Meyerhoff found guilty of invading Clare Martin’s office

Gary Meyerhoff, a member of the Darwin-based drug law reform group, the Network Against Prohibition (NAP), was today found guilty of ‘business invasion’ by a jury in the Northern Territory Supreme Court.

The conviction results from a peaceful protest in the electorate office of NT Chief Minister Clare Martin in August 2002.

NAP members attended the electorate office on August 1, 2002 to raise their concerns about the ‘drug house’ laws which came into force on that day.

They also aimed to raise the plight of Dr Henry Pang and his 40 opiate-dependent patients who were having their access to treatment removed by the NT Chief Health Officer.

Meyerhoff represented himself in the trial before Justice Trevor Riley and a jury of his peers.

In his closing submission, Meyerhoff said that the trial was part of the process of criminalising dissent in Australia.

He quoted Henry David Thoreau who said: “Under a government which imprisons unjustly, the true place for a just man is also a prison.”

The ‘business invasion’ offence has a maximum penalty of seven years imprisonment.

Justice Riley told Mr Meyerhoff that a custodial sentence “would be in the mix”.

The matter is being heard in Court 5 at the NT Supreme Court in Darwin. Sentencing submissions will be heard tomorrow.

For more information call Stuart or Gary on 0415 16 2525 (+61 415 16 2525 from os), Crown Prosecutor Nathan Crafti on (08) 8999 7533 (+61 8 8999 7533 from os), the Department of the Chief Minister on (08) 8901 4000 (+61 8 8901 4000 from os) or see the NAP website.

NT Chief Minister Clare Martin’s email address is clare.martin@nt.gov.au and the email address for Nathan Crafti, the Crown Prosecutor is nathan.crafti@nt.gov.au

To read more about the peaceful occupation of Clare Martin’s office click here.

The transcript of Mr Meyerhoff’s evidence can be downloaded in Microsoft Word format here.

To view photographs of the demonstration, see the following links: http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT012.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT014.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT015.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT016.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT017.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT019.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT020.jpg http://www.napnt.org/images/PICT021.jpg

For more information about the NT ‘drug house’ laws click here.