By CAMERON LUCADOU-WELLS
Former Casey councillor Paul Richardson says he will rather go to jail than pay a $3000 fine after being convicted for willfully trespassing at a council meeting and resisting police arrest.
At a rowdy hearing at Dandenong Magistrates’ Court on Monday, magistrate Lesley Fleming said she considered sending Richardson to jail but for his early guilty plea, which cut short what could have been a four-day hearing.
Richardson, a Justice of the Peace, originally pleaded not guilty.
Casey councillors met on Tuesday night following Richardson’s hearing and moved to strip him of his Justice of the Peace status by reporting the conviction to the Department of Justice.
Casey councillor Sam Aziz also vowed to initatate defamation proceedings against Richardson, claiming his widly-distributed emails had harmed the council’s reputation.
Ms Fleming said Richardson showed “little respect for the prosecutor, the court and all the witnesses” during the hearing, including calling a witness Sam Aziz a “liar”.
“Your plea of guilty can’t be taken as a sign of remorse. You said in open court you believed you weren’t going to get justice,” Ms Fleming said.
She said police officers’ safety while carrying out their duty was “paramount”.
“Your conduct was beneath you and beneath the man you submitted yourself to be before the court.
“A conviction is appropriate given the nature of your offending and… exhibiting no remorse.”
During the abbreviated hearing, Ms Fleming cautioned Richardson several times for “irrelevant” questioning, “intimidating the court” by blessing himself with a cross sign and “insulting” witnesses and the police prosecutor Andrew Gannon.
Richardson, who was representing himself, unsuccessfully sought an adjournment due to his “key witness” Greg Carvill – “he’s 83 years old and had three strokes” – being too ill to attend. Only one of his witnesses turned up to court.
At one stage Richardson, accusing the court of bias, said: “I’m considering calling a mistrial.”
After a lunch break, Richardson changed his plea to guilty, saying he could be “the first Aboriginal to die in custody” should he go to jail.
Richardson, in a long impassioned plea for mitigation, said he had never been in trouble with the law before.
“I’m squeaky clean. I’m a supporter of the law – that’s why I’m a Justice of the Peace and I want to be a bail justice.
“I have done nothing wrong. If I’m guilty I ask God to strike me dead in front of you, Your Honour and everyone here. I’m not afraid of dying.”
Ms Fleming found Richardson had refused lawful requests for him to leave the council meeting in 3 April 2012.
The meeting’s public gallery had reportedly erupted into what Ms Fleming described as “quite a melee of yelling and screaming” after councillor Bob Halsall uttered the “c word” twice.
The incident occurred during a debate on whether to sack chief executive Mike Tyler for failing to notify councillors about a staff member’s sexual harassment claim made against him.
According to local laws, spectators are forbidden to speak out during council meetings.
After a loud interjection from an unknown person in the gallery, Cr Aziz – as chairman of the meeting – asked the culprit to identify themselves.
“I don’t know who (the culprit was).
“(Richardson) was the only person in a gallery of 150 people to stand up and take responsibility and he refused my direction to sit down,” Cr Aziz told the court.
The court found Richardson then refused requests by Cr Aziz, local laws officers and eventually police to leave the chamber.
Richardson told the court that Mr Carvill had been the interjector yelling: “You should be ashamed of yourself, Mr Tyler. Shame.”
Richardson said he then raised his hand but had not stood up after Cr Aziz asked if there were any questions from the public.
Cr Aziz said in court that Richardson’s version was “an absolute fantasy”.
Richardson later in the hearing accused Cr Aziz of telling “a pack of lies”.
“If I’m lying it wouldn’t be backed up by the recording and other witnesses’ testimonies,” Cr Aziz retorted.
When asked by Richardson if Cr Aziz bore him malice, Cr Aziz said: “I bear no malice for Mr Richardson but I feel sorry for Mr Richardson.”
After the trial, Richardson said he would seek Victorian Aboriginal Legal Services help to appeal the case on 9 July at the County Court.
He said he would “gladly go to jail to show people in Casey to make a stand” rather than pay the fine.
