** Australian women who attacked paramedics attempting to evade jail sentences
** South Australian St. John Ambulance manager on trial for sexually assaulting two underage girls
AUSTRALIA NEWS
** A pair of Melbourne women are attempting to evade jail terms after attacking and seriously injuring a paramedic at a call scene last March 31st. That is the word from The Herald Sun (Rebekah Cavanaugh/March 18) which said convicting the duo could mean a mandatory six month jail order. According to the newspaper, the lawyer for one of the pair is blaming her actions on borderline personality disorder. He said a custodial sentence would only make the woman’s condition worse. Details of the crime read out to the court indicated Amanda Warren, 30, and Caris Underwood, 20, who are both mothers, attacked Paul Judd while he attended an overdose patient. Both were apparently drunk at the time they kicked and punched the practitioner. As a result of the attack, Judd has now had two surgeries on his leg and will have to have another procedure this month. He has not returned to work since the assault. Along with intending to plead guilty to setting upon Judd, Warren will also cop to handling stolen goods after she yanked a gold chain from Judd’s neck. She will also agree she committed criminal damage when she rammed the ambulance with her car. Details on Underwood’s actions were not immediately apparent. Both women return to court September 7th for plea hearings.
** A South Australia St. John Ambulance manager is now on trial for sexually assaulting two teenage cadets. The Advertiser (Sean Fewster/May 21) said Daniel Patrick Symons, 29, who is also a registered nurse, has been tagged with a slew of charges. These include unlawful sexual intercourse, procuring a child to engage in a sex act, and causing a child to expose her body. Symons has pleaded not guilty to the alleged incidents which reach back to 2012. At the time, at least one of the girls was only 14-years-old. The abuse apparently continued until the girls were past the age of 17. According to the newspaper, Symons groomed the girls via his St. John position, as well as through Facebook.
