NEWS
of a four-year sentence by
Justice Dean Mildren last
month. If the sentence stands,
he will be released before
Christmas next year when
time already served is taken
into account.
But the DPP has filed appeal documents against the
The 38-year-old teacher — sentence, arguing that it is
who cannot be named to ‘‘manifestly inadequate’’.
protect his victim — was
The man pleaded guilty to
sentenced to serve two years the charge of ‘‘maintaining a
By EMILY WATKINS
THE Director of Public
Prosecutions is appealing
the sentence handed down
to a teacher who had a fourmonth relationship with an
emotionally vulnerable
13-year-old student.
sexual relationship with a
child under 16’’, which has a
maximum penalty of 20 years
in prison. The relationship
was discovered by police
when the girl’s parents realised she was sneaking out
and became suspicious.
Police staked out the man’s
house one night in November
last year, and could not find
the girl when he left at 5am.
He told police officers he
had not seen the girl since
the previous week at
school, but they found her
hiding in his car boot after a
second search.
The NT Supreme Court
heard the man first kissed the
girl in a classroom, and that
over four months she started
sneaking out twice a week to
have sex with him at his flat.
Justice Mildren said in his
sentencing remarks that the
man was not a pedophile, and
was unlikely to reoffend.
He criticised the Northern
Territory News in his sentencing remarks for calling the
man a ‘‘rapist’’ in a headline,
saying that the girl was a
‘‘willing participant’’
who had consented to the
sexual relationship.
The matter will go before
the Court of Criminal Appeal
for a hearing in June.
COLOR: K
A LUCKY punter has taken
more than $1 million off a
Northern Territory bookmaker in two weeks.
The football punter took just
under
$700,000
off
Sportsbet.com.au in Round 6
and followed up with almost
$600,000 last week.
His one-man crusade to
break the Darwin-based
bookie started with $150,000 on
Collingwood at $1.92 to win by
more than 28.5 points against
North Melbourne.
Correct weight signalled,
with a win of $138,000 jumping
into his pocket.
So keen was he on the Pies,
he outlaid a further $100,000 on
them at $1.88 to win by more
than 60.5 points. Again correct
weight when the Maggies got
up by 66 points. That’s a win of
$88,000 to give him $226,000.
He then turned his attention
to the Cats, placing an even
$200,000 on them at $1.91 to win
by more than 23.5 points.
Another win, this time a
lazy $182,000, giving him a
running profit of $408,000.
To finish off, he went west of
the border and placed $200,000
on the winless Crows at $1.92
to win by more than 28.5
points. With the scores level in
the last quarter, it didn’t look
good then, whoosh, all over.
Another $184,000, making it
a winning weekend of $592,000,
or close to $1.3 million in just
two weeks.
Prosecution appeals
teacher’s sentence
PUB: NT NEWS DATE: 11-MAY-2010 PAGE: 3
AFL punter
wins $1.3m
off Territory
bookmaker
Fuel price
back to
2008 level
PETROL prices have risen to
the highest level since the
darkest days of the global
financial crisis in late 2008.
Average consumer costs
rose by 1.4c to 130.2c a litre last
week, figures from the Institute of Petroleum show.
This took prices to the
highest level since October
2008, and comes only weeks
after US financial services
giant Lehman Brothers filed
for bankruptcy.
Sydney prices have surged
by 8c a litre during the past
fortnight, following the end of
a price war.
But motorists in Adelaide,
Perth, Darwin and Hobart
were paying more for
unleaded fuel last week.
Petrol prices normally fall
during times of economic uncertainty before rising as the
economy recovers.
Commonwealth Securities
economist Savanth Sebastian
said concerns about the
Greek sovereign debt crisis
could cause petrol prices to
fall again.
MOTHERLY LOVE: Hills death adder Medusa with one of her babies, still tiny but already deadly. Picture: JUSTIN SANSON
Proud, venomous mum adds 30 adders to family
By ANNIE SANSON
THREE-YEAR-OLD ‘‘Medusa’’
couldn’t have celebrated Mother’s
Day any better way than giving birth
to almost 30 children.
The hills death adder had only been
in a one-month relationship with her
partner before she fell pregnant four
months ago.
It was the cause of much excite-
ment for Crocosaurus Cove reptile
manager Gavin Bedford.
‘‘It’s her first clutch and it is the
first clutch of venomous snakes at
Crocosaurus — so for us it’s something very special,’’ he said.
‘‘We can’t get enough of our beautiful baby monsters.’’
Mr Bedford said snakes usually
stopped eating when they fell preg-
nant, but Medusa still ate a whole rat
only a few weeks ago.
‘‘But she started getting bigger and
bigger towards the end of her body, so
we knew something was going on.’’
During three hours of labour on
Sunday night, Medusa gave birth to
the baby death adders that had been
incubated in eggs inside the snake’s
body for the past months.
Are you in the running for style du jour
CLASSIC elegance ruled at the Alice Springs
racing carnival.
And all the styles of the desert carnival
were featured in our fantastic Northern
Territory News picture special last week when
our photographers came up with the 50 Best
Dressed Centralian Racegoers.
But you, our readers, will pick the eventual
stylemeister extraordinaire. Voting for the
Best Dressed Racegoer closed at midnight
last night and we’ll let you know your Numero
Uno in Thursday’s paper.
And there are great prizes to win.
First prize is two nights at the Crowne Plaza
in a Premiere Suite with breakfast for two and
a sweet $100 Mixed Lollies Boutique voucher.
The second and third favourites from the
50 Best Dressed will each receive one night’s
accommodation at Crowne Plaza in a Garden
View room, with breakfast for two.
And, in the meantime, you can revisit the
photographs of the 50 Best Dressed
Centralian Racegoers on the Northern
Territory News’ website, ntnews.com.au
www.ntnews.com.au
‘‘The little ones were born live and
although they only weigh about five
grams each, they are very deadly
already,’’ Mr Bedford said.
The reptile manager said
Crocosaurus was now looking for
people interested in buying one of the
tiny killing-machines.
‘‘We’re not really sure yet what
we’re going to do with all of them.’’
Steady budget promised
TREASURER Wayne Swan
says he’ll hand down a steady
budget tonight that paves
the way for essential longterm reform.
Mr Swan, who will deliver
his third budget in Canberra,
has described it as a ‘‘no
frills’’ affair, which will be in
contrast to the rollercoaster
rides other world economies
are enduring.
An economist at a leading
US bank has warned that the
Treasurer must present an
‘‘aura of fiscal responsibility’’
in his third budget to reinforce the Government’s economic credibility.
The Government has
vowed to deliver a budget
capping spending at 2 per cent
while looking to make savings to offset new spending.
Northern Territory News, Tuesday, May 11, 2010 — 3
SPRINTCAR TITLE - VISIT: DARWIN2010.COM