11 May 2009

Police Wrap - 11 May

| johnboy
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1. Calwell Club rolled:

    ACT Policing is seeking witnesses to an armed robbery which occurred at the Calwell Club today (May 11).

    Around 2:15am police were called to attend the Were Street address following reports of an armed robbery. About four staff and eight patrons were in the Club when two men entered and produced a knife and a handgun. The manager was then directed to the office to open the safe while the remaining staff and patrons were told lie down on the floor. The offenders then left the venue with a sum of cash.

    Vehicle used in robbery

    One of the offenders is described as Caucasian, about 5’7” (170cm) tall, with a thin build, and was wearing a black hooded top, blue jeans, white trainers, a dark-coloured balaclava, sunglasses, black gloves and carrying a knife.

    The other offender is described as Caucasian, about 6” (183cm) tall, with a thin build, wearing a black Adidas top with white stripes on the sleeves, grey Adidas track-suit pants, white trainers, a dark-coloured balaclava, sunglasses, black gloves and carrying what was described as a handgun.

    CCTV footage obtained from the club shows the offenders arriving in a silver coloured Hyundai Excel four-door sedan.

    No Club staff or patrons were harmed during the incident.

    Police are appealing for any witnesses who may have seen suspicious persons or activity around the Calwell Club overnight to contact Crime Stoppers.

2. Yet another attack at a bus stop:

    ACT Policing is investigating the robbery of an 18-year-old woman in Wanniassa on Saturday (May 9) around 10.45pm.

    The victim was walking home from a bus stop near the corner of Gaunson Crescent and Langdon Avenue when the attack occurred.

    A male offender has approached the victim from behind and attempted to remove her backpack.

    When the victim refused to let go of her bag, the offender began punching her in the shoulder. The victim released her bag and the offender and two to three other males fled along Langdon Avenue towards the Erindale Shopping Centre.

    The offender is described as Caucasian, with a ‘long’ face, possibly with dark brown facial hair, aged between late teens to early twenties and wearing a white hooded style jumper.

    Police would urge anyone who may have witnessed the robbery, or who may know the identity of the offender to contact Crime Stoppers.

3. Canberra drivers move beyond disappointing. Now appalling, shocking and disturbing:

    In an appalling outcome from a targeted breath-testing campaign conducted last weekend, ACT Policing has found that 16 of the 42 drink-drivers apprehended during the operation have previous drink-driving convictions.

    Police conducted the operation between Friday May 8, and Sunday May 10, targeting specific locations around Canberra.

    Disturbingly, some of the results included Learner and Provisional plate drivers exceeding their compulsory .02 blood alcohol limit by more than 10 times.

    One of the results was recorded from a collision in Kambah where the driver involved, a 35-year-old male with a provisional licence, recorded a blood alcohol level of .232.

    In a second and equally alarming incident, a 21-year-old male learner driver recorded a blood alcohol level of .207 on Ginninderra Drive after a collision.

    A 39-year-old unlicensed driver was stopped by police on Owen Dixon Drive in Evatt and recorded .213.

    The highest blood alcohol reading recorded by police over the weekend was 0.329.

    “Eight of the 42 people we apprehended had one previous drink-driving conviction, seven had two previous drink-driving convictions, and one person had been convicted three times previously,” A/Commander Colbran said.

    “This tells us that there are motorists within our community who have no fear about being caught drink-driving. They simply don’t care.

    “As shocking as these results are, as police it just increases our resolve to continue to target these people who have no regard for the safety of others. We call on the community to join with us if we are to have any hope of lowering the road toll while we have this many people ignoring our repeated safety messages about drink driving. Get the message out to family, friends, sporting team-mates and work colleagues that this type of behaviour is totally unacceptable and will no longer be tolerated. Drink driving is not bad luck. It is a crime and will be treated as such.”

If you can help police Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or online.

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Triffid a 747 can land itself. The only thing that requires human input is takeoff. A friend of the family is first officer on Qantas 747s. BTW I hope the cretin who shunted your sports car meets with a slow and painful end. Italian sports cars are to be revered.

What were all those cops doing on C’wealth Ave bridge at lunchtime? they weren’t breathalyzing, they didn’t have their Wildlife buckets, adn they all seemed to be watching something.

Dear me, peterh. Thank you for your concern. Of course, I wouldn’t have thought of any of that had you not point it out to me. Nor would I have even though to perhaps try and use hyperbole and ‘humour’ to get a point across and have people at least thinking about these issues.

