Thursday, January 11, 2007

Law and order

News in The Daily Telegraph (10 Jan 07) of a NSW Police office worker who pushed a woman in front of a train after she was criticised for coughing and spitting. The attack happened during the festive season and it has been suggested that the alleged attacker, Suzanne Kiloh, had consumed alcohol. Both women involved in the incident had been sitting at Circular Quay railway station when Kiloh began to "cough loudly and spit". Margaret Schestopalov, sitting nearby, allegedly said "Can you please stop spitting and cover your mouth" - which would seem a reasonable request for anybody, let alone someone had been hospitalised recently for respiratory illness. A couple of minutes later, Schestopalov stood to board an approaching train. It was then, according to court documents, that Kiloh stood up and walked with increasing speed [towards Ms Schestopalov] and with both her hands pushed [her] in the back causing her to propel forward and land face forward on railway tracks. Even though the train driver hit the emergency brakes, the front of the train travelled over Ms Schestopalov, who was severely injured in the incident. She is still in hospital more than a month after the incident. Facing court yesterday for the first time, Suzanne Kiloh's charges have been upgraded to include attempted murder.
The moral of the story: even though you may work with the law, it doesn't necessarily mean you're above it.

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