July 20th 2009 Seven drunken nuisances charged Seven men were charged with public nuisance fines over the weekend on Magnetic Island. Three of the men were intercepted at Picnic Bay where they had been causing a nuisance on the beach and later at the bus terminal. A second group, who were part of a bucks party, were charged at Base Backpackers after complaints were made. “All of the offences were alcohol related” said Senior Sergeant Kerry Kraut from MI Police. Public nuisance charges cover a range of behaviour in a public area including: offensive language, encouraging another person to participate in a fight, engaging in sexual acts in public, urinating, interfering with another person’s food and seeking money or property from someone in a manner likely to cause them to feel threatened. Apart from the seven nuisances, Sergeant Kraut said, The weekend was fairly good. There was a lot going on but nothing that sticks out above and beyond the normal." To add your comment, or read those of others, see below

Seven drunken nuisances charged

4 comments

rebecca smith July 20th 2009

That's nothing to crow about. Unless there was violence involved, why are seven men now facing charges for being stupid? Why waste resources and potentially cause unnecessary stress and depression, along with tarnishing the men and their families' views on Magnetic Island policing? Surely in 2009 we can think of more intelligent ways to stop people making asses of themselves in public than hauling them into the criminal system.

Peter Francis Hughes July 20th 2009

Rebecca has a valid point. Let's not forget what happened to Cameron Doomagee who I believe was arrested and detained under similar charges in the Queensland Justice system. The coroner was quite explicit in the findings of that case. NSW for example, has diversionary centres for alcohol related offences. And lets not forget about the mentality of the Queensland Police Force where alcohol and criminal behaviour are concerned. I am not aware of the facts of this particular case but I have seen the way police administer justice in Queensland, in particular, Magnetic Island. Peter F. Hughes Lorne, Victoria

chasmac July 20th 2009

However Rebecca, if there was intimidation, violence or threats of violence involved (and that's a call for the Police to make, not us) then it is entirely appropriate isn't it, that those charged face the Magistrates Court on Monday morning. When, as here, alcohol is identified as the issue, I think it is also appropriate that the community is actually brought to account for the liberties we inflict on ourselves. The men were not bashed, they probably went on to have a great wedding and weekend away, and on the morning after they would have faced up to their stupidity. I would much prefer that the Police deal with stupid drunks rather than the publicans who served them or their drunken mates. In other words, we need the Police to do our dirty work for us. We can't be relied on to do it ourselves.

oper8 July 24th 2009

Awwww, boo-hoo for the poor drunks. Surely the the more 'intelligent ways to stop people from making asses of themselves in public' is to simply NOT drink so much the you behave like an idiot. I am sure there were more than 7 people drinking on the island this weekend and everyone else was able to behave well enough not to have police involved. All this article says to me is that perhaps there is a problem with alcohol, not police. And what about the 'unneccesary stress' for the people who felt threatened enough to make a complaint? As for the 'depression' these men might feel about getting a ticket for their stupidity...perhaps another reason to lay off the alcohol a bit, as I believe alcohol is a known depressant. Lastly, as for 'tarnished images,' personally, as a tourism operator, I would rather have people view our island as a nice place to come for a holiday, rather than somewhere were drunken baffoons threaten you, urinate on your car, etc. I doubt these men will be thrown into gaol for this, but maybe a little inconvenient ticket/trip to court will remind them to control themselves next time.