Would I carry a baseball bat around in my car? Mate . . . I’ve had a 90 mph accident in competition where the car stopped from that speed in a metre and a half. Unless I could weld the bat in the car (difficult with a wooden one I suspect) somewhere to render it seriously secure then, no. But, I wonder if that’s the sort of thing it takes to get these cretins to think.

Trust me . . . I report these nongs when neccessary. What a particularly unsatisfying course of action that is. Even from the time when I was a victim of road rage (as a completly innocent ‘bystander’ when commuting to work) finding myself being ‘shunted’ down the road, by a tradies van, with all my wheels locked, in heavy traffic just because I chose, that day, to drive my small, Italian, club race car to work. Action resulting from my complaint? Jack.

And I can’t help it, peter . . . I do worry about these idiots. I take my driving very, very seriously indeed. You know, it takes approximately 75 percent of the skill and judgement required to land a jumbo jet at Hong Kong as it does to drive to your local shops. But, familiarity breeds contempt and everyone is competent in their view. None of them (unless they’re a pilot endorsed for 747 Boeings) would be capable or willing to juggle that gig, would they? And, think of it this way: If you saw someone walking down the street with a hand gun in clear view, how comfortable would you feel? well, every car out there is just as dangerous in the wrong hands.

But, thanks for your concern. The written medium does not convey tone all that well, sadly. Nor does it allow people to sit next to me as I type and see me occasionally chuckling away to myself at the fanciful images in my head. But, feel free nevertheless to join me in flashing high beam at the next clown you see with their fog lights on.

triffid said :

Yes, yes . . . indeed. Let’s keep ‘efficiency dividending’ our way to safer roads. How about an ROI study on ‘proper’ driver training (like they have in Finland). Oops . . . forgot . . . ACT considers anything motoring as ‘bad’ . . . not all pretty flowers and galleries. Where is the ACT Gov motorsport policy by the way?

And, yes, I am angry. Angry at seeing lives put unneccessarily at risk every day by people who’s only demonstratable potential on the road is to think of themselves and to handle a car ineptly. Sorry, but when I’m ferrying my toddler son around, I am going to use whatever skills in my quiver to keep us safe.

okay…

you mentioned in post #22 that you are thinking of carrying a baseball bat around in your cars. Now you mention that you are ferrying your toddler son around. Have you considered speaking to some sort of professional (cousellor) re your road rage issues??

considering that if you belt someone over the head with a baseball bat you will be spending a lot of time away from your son, dumb idea. additionally, if the person you attack with a baseball bat is stronger than you and gets it off you, your son may witness your head being staved in.

If you feel that you are a good driver, try to keep calm. ranting at another driver who got their license in the cereal packet won’t teach them, it will just ruin your day. I see all sorts of stupidity on the roads, every day. If i worried about these idiots, I would be a permanently freaked out mess.

Let the police handle these idiots. by all means, report them, but just don’t sweat the small stuff. Remember, your son is learning their behaviours from you. Keep him safe, just don’t sink to the level of the idiots on the road.

LOL, Hercsie. Yes . . . pure vehicular gold. I certainly hope that a genius such as that receives an accelerated elevation into the ‘pantheon of the immortals’. My constant and abiding lament, however, is that invariably they will take someone else unwillingly along with them.

A plan to assist in that regard. Dig up every inch of bituman and hot mix in the entire nation. Remove it all ‘blitzkrieg’ fashion so as to render all roads little better than forestry tracks virtually overnight. Through the CAMS member network, coordinate this event at a time when, say, the Goodwood festival of speed is on.

Those of us who cannot make Goodwood in the company of Lord March stay off the roads for two weeks. Roads may then be restored to surfaced condition. Proper driver education programmes to commence at that time also. Many, many idiots will have by then made themselves new abodes at aforementioned pantheon of the immortals. Clean(er) slate.

VYBerlinaV8_the_one_they_all_copy1:49 pm 12 May 09

Hey I remember that! I thought Mr Knobbend got off fairly easy actually.

