after, they’ll let me walk.

Weekend detention must be real tough when you don’t have a job!

Is that the same magistrate who decided Anu Singh’s ‘sentence’?

So i can take that as proof that I can drive around like a lunatic and randomly kill people and get a few weeks total jail time. Nice one probably make a good video I can put on youtube.

Pathetic. But not surprising.

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