Aboriginal leaders want rape case judge dismissed
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Queensland Aboriginal leaders have called for a District Court judge to be stood down after she allowed nine Indigenous males who raped a 10-year-old girl at Aurukun on Cape York to walk free.
Queensland Attorney-General Kerry Shine is appealing against the sentences, saying they do not reflect the community's expectation of punishments for this type of offence.
Six boys were sentenced to 12-month probation orders, with no convictions recorded, while three others aged 17, 18 and 26 were given suspended sentences.
Mr Shine has asked the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to review all sentences for sex offences on Cape York over the past two years.
"It's important to see what it does show in its relationship with other cases in other parts of Queensland," he said.
"The law should be consistent in its application, whether it be at Aurukun or Clayfield, and that's what I am keen to see as a result of this review.
"It might require further study thereafter, but at this stage we will see what the review comes up with."
Mental health concerns
Meanwhile, Queensland Children's Commissioner Elizabeth Fraser says she is worried about the mental health of the 10-year-old victim.
Ms Fraser says the girl, who is now 12, will need a lot of support.
"[She must have] the support and services to deal with the circumstances surrounding the offences and the help that she needs to get on with addressing the impact of that," she said.
"Support to get on with her life is a critical component of what needs to happen for her for the future."
An Australian judge has handed down sentences to nine males who have admitted rape of a 10-year-old girl, none of which involve incarceration. Six of the offenders, who were minors at the time of the crime were placed on probation. The other three aged 17, 18 and 26 were given suspended sentences.

In her ruling, Judge Sarah Bradley told them that the victim "was not forced and probably agreed to have sex with all of you".

"I hope that all of you realise that you must not have sex with young girls," she said. She further admonished the 26-year-old: "You should have known a lot better."

Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said he was "disgusted and appalled" by the court's decision. "I am horrified by cases like this, involving sexual violence against women and children. My attitude is one of zero tolerance," he told reporters.

Queensland Attorney-General Kerry Shine said he is appealing and "I am not prepared to just write this off as an unusual one-off case. I do want to satisfy myself this is not part of a broader sentencing trend that reflects a lower standard of justice for those communities."

Both the victim and all of the defendants involved are from Australia's aboriginal population, which has played a major factor in the case.

At a conference in January, Judge Bradley said: "There are also times when a judge who has knowledge of a community, has information about the community view of the offending, the background to it and the full particulars of those involved may decide an alternative penalty is appropriate. Determining which category of case is before you can be problematic and can often only be done with input from the indigenous community itself."

Boni Robertson, an aboriginal activist, disagreed with the judge's decision. "There is nothing culturally, there is nothing morally, there is nothing socially and there is definitely nothing legally that would ever allow this sort of decision to be made," she said.