Clown Killer1:14 pm 12 May 09

When I first moved to Canberra in the 80s, the CT published outcomes of all drink driving conviction in the court reporting section of the paper. it wasn’t a big fuss but it was transparent and public. From recollection the reports were something along the lines of:

Appearing before Justice Greywigg, Richard Tool Knobbend of 45 Pov Street Charnwood was convicted of a high range drink driving offence committed on 22 January 1987. Mr Knobbend was pulled over by police at 2.30am on Dragstripp Avenue, Boganville in Canberra’s north. A roadside breath analysis returned a reading of 0.19 and he was taken into custody. Mr Knobbend was fined $500 and his license was suspended for 3 months.

pptvb said :

. Need to name and shame them…
+1
List them in the CT

And then they can publish the surnames in the online version…but to get the first names you have to buy the paper!

triffid, I certainly empathise – try this on for great road craft.

Returning home from the gym at about 650am I turned off the Barton highway onto ellenborough st.

Scanning the rear view mirror as I always do I spotted a tray back ute – think it was a mazda weaving through the traffic to get in behind me then sit so far up my clacker I could see the veins in the white of his eyes.

I turn left onto Ellenborough st and there is a small red sedan in front of me.

As we come down the incline said f*&^wit in ute decides to overtake both myself and aforementioned red sedan before the traffic island – I could hear the 4 cylinder engine weezing as he cut in front of the red car clipping the traffic island – as a car was coming the other way!

I am sure that this highly skilled driver will one day join the pantheon of the immortals – and if we are lucky, it will be one day soon

(apologies to Frasier fans)

Yes, yes . . . indeed. Let’s keep ‘efficiency dividending’ our way to safer roads. How about an ROI study on ‘proper’ driver training (like they have in Finland). Oops . . . forgot . . . ACT considers anything motoring as ‘bad’ . . . not all pretty flowers and galleries. Where is the ACT Gov motorsport policy by the way?

And, yes, I am angry. Angry at seeing lives put unneccessarily at risk every day by people who’s only demonstratable potential on the road is to think of themselves and to handle a car ineptly. Sorry, but when I’m ferrying my toddler son around, I am going to use whatever skills in my quiver to keep us safe.

Invent the device that can tackle other driving safety issues as cost-effectively as the speed camera, and I’m sure they’ll install those too. You’ll probably make a bundle from the patent to boot!

lol.
anger management much.

It’s not just the DUI incidence. I am considering carrying a baseball bat in the car(s) with me. I am highly and increasingly desirous of taking said implement to the front lighting area of every idiot’s car I see what is being driven around with its foglights permanently lit (you know who you are, cretins. About 30 per cent of you out there). News flash . . . it is illegal to do so. TURN THEM OFF (I’ll just keep flicking on my high beam at you in response in the interim. Everyone else, feel free to join me in this reACTion)

I will also happily take said instrument to the lighting area of any silver / grey vehicle thats idiot driver operates in low light / drizzly conditions with no lights lit at all. Clearly you don’t need them, so they’re being reduced to glass crumb will be of no concern or consequence to you. Just because you can see doesn’t mean anyone else can see you. TURN THEM ON.

P Platers . . . no . . . don’t start me. P (red or green) stands for pitiful, perilous, p***-poor, parlous, particularly egregious pubescent. Sit in the car properly, please, at least. Loose the attitude. You’re hopeless and can’t drive. Your vehicle control skills are non-existant. Don’t hassle me on the road any more or you might be the last straw when I just ‘snap’ and demonstrate to you what over 30 years motorsport experience teaches you in terms of offensive (a rarely taught off-shoot discliple of defensive) driving.

Meanwhile, Govvie / policy / road safety types, just keep writing those parking tickets and bunging in more speedy cameras (that don’t monitor or correct the sort of behaviour to which I refer). In other words, ‘as you were’ (no . . . don’t get up . . . it’s all right . . . just keep loping along with pavlovian reflex doing the same jack justified by dodgy academic studies . . .)

Sigh.

No fear means we need some real aversion therapy – maybe a 5000 dollar fine for first offence ramping up to 10000 for second offence.

Coupled with having to wear a flouro yellow and red wrist band for the period of license disqualification?

Drink drivers who are caught stand in front of a jugde who says “naughty boy/girl” tell them I’m taking your lic away for ‘x’ amount of time but as it’s your first time you can drive between ‘x’ time and ‘x’ time and the reoffenders most don’t care and drive anyway.

Go to court any day of the week watch how many drink drivers walk out of court and get in their cars and drive away right in front of police station, go figure.

Why don’t they also mark the cars of drink drivers with the same style stickers as defect notices so they stand out to police.

colourful sydney racing identity9:44 am 12 May 09

caf said :

It’s also possible that you don’t tend to drive at the prime drink-driving times of day.

