The Law Eugene McGee

[showdownhero]

So i know this is old news but it has just been announced that the Legal Practitioners Professional Conduct Board has declined to take any action against him for a hit and run and subsequent cover up.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/04/08/3186100.htm

A Professional Conduct Board has decided not to take any action against Adelaide lawyer Eugene McGee who hit and killed a cyclist.

I have to say this entire case has bemused me from the outset. Whilst I don't understand the intricacies of the case he seems to have escaped scot free for the death of another man. It seems in this instance the legal system has well and truly failed.

Please guardians of Bigfooty, educate me.

 

[Donners]

The Legal Practitioners Professional Conduct Board ruled that it could only consider Eugene McGee's actions in the first few seconds after the crash and could not consider his telephone calls to family or his legal adviser or his actions to avoid legal detection.

Well, that would be why. A decision made in a few seconds is all they had to go by, and that alone would be unlikely to be enough to find professional misconduct.

Why they could not act on his subsequent conduct is another matter - evidence issues, perhaps. Given he was acquitted of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, it doesn't seem like there was compelling evidence against him in that respect.

As for saying he "escaped scott free for the death of another man", clearly he was not charged or convicted in relation to dangerous/culpable driving, so it sounds like a genuine accident where his only failure was to stop afterward.

 

[Subprime]

I feel ill when I see this git.

 

[showdownhero]

As for saying he "escaped scott free for the death of another man", clearly he was not charged or convicted in relation to dangerous/culpable driving, so it sounds like a genuine accident where his only failure was to stop afterward.

I guess that form part of my question, why wasn't he at least found guilty of leaving the scene of an accident?

 

[HarryTiger]

He suffered post-traumatic stress disorder in the seconds after the accident, the same condition war veterans suffer decades after their experiences, he suffered the same thing seconds after the accident.

Other hit and run drivers don't suffer PTSD after knocking people over at high speed they calmly and conciously make a decision to try and beat the wrap by driving off so they get locked up.

People shouldn't comment on legal cases they know nothing about.

 

[showdownhero]

He suffered post-traumatic stress disorder in the seconds after the accident, the same condition war veterans suffer decades after their experiences, he suffered the same thing seconds after the accident.

Other hit and run drivers don't suffer PTSD after knocking people over at high speed they calmly and conciously make a decision to try and beat the wrap by driving off so they get locked up.

People shouldn't comment on legal cases they know nothing about.

Explains it all really, the system works

 

[skilts]

He suffered post-traumatic stress disorder in the seconds after the accident, the same condition war veterans suffer decades after their experiences, he suffered the same thing seconds after the accident.

Other hit and run drivers don't suffer PTSD after knocking people over at high speed they calmly and conciously make a decision to try and beat the wrap by driving off so they get locked up.

People shouldn't comment on legal cases they know nothing about.

Not arguing this vehemently, because I too am not privy to all the details. However, if what you say is correct, surely there's a thin line between PTSD and panicking after such an event and fleeing - a decision which would possibly be completely out of character for the one who did it? Maybe such a panicked reaction could also be interpreted as being the result of trauma? Just a thought.

 

[HarryTiger]

Not arguing this vehemently, because I too am not privy to all the details. However, if what you say is correct, surely there's a thin line between PTSD and panicking after such an event and fleeing - a decision which would possibly be completely out of character for the one who did it? Maybe such a panicked reaction could also be interpreted as being the result of trauma? Just a thought.

What reaction is "in character" when one colides with a cyclist and realises there's a good chance they've killed the person? Unless you've done it before you can't make any estimation, and laboring that point more than it needs to be further occurences will result in different reactions as one becomes more attuned to it. ("doh! not another one!")

It's a freakish occurence and everyone will be severely shaken by the experience, or "traumatised" in psychological terms.

On most occasions the law will be more likely to excuse the immediate reaction because there is an immediate shock and thought processes take time to clock over and determine what the correct course of action is - fess up or try and get out of it. That's why you'll see cases where the judge goes easy on the driver who arrived home and then called the police, as opposed to the driver who arrives home and pulls the hose out to flush away the evidence.

Took some effort to find a report detailing the incident after all that's subsequently occured, but got this...

http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/sa/content/2005/s1347622.htm

McGee drove into the back of cyclist Ian Humphrey, killing him instantly. While the car he was following and another passerby stopped, McGee drove on. A short time afterwards he pulled on to a side road and rang a close friend, lawyer David Edwardson. During the next few hours he was to ring David Edwardson another three times and also other members of his family.

Two and a half hours after the accident his battered car was found at his mother's house in Kapunda. The court was told that after leaving the car at his mother's, McGee was driven by his brother back past the accident scene to Adelaide where six and a half hours after the accident he gave himself up. At the time police didn't test his alcohol level because they say they were too busy.

Well I'll state the obvious, he was probably pissed when he did it and knew as a lawyer that by delaying his blood alcohol level would be given a chance to subside, which wasn't required anyway because he wasn't even tested 6 and a half hours later when he finally turned himself in.

