Former Sports Minister John Sidoti has been barred from the New South Wales parliament after the state’s corruption watchdog found the MP engaged in serious corrupt conduct.
Sidoti’s former colleagues passed a motion in the Legislative Assembly to suspend him from parliament after he refused to resign.
Sidoti denies any wrongdoing.
ICAC found John Sidoti had engaged in serious corrupt conduct. (Nick Moore)
Sidoti plans to appeal the corruption watchdog’s finding at the Supreme Court.
“I’m going to fight this. I’m going to fight this all the way. I’m not going anywhere,” Sidoti said during a sit-down interview with 9News reporter Chris O’Keefe.
ICAC is seeking the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on whether any criminal prosecution should be pursued.
In his final words before the suspension ruling, Sidoti took aim at ICAC.
“This Frankenstein monster is out of control and nobody is safe,” Sidoti said.
“Reform the beat before it takes a bite out of you too.
“You don’t have to look far to read the long line of people who have entered the ICAC process and come out beaten up and stained by the c-word.
“Many of these people were later cleared by actual courts where presumption of innocence, standards of proof, and rules of evidence actually apply.”
Sidoti addresses the Legislative Assembly prior to the motion passing for his suspension. (9News)
Sidoti is the second former government minister to be barred from parliament, following the suspension of Gareth Ward last month.
Sidoti stood aside as a minister in Gladys Berejiklian’s government in the wake of the corruption investigation in March 2021.
Family on Monday identified the man who was shot to death in an Otsego neighborhood over the weekend by deputies who the Sheriff’s Office said were threatened by him with a knife.
Jordyn J. Hansen, 21, was fatally wounded about 1 am Sunday in the 12300 block of NE. 72nd Court, said his aunt Sara Wroblewski, who lives where deputies responded.
The Wright County Sheriff’s Office said deputies shot Hansen during a confrontation and that he was armed with a knife.
However, Hansen’s aunt contended in a detailed written account released to the Star Tribune late Monday morning that law enforcement was lax while in her home, missed opportunities to detain him and allowed him to get a hold of a knife.
Multiple messages were left with the Sheriff’s Office seeking a response to Wroblewski’s allegations.
In a statement Sunday, the Sheriff’s Office said that “reports indicated a man was having mental health challenges and had threatened physical harm to his family and himself.”
Deputies spoke to Hansen upon arriving at the scene, and he agreed to go to the hospital for an evaluation. However, the statement continued, he “ran into the kitchen and grabbed a knife” before an ambulance could arrive.
“I have fled the home and ran into the neighborhood,” the statement read. “Squads set up a perimeter and requested additional support from the Minnesota State Patrol helicopter.”
The statement said Hansen confronted deputies a short time later in a neighboring backyard, where two deputies attempted to stun him with a Taser as he threatened them with the knife. The two deputies then shot the man.
Hansen was taken to North Memorial Health Hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Justine Love, in a brief interview Monday with the Star Tribune, said the Midwest Medical Examiner’s Office told her family that her brother was hit by six gunshots from law enforcement.
Court records in Rice County show that Hansen has a history of mental health difficulties dating back nearly four years to when he lived in Faribault and include attempts of suicide, delusions that his life was being threatened, hearing voices, belief that his mind was being read , and extreme alcohol and illicit drug abuse.
Courts twice ordered him civilly committed for treatment of social anxiety disorder and depression, with his most recent commitment being extended in March for six months and active at the time of his death.
Wroblewski said in her statement to the Star Tribune that Hansen moved into her Otsego home a few months ago after completing treatment.
“He was still under formal treatment commitment until September but was released [by the Rice County District Court] into our care,” she added.
She said the family believed a new place to live “was his best chance at a full recovery away from his previous lifestyle, which triggered mental health crisis.”
Rice County Attorney John Fossum said that the court’s decisions leading up to Hansen moving in with his aunt “would be based on medical evaluations and recommendations from the professionals responsible for the individual’s care.”
Fossum added that “any explanation of those decisions not found in the public portions of the court file is private data and cannot be disclosed by this office.”
Wroblewski said the family contacted law enforcement early Sunday because Hansen “was having a mental health episode, and we needed him to be removed from our home to get some help.”
The aunt said Hansen “had communicated threats to family outside our home, but didn’t make any threats to us. But there were signs of volatility when we were with Jordyn prior to [law enforcement] and we made officers aware of this.