See that’s the thing, I used to work late shifts and would regularly be driving across town between midnight and 3am…

It’s also possible that you don’t tend to drive at the prime drink-driving times of day.

colourful sydney racing identity9:21 am 12 May 09

I could not tell you how many times I had my speed monitored by fixed cameras, vans or police. I can, however, tell you how many times I have been breathalised – 3. Twice in the morning and once at night – this is over a 15 year period.

The message from this is that I am more likely to be caught speeding than drink driving (providing I am not driving erratically etc).

VYBerlinaV8_the_one_they_all_copy8:53 am 12 May 09

+ 1 to Very Busy at comment #11.

xyro said :

Ya gotta be impressed by someone that can even walk at .316 or whatever the reading. Awful that the wanker was driving though…. Need to name and shame them… but some think the higher the reading the bigger the man(or woman)!

I think there alchohol tolerance levels might have a bit to do with it.
so if I had 2 drinks I would be well drunk (being a non-drinker) and definitly wouldn’t be able to drive, but if my mate (who drinks regularly) had two drinks they would probably not even feel any effect.
We would both have the same blood alchohol reading however.
So if you were an alchoholic, i imagine you would build up quite a tolerance and maybe not really realise how hight your blood alchohol reading would be.

Spideydog said :

pptvb said :

. Need to name and shame them…
+1
List them in the CT

Does anyone read the CT ???

Nope, maybe the Riot Act should start a name and shame section for those nobs that drink drive!

pptvb said :

. Need to name and shame them…
+1
List them in the CT

Does anyone read the CT ???

It’s about time that drivers caught with a blood alcohol level above a certain amount are given a custodial sentence. Daryl Neit must be sick of banging his head against a brick wall when it comes to drink drivers because, as has been said, they just don’t care and are willing to take the risk of being caught.

Those four readings are the highest I’ve ever read about in such a short period of time.

“Canberra drivers move beyond disappointing. Now appalling, shocking and disturbing:”

Speed cameras will fix it.

Seriously, this is the result of years of road safety neglect by the ACT Government. People simply think that they won’t get caught because simply, they are right – they probably won’t get caught.

This Government’s 9 year fixation on plastering revenue raising speed cameras all over this city while they sit on their asses in relation to all other aspects of road safety has caused this situation. Posting a fine in the mail to an experienced driver for doing 85 in an 80 zone does nothing for the road safety message. The past 6 or so months of intense breath testing is not enough to turn things around. We also need to get serious about all other driving offences for people to take driving seriously. Things have seriously declined over a number of years and it is going to take a number of years of targeted policing to turn things around. I can’t believe our politicians just don’t get it.

BTW, I nor anyone in my immediate family have ever been caught by a red light, speed, or mobile roadside camera, so I don’t have a personal agenda.

When did the CT stop naming DUI drivers?? Photocopies of my 5 minutes of infamy were strewn all over my desk back in 92.

Felix the Cat8:39 pm 11 May 09

farnarkler said :

They’ll be in for a rude shock when, once they get their licences back, they try to insure their cars. I found out the hard way that insurers don’t like drink drivers. GIO were the only insurers who’d touch me and the premium was through the roof.

They probably don’t own cars worth enough to insure.

. Need to name and shame them…
+1
List them in the CT

They’ll be in for a rude shock when, once they get their licences back, they try to insure their cars. I found out the hard way that insurers don’t like drink drivers. GIO were the only insurers who’d touch me and the premium was through the roof.

Ya gotta be impressed by someone that can even walk at .316 or whatever the reading. Awful that the wanker was driving though…. Need to name and shame them… but some think the higher the reading the bigger the man(or woman)!

Or maybe Nappy Valley is starting to grow up and become a haven for Sh**head kids that think destroying property and bashing people is fun.

Don’t worry Gungahlin will be like that in about 10 or so years. They are afterall teh new Nappy Valley!!!!

Perhaps its a comment on the quality of policing on the south side compared with the north.

Lady_from_Holt2:08 pm 11 May 09

I was thinking that too farnarkler… it does sound very dangerous. I’m glad I live in the best side of Canberra 😉

Correct me if I’m wrong but that part of Canberra south of Mount Taylor seems to get a lot more crime than the rest of the city; Calwell club robbery, Gilmore street brawls and numerous late night muggings.

Aspiring to Watts or Compton in LA?

GottaLoveCanberra1:50 pm 11 May 09

Maybe that’d explain why I saw a few car loads of police and an ambulance at the Erindale area on Saturday night!

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