And he didn't even get done for leaving the scene...

This is the kind of shit you expect to read about in the 3rd world (adelaide... )

Edit:

It appears he DID get done for leaving the scene of the accident. He plead guilty!

From the article

Eugene McGee will be sentenced now. He has pleaded guilty to failing to stop and render assistance after the accident.

The Legal Practioners Board has decided not to take action over the offence he plead guilty to!

Edit2:

On the post-traumatic stress

Professor Sandy McFarlane from Adelaide University said McGee's behaviour was influenced by Post Traumatic Stress Disorder which he suffered because of horrific experiences in his former career as a police officer and also because of the evidence he dealt with in the Snowtown trials.

Events which had occured in his distant past had hindered his ability to act lawfully after a hit and run!!

Where's Charles Bronson???

 

[skilts]

What reaction is "in character" when one colides with a cyclist and realises there's a good chance they've killed the person? Unless you've done it before you can't make any estimation, and laboring that point more than it needs to be further occurences will result in different reactions as one becomes more attuned to it. ("doh! not another one!")

It's a freakish occurence and everyone will be severely shaken by the experience, or "traumatised" in psychological terms.

On most occasions the law will be more likely to excuse the immediate reaction because there is an immediate shock and thought processes take time to clock over and determine what the correct course of action is - fess up or try and get out of it. That's why you'll see cases where the judge goes easy on the driver who arrived home and then called the police, as opposed to the driver who arrives home and pulls the hose out to flush away the evidence.

Took some effort to find a report detailing the incident after all that's subsequently occured, but got this...

http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/sa/content/2005/s1347622.htm



Well I'll state the obvious, he was probably pissed when he did it and knew as a lawyer that by delaying his blood alcohol level would be given a chance to subside, which wasn't required anyway because he wasn't even tested 6 and a half hours later when he finally turned himself in.

And he didn't even get done for leaving the scene...

This is the kind of shit you expect to read about in the 3rd world (adelaide... )

Edit:

It appears he DID get done for leaving the scene of the accident. He plead guilty!

From the article


The Legal Practioners Board has decided not to take action over the offence he plead guilty to!

Edit2:

On the post-traumatic stress



Events which had occured in his distant past had hindered his ability to act lawfully after a hit and run!!

Where's Charles Bronson???

Thanks for all of that, but I must admit I'm still a bit mystified.

 

[rayven]

It was reported that he was amongst some people consuming various amounts of grog in the hours prior to the accident.
It's been said that he was heading away from Kapunda when he collided with the cyclist? I'm not sure though whether the cyclist was heading south towards Gawler and away from kapunda or not when struck from behind.
It's been said that witness's won't make statements that shares them observing the rushed nature of him returning to his mothers house with the damaged car and the rushed nature of him leaving with his brother shortly afterwards in another vehicle.

It reportably takes 1 hour for every standard drink to leave your system, if you were 4 drinks over the limit, you need four hours to then record under.

The initial police contact with mcgee has been critisised, actualy some could say it was percieved as mates rates, much like him earning serious coin instead of the victims of his mate Peter Liddy the former magistrate and the convicted serial pedophile, who(victims) were seeking compensation.

http://lawisanass-wingate.blogspot.com/2010/07/liddy-affair-sa.html

 

[Schism]

The PTSD sure did set in early. In someone who is a lawyer and former cop and so would not only have training to cope but also would have surely been exposed to some traumatic crime scenes/information over the years.

 

[HarryTiger]

The PTSD sure did set in early. In someone who is a lawyer and former cop and so would not only have training to cope but also would have surely been exposed to some traumatic crime scenes/information over the years.

Hi, see Edit2 on my post above. It wasn't due to the accident but actually due to what you noted, being "exposed to some traumatic crime scenes/information over the years".

 

[Schism]

Hi, see Edit2 on my post above. It wasn't due to the accident but actually due to what you noted, being "exposed to some traumatic crime scenes/information over the years".

Sure, i mean he probably personally opened the barrels at Snowtown.

Former cop turned lawyer and threw plenty of money at it. That's a get out of jail free card in Adelaide.

 

[TheStinger]

The jury system here in SA is just a waste of time. They got bamboozled in his original case by a whole bunch of legal talk and in the end had no choice but to accept that he didn't know what he was doing.

It was rubbish then and it's rubbish now.

My mum was on a jury where a woman was driving erratically and way too fast and she clipped a car which sent that car across the median strip and into an oncoming car, killing the driver.

She was charged with reckless driving causing death (or something like that). She was guilty as sin but in the jury room there was three people in there, one being the nominated foreman, that were dead against a conviction from the start.

They brought up hypothesis that were ludicrous and had nothing to do with the facts of the case and made things difficult for people with a differing opinion to voice them.

After the first vote there was three people for a conviction and nine against, my mum was for. These three people that were "running the show" basically badgered and bullied the three that were for the conviction until one of them gave up and they had their majority. They finally broke one of the other people, leaving my mum and another lady out in the cold.