“We believe there were multiple opportunities inside our home for officers to peacefully restrain and contain Jordyn knowing that this was a mental health call, and the situation was unpredictable and could change in a moment’s notice.”
Instead, she continued, “the officers allowed Jordyn to be escorted through our home unrestrained, which is how he obtained a weapon.”
Wroblewski said her husband warned the officers on that scene that Hansen was heading toward the kitchen unrestrained.
“We believe the outcome would have been different if officers had handled this differently inside our home,” she said. “We have many questions for law enforcement that we are still waiting on.”
The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension is now heading the investigation and has yet to release any information. The deputies have been placed on standard administrative leave.
Tributes are flowing for Carlo Bonomi, the actor behind the voice of children’s claymation character Pingu, after he died on the weekend at the age of 85.
Remembered for his “noot noot” phrase, the Italian vocal actor passed away in Milan on August 6 with the cause of his death unknown, publication AF News reports.
Australians knew Bonomi for his “Penguinese”, the language spoken in stop-motion series Pingu which aired six seasons between 1986 to 2006.
Bonomi was the unscripted voice behind all the show’s characters for four seasons, before he was replaced by vocal actors David Sant and Marcello Magni when the show was renewed for seasons five and six.
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Pingu is about a young penguin who sometimes gets up to mischief on his family’s polar ice cap in Antarctica.
Fans have praised the late actor for his service as a children’s entertainer by sharing pictures and videos of Bonomi online.
“RIP Carlo Bonomi, thank you for your service in children’s entertainment and for giving my childhood some light to shine in the dark,” one fan posted to Twitter.
“May the Noot Noots never fade from our memories.”
Meanwhile American cartoonist Travis Bickerstaff said Bonomi’s legacy will live on through others.
“If you’re wondering if this will be the end of Pinguit’s not,” Bickerstaff wrote.
“Other voice actors in the Pingu franchise had carried on Bonomi’s legacy, since he established the ‘Penguinese’ language for the series.”
Bonomi was also well-known in Italy as the voice behind the announcements played at Central Station and Florence Santa Maria Novella Station, which were used up until 2008.
He also played a part in a number of Italian shorts, including line animation The Line, The Line.
Raiders coach Ricky Stuart has been hit with a week’s suspension and a $25,000 fine by the NRL after calling Panthers five-eighth Jaeman Salmon a “weak-gutted dog.”
Key points:
Canberra coach Ricky Stuart has been suspended for one week and personally fined $25,000 by the NRL for calling Panthers five-eighth Jaeman Salmon a “weak-gutted dog”
Stuart will be prohibited from having any involvement with the Raiders for seven days and will not coach them on Sunday against the Dragons
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo called Stuart’s comments “totally unacceptable”
The league has served Stuart with a breach notice, which he has accepted, with his seven-day suspension to take impact from 4pm on Tuesday.
It has also mandated that Stuart, not the Raiders, must pay the fine personally.
The decision marks the first time in NRL history that a coach has been suspended for comments at a press conference.
“The period of suspension prohibits Stuart from performing any duties as head coach of the Raiders, including attendance at team or individual training or coaching sessions or the Raiders’ facilities,” the NRL said in a statement.
“Furthermore, he cannot provide instruction or direction to the team, individual players or Club Officials during the period of suspension including before, during or after any matches within this period.”
This means Stuart will miss Canberra’s match against the Dragons on Sunday and will not return to the Raiders until next Tuesday.
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo slammed Stuart’s comments, which are believed to have stemmed from an incident between Salmon and Stuart’s son when they were Under-12s teammates in 2010.
“Leaders need to set the standard in the game. The comments are completely unacceptable from any individual, let alone an official of such experience and standing,” Abdo said.
“This is a highly unusual case, and we have taken the significant step of proposing a suspension from his duties for one week.
“This will be a full suspension, precluding Ricky from having any involvement with any club activity, either in person or remotely.
“Furthermore, the fine must not be paid by the club but by Ricky himself.”
Earlier, Raiders chief executive Don Furner accepted that Stuart had done the wrong thing, and said it was important the club supported their long-time coach.
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“It’s just like waiting for a suspension of a player … we’ve said publicly that we’ll accept what punishment and what decision they hand down and then move on from there,” he told reporters.
