dailytelegraph.com.au monday, november 30, 2009 news 19
Jail: Jock Palfreeman
Embassies vigilFRIENDS of former Sydney private schoolboyJock Palfreeman will meet outside Bulgarianembassies ahead of his sentencing this week.
The 22-year-old is in jail in the Bulgarian capitalwaiting for the courts to deliver a verdict after hewas charged two years ago with murdering a manduring a street fight. He faces 20 years in jail.
Supporters plan to visit the Bulgarian Embassyin Canberra as well as Bulgarian Embassies inAthens and London today to remind authorities oftheir concern and will also hand out leaflets.
Performing: Singer Damien Leith with Pride of Australia medal nominee Kate Smith yesterday Picture: Sam Ruttyn
Leith hails nation’s unsung heroesprideofaustralia™
nationalmedal2009
Xanthe Kleinig
NEW Australian Damien Leith willperform for an audience of heroes —including cancer survivor Kate Smith— at the Pride of Australia Awardsceremony tonight.
Ms Smith, 23, who battled neuro-blastoma from birth, is one of sevenfinalists vying for the young leadercategory at the awards, an initiativeof News Limited newspapers includ-ing The Daily Telegraph.
The awards recognise ‘‘unsungheroes’’ in categories including brav-ery, care and compassion, commun-ity spirit and emergency services.
‘‘I’ve met people who do volun-
tary work every single day, just doingit and getting involved,’’ Leith said.
‘‘They never look for praise, theyjust do it because they want to.’’
He will sing his signature hitHallelujah during the gala ceremonyat Sydney’s Westin Hotel, which willalso include a performance by INXSand video messages from PrinceCharles and actor Hugh Jackman.
Leith became an Australian citizenthree years ago after he married local
woman Eileen, with whom he hastwo young children Jarvis and Jagger.
‘‘This is where I’m raising my kidsand I’m very proud of that,’’ he said.
Ms Smith has devoted most of herlife to voluntary work, despite herfirst operation to remove a tumourleaving her with nerve damage.
During school she got involvedwith various charities, includingWorld Vision and Cancer Council.
‘‘I’ve always been interested indoing as much as I can,’’ Ms Smithsaid. ‘‘What I hope someone woulddo for me if they had time.’’
Watch the awards live from 8pm atprideofaustralia.com.au
How willa killergrow upChild sentences deferredJanet Fife-YeomansCrime Editor
CHILDREN who kill will havetheir final sentence postponed,sometimes until they are adults,under a radical plan being con-sidered by the State Government.
It would give courts the oppor-tunity to see how young murderersmature as they grow up and theirpotential for rehabilitation — orwhether they posed a danger tothe community.
However, while the provisionalsentence could be reduced in thefuture, it could not be extended.
And families of the victims ofyoung killers would be shut out ofthe final sentencing decision.
The recommendations were madeby the NSW Sentencing Council in areport to be released today.
Called provisional sentencing, itwould be the first in the world andAttorney-General John Hatzi-stergos said it would be a radicaldeparture from existing laws, whichwould provide for finality in allsentencing decisions.
The debate was sparked by thecase of a 13-year-old boy whomurdered a three-year-old neigh-bour he barely knew. He broke into
her parents’ home at night andstabbed the girl through the heart.
Trial judge Justice James Wood,who jailed the boy for 20 years witha minimum term of 10 years, said atthe time that because of his age andimmaturity it was difficult for ex-perts to accurately predict whatmotivated him or whether he wouldkill again.
The plan is for the new sentencingto apply to children aged between 10and 14 who were convicted ofmurder. The court would set pro-visional minimum and maximumterms, reviewed when necessary.
The plan has already split thestate’s legal community.
The Children’s Court opposed theproposal with a submission statingyoung people needed finality andthe victim’s family needed closure,while both the Law Society and theOffice of the Director of PublicProsecutions voiced concerns.
But the plan has been backed bythe Public Defenders Office and theState Parole Authority.
The report states that between2001 and 2007, 16 murders werecommitted by juveniles but it couldnot say how many were under theage of 14. They were jailed forbetween 11 and 23 years.
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