To make matters worse though, the foreperson when reading the judgement said that they had come to a unanimous decision. BULLSHIT! And my mum, after coming home and telling my dad and I what had happened and us telling her to say something, she rang the contact person for the jurors and told him.

He said that while there was nothing that could be done as the judgment had been recorded and in reality nothing would change whether it was unanimous or majority, he would advise the judge about it and also contact the foreman and ask her why she said what she did.

I felt sorry for the innocent victims' family that they thought that no-one cared that she died. There was three people in that room that did and they never got to hear that.

It's a joke.

 

[HarryTiger]

There's a serious flaw in the law here as the cost of avoidance is much less than the cost of hanging around.

With alcoholic breath testing they've made the penalty for avoiding the test as great or greater than willingly taking the test and being found over the limit. It needs to be that way or anyone who's pissed will just avoid/spoil the breath test so that the lesser penalty is incurred.

This example falls into exactly the same category, the necessary medical procedure to determine the sobriety of the driver was actively avoided and yet the penalty is a slap on the wrist.

Obvious message to any drunk driver who causes a fatal accident - get the hell out of there and don't fess up until you're near zero. Or as some do get your hands on a bottle of plonk and scull it (to deal with the trauma) and spoil any chance of knowing what your prior level was.

 

[rayven]

I do believe they since changed the law in SA because of issue's like in this case.

 

[showdownhero]

Interesting to note that Arthur Freeman tried a similar tactic to get himself off a murder charge.

The obvious difference between the two cases would be that McGee alleges that being previously exposed to death and violence meant his PTSD onset was immediate. Nevertheless I still feel for Ian Humphrey's family, they would obviously feel substantially short changed by the legal system.

 

[showdownhero]

Be interesting to see how Adrian Frencken's case pans out, there's at least one similarity

It is alleged Frencken did not comply with a police breath test after the accident .

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/...ger-on-north-tce/story-e6frea83-1226046910574

 

[BarneyBent]

He suffered post-traumatic stress disorder in the seconds after the accident, the same condition war veterans suffer decades after their experiences, he suffered the same thing seconds after the accident.

Other hit and run drivers don't suffer PTSD after knocking people over at high speed they calmly and conciously make a decision to try and beat the wrap by driving off so they get locked up.

People shouldn't comment on legal cases they know nothing about.

You're being ironic, right?

 

[Ruck Machine]

Sounds like he had a pretty good lawyer.

I'm sure everyone here would do the same (claim PTSD) to avoid jail time.

 

[HarryTiger]

Your being ironic, right?

Actually the details of the incident were elaborated in a further post.

He'd previously seen bodies in barrels and other nasty things as a police officer, that explains his PTSD, which in turn explains his 6 hour lapse at the time of the incident.

After looking further into it I'm full satisfied that there was no miscarriage of justice here and unreservedly apologize to any budding and practicing legal practioners for insinuting their professional was tainted by this incident.

 

[BarneyBent]

Actually the details of the incident were elaborated in a further post.

He'd previously seen bodies in barrels and other nasty things as a police officer, that explains his PTSD, which in turn explains his 6 hour lapse at the time of the incident.

After looking further into it I'm full satisfied that there was no miscarriage of justice here and unreservedly apologize to any budding and practicing legal practioners for insinuting their professional was tainted by this incident.

PTSD doesn't really work like that. If he'd had a traumatic experience hitting somebody, or being hit, or being in a car when it hit somebody, or observing a hit as it happened, etc, then maybe. But hitting a cyclist shouldn't spark a PTSD episode in somebody that had seen completely unrelated trauma.

It also shouldn't spark a 6 hour lapse like that; flashbacks, sure. Freaking out and doing crazy shit, sure. But driving away and taking action to try to evade detection?

That said, I don't actually know the details of the case with regard to how he acted afterwards. But PTSD seems like a very unlikely explanation in any case.

 

[HarryTiger]

PTSD doesn't really work like that. If he'd had a traumatic experience hitting somebody, or being hit, or being in a car when it hit somebody, or observing a hit as it happened, etc, then maybe. But hitting a cyclist shouldn't spark a PTSD episode in somebody that had seen completely unrelated trauma.

Sorry I fully agree with everything you said, I was being sarcastic again. Wasn't sure what you were getting at before.

You'd especially think a QC with former police experience wouldn't have to be reminded about the correct course of action to take after such an incident. And yeah, he knew the correct course alright.... GTFO

 

[Asgardian]

So i know this is old news but it has just been announced that the Legal Practitioners Professional Conduct Board has declined to take any action against him for a hit and run and subsequent cover up.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/04/08/3186100.htm

The old boys club

I have to say this entire case has bemused me from the outset. Whilst I don't understand the intricacies of the case he seems to have escaped scot free for the death of another man. It seems in this instance the legal system has well and truly failed.

It's a combination of what McGee knows, and importantly, who he knows

Please guardians of Bigfooty, educate me.

No need, you seem to have a grasp of the situation

 

[Malifice]

Im bewildered.

Should at least have a case to answer.

At least.