Five jailed for invading Assembly

FIVE people have been jailed for invading the Northern Territory parliament while it was sitting last year.

The five were among nine members of the pro-drug Network Against Prohibition (NAP) that stormed the legislative assembly to protest proposed tougher drug laws on May 14 last year.

Four of the five will spend five months in jail, and the other four months after receiving sentences ranging from 16 to 21 months with much of the terms suspended.

The group entered through an unlocked door and spent about 10 minutes in the chamber, waving placards, taking over the speaker's chair and jumping onto the dispatch table that runs down the centre of the chamber.

Gary Meyerhoff, Michael Lambe, Robert Inder-Smith, Emma Birkeland-Corro and Stuart Highway were found guilty of disturbing the legislative assembly after one of the longest running Magistrates Court criminal hearings in NT history.

All had faced one charge each, and all had pleaded not guilty.

Half the legislative assembly was called to give evidence in the Darwin Magistrates Court, including Chief Minister Clare Martin, several other ministers and Opposition members.

Ms Martin had told the court she felt scared and intimidated when the protesters "burst" into the parliamentary chamber.

She was also questioned about her own former drug use, having admitted to using cannabis about 20 years ago.

Magistrate Dick Wallace today described the civil disobedience offence as serious, and said none of the accused had shown any remorse over their actions.

Further, the accused appeared proud that they had taken part in committing the offence, he said.

"Most of them at one time or another have said that they would do it ... again," Mr Wallace said.

Citing the need to deter both the individuals involved and others in the community from repeating the offence, he sentenced Birkeland-Corro and Highway each to 18 months' jail, suspended after they had served five months.

Inder-Smith and Meyerhoff, who were both on bail at the time of the offence, received sentences of 21 months, also suspended after five months.

And Lambe, who Mr Wallace felt was not involved in organising the parliamentary intrusion, received a 16-month jail sentence, suspended after four months.

The maximum sentence for disturbing the legislative assembly is three years in jail.

Outside the court, NAP member Michael Barry said the group would immediately appeal against the sentences.

"That they are going to lock people up for speaking out and protesting, it's a nasty precedent," Mr Barry said.

"All it shows is how willing the state is to come down heavily on ordinary people should they dare to put a finger out of line.

"I think a lot of it has been payback for the injured dignity of the politicians."

Newshawk: http://www.napnt.org
Pubdate: 5th June 2003
Source: The Courier Mail
Website: http://www.thecouriermail.news.com.au/
Copyright: 2003 The Courier Mail