“It’s a very public job and it’s a hard job. He’s obviously very disappointed and he’s embarrassed, and he’s just going to have to put it behind him and move on and we’ll all support him.”
Furner said he hadn’t discussed which assistant coach would step into the main role for Sunday’s game, but the former Raiders prop is tipped to take the role.
Canberra skipper Elliott Whitehead also went into bat for Stuart.
“We’ve got his back. He had his reasons,” Whitehead told reporters on Tuesday.
“I’m not going to go into them, but we’re all supportive of Ricky and he knows he probably shouldn’t have said it on that platform.
“He’s upset he let his emotions get the better of him.”
SCRANTON, Pa. — A defense attorney targeted vulnerable clients and pressured them into having sex in exchange for legal work, the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office said Monday.
Corey J. Kolcharno is charged with four counts of promoting prostitution after an investigation found he sexually exploited clients, tethering “his performance as their counsel to a demand for sexual services from them or in exchange for payment,” police wrote in an affidavit.
Kolcharno — a former Lackawanna County prosecutor — was arraigned Monday and released on a $20,000 unsecured bail. A statement issued by his attorney from him said Kolcharno “has made a conscious decision to accept responsibility.” Kolcharno told reporters he intended to give up his law license.
According to state police, Kolcharno targeted women who struggled with addiction, had been sexually abused or had financial problems. At first he requested nude photos or worn underwear, then escalated his predatory behavior into a demand for sex in exchange for legal services, authorities said. I have paid his clients as much as $500, police said.
Victims said they were ashamed but felt they had no choice but to give in, authorities said.
Kolcharno “picked these victims because they had limited choices, because he thought they would be easy to silence, and less likely to be believed if they ever came forward,” Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a written statement.
Investigators said they found hundreds of sexually explicit images of Kolcharno’s clients on his cellphone.
Police said the crimes took place between 2018 and 2022, when Kolcharno was a partner in the Fanucci & Kolcharno law firm outside Scranton.
Before reentering private practice, Kolcharno was an assistant district attorney in Lackawanna County from 2005-2011.
We’ve all been that person on the end of the UNO battering ram.
No matter what you do, the cards just won’t line up, leaving you as the poor sod forced to pick up half the deck in shame.
And there’s always someone at the table explaining how their rule “makes the game better”.
But now, the company behind the iconic card game has revealed a cheeky rule that is sure to spark debate.
UNO says players can avoid the dreaded “Draw 2” cards by plonking a “Skip” card on the pile, but only if they’re the same color.
“Skipping never felt so good,” wrote the official UNO Twitter account. “If someone plays a Draw 2 on you and you have a Skip card of the SAME COLOR in your hand, you can play it and ‘bounce’ the penalty to the next player!”
UNO also said if the next player has a Skip card of any colour, they can play it and kick the penalty down to the next player.
“The next player must draw the two cards, unless they have a Skip card (of any colour) they can play, in which case they pass the penalty to the next player and so on until no one has a Skip card and must draw two cards.”
UNO reminded players that they can’t stack cards on top of one another.
“You can only play one card per turn – stacking is not allowed!”
But some fans weren’t too pleased with the update.
“Absolutely not,” one person replied. “I’ve lost enough friendships over fighting this exact rule. I can’t find this in the rule book — surely this is fake!”
But others admitted it was in their personalized rule book all along.
“This is standard — why are so many people shocked?” one fan said. “The UNO video game uses this rule as well, it’s legit.”
In 2019, Mattel launched a new version of UNO to add some extra spice to the mix.
UNO Flip is a more competitive and rage-inducing version of the classic game.
The entire deck is double-sided, featuring a “light side” resembling the original game and a “dark side”, where penalties are far tougher.
If you score a “Flip” card the game is entirely in your hands and you gain the power of revealing a new set of numbers and colors on the other side.
And as always, never forget to shout “UNO” when you’re down to your last card.
Lions ruckman Oscar McInerney has hailed the form of teammate Lachie Neale as Brisbane’s top-four hopes go on the line in the final two rounds of the regular season.
Currently in fifth spot on the AFL ladder but on the same points as third-placed Melbourne and fourth-placed Sydney, the Lions can guarantee themselves a top-four berth by beating St Kilda and the Demons in the next fortnight.
