A former Mackay police officer has faced court after his two-year-old child was left unattended in a car while he was drinking and gambling inside a CBD hotel. Mackay Magistrates Court heard the manager of the Boomerang Hotel called police on Boxing Day 2020 after the child was found alone inside an unlocked Toyota LandCruiser with the motor running in the carpark of the hotel. When police arrived, they found a two-year-old girl asleep in a child seat in the back of the ute, with no one else around. Prosecutor Rob Beamish said the child’s father appeared soon after, telling police the car had been under constant watch by his partner. “Police viewed CCTV footage which depicted (the father) at the bar drinking and gambling,” Mr Beamish said. “At 3.36pm, (the man’s partner) entered the bar entrance with their four-year-old boy, (she) was greeted … and they both stayed inside the hotel without going to check outside on the two year old.” Neither parent can be named for legal reasons. The couple were both charged with leaving a child under 12 unattended. Acting Magistrate John Aberdeen took into account the couple’s early guilty pleas when he fined them both $500 with no conviction recorded.
March 29, 2021
When NRL chief operating officer Nick Weeks was made redundant in September – a victim of Peter V’landys′ $80 million cost-cutting drive – his departure from Rugby League Central was resonantly mourned by veteran commentator Roy Masters. Weeks, who built and ran the sporting code’s integrity function, remained a consultant to incoming NRL chief Andrew Abdo “if only to draw a map where all the bodies are buried”. Masters predicted Weeks would “likely return to the corporate world where his skills would be in demand for any company needing to manage reputational risk”. It was a divine prediction. And what company could need those skills more acutely than Crown Resorts?! Weeks, a former Allens lawyer, has joined the under-siege gaming group as its head of “regulatory response and transition”. One would assume that would include responding to Patricia Bergin’s report for the NSW government’s Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority, then responding to two live royal commissions in Victoria and Western Australia.
March 17, 2021
SkyCity Adelaide Pty Ltd has a s.394 (application for unfair dismissal remedy) to answer before Deputy President Anderson in Hearing Room 6.1 – Level 6 in Adelaide (Liakimis)
March 16, 2021
SkyCity Adelaide Pty has a s.394 (application for unfair dismissal remedy) to defend before Fair Work Deputy President Anderson in Hearing Room 6.1 – Level 6 in Adelaide (Liakimis).
March 1, 2021
The Victorian government has appointed Raymond Finkelstein as commissioner and chair of the royal commission into Crown Melbourne. Finkelstein has served more than 40 years at the Victorian Bar and has been a Queen’s Counsel since 1986. He was appointed a judge of the Federal Court in 1997, and retired as a judge of the Federal Court and President of the Competition Tribunal in 2011 before returning to private practice at the Victorian Bar. In his new role, he will assess Crown Melbourne’s suitability to hold its Victorian casino licence, as well as the suitability of its associates. He will hand down his recommendations by August.
February 24, 2021
Compass Group B&I Hospitality Services Pty Ltd has a s.526 (application to deal with a dispute involving a stand down) on foot before Fair Work Deputy President Cross by telephone in Sydney (Lim).
February 23, 2021
SkyCity Adelaide Pty Ltd is facing a s.394 – (Application for unfair dismissal remedy) in front of Commissioner Platt (In Chambers) in Adelaide (Liakimis).
February 22, 2021
Crown Melbourne Limited is facing a s.739 – (Application to deal with a dispute) in front of Deputy President Colman (By Telephone) in Melbourne (AO).