It’s a task easier said the done, but the form of star midfielder Neale will aid Brisbane’s top-four bid.
He was superb in the Lions’ weekend win over Carlton, with an all-round effort of 32 disposals, nine clearances and one goal moving him alongside Gold Coast Suns star Touk Miller at the top of the AFL Coaches Association’s MVP award.
Neale is also favored to win a second Brownlow Medal, having won the award for the first time in 2020.
“He’s gone up a level,” McInerney said in comparing Neale’s form from two years ago to now.
“We couldn’t be proud of that. He’s a phenomenal player.
“He’s the last guy out on the track, he’s always working on his touch, (doing) weights, he’s getting stronger, he’s fitter, he’s an incredible athlete, he’s got an incredible mindset… that’s a great role model for all our young players coming through.”
McInerney’s own form has been good but he is playing his performances down, claiming he just wants to keep things “nice and simple” for the likes on Neale and other Brisbane teammates.
“As long as I’m just jumping hard and creating a contest, we’ve got so many magical players like Lachie at the feet, they just do the rest,” McInerney.
“He (Neale) is just so clean. He just doesn’t fumble but that comes from the work behind the scenes.”
The Lions are attempting on producing a four-quarter performance when they head to Marvel Stadium for Friday night’s clash against the Saints.
Despite beating the Blues by 33 points at the Gabba last Sunday, Brisbane had a 57-point three-quarter lead which Carlton at one stage reduced to less than three goals in the final term before the hosts steadied to seal the victory.
“We’re still improving at this time of year, and I think that’s a really valuable thing for our team,” McInerney said.
“Obviously we need to cement that and go for longer periods, but it’s really pleasing and positive signs that we’re able to continue to improve.”
The versatile Callum Ah Chee will miss Friday’s match due to the AFL’s concussion protocols.
Defender Marcus Adams also didn’t train with the Brisbane team on Tuesday as he recovers from a sternum injury he suffered against Carlton.
Nicole Linton, a traveling nurse from Houston, allegedly ran through a red light and caused the wreck.
LOS ANGELES — The driver suspected of causing a fiery crash that killed five people and an 8 1/2-month-old fetus was charged Monday with murder.
Nicole Lorraine Linton, a traveling nurse from Houston, was charged with six counts of murder and five counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.
She could face 90 years to life in prison if convicted of all charges.
Linton, 37, was jailed on a $9 million bail Monday after being released from a hospital over the weekend. It was not immediately clear whether she had an attorney who could speak on her behalf of her.
Prosecutors said Linton’s Mercedes-Benz was doing 90 mph (144 kph) last Thursday when it ran a red light and smashed into cars in a crowded intersection in unincorporated Windsor Hills about 10 miles (16 km) southwest of downtown Los Angeles. Several victims were thrown from the cars and several vehicles caught fire.
RELATED: Houston nurse accused in fiery California wreck that killed multiple people
The crash killed 23-year-old Asherey Ryan, her 11-month-old son Alonzo Quintero and her boyfriend, Reynold Lester, Sha’seana Kerr said in a GoFundMe posting.
Lester’s family told KABC-TV that the 24-year-old security guard was the father of Ryan’s 8 1/2-month-old unborn child. The family has said Ryan was on the way to a doctor’s appointment for a prenatal checkup when she was killed.
One murder charge — but not an additional charge of vehicular manslaughter — was filed for the fetus, who was identified by the coroner’s office as Armani Lester and listed as born on the same day he died.
“A young family was destroyed in the blink of an eye,” District Attorney George Gascón said at a news conference.
Two other women were also killed but their names weren’t made public as of Monday.
“While the wreckage of this fiery crash at this intersection was removed and traffic eventually resumed, there is catastrophic damage to the families and friends of those killed and injured,” Gascón said. “It is not only a tremendous loss to the families but our entire community who learned of this incredible tragedy or have watched the now viral video of the collision,” he said.
Authorities said they haven’t found any evidence that Linton was under the influence of alcohol but prosecutors said she did have a history of dangerous crashes and knew the threat posed by her driving behavior, the Los Angeles Times reported.
RELATED: Police arrest driver in deadly Los Angeles crash
American model Chrissy Teigen called out a fan who didn’t “recognize” her in a new photo posted to Instagram.
“I’ve had these teeth for like 10 years,” the cookbook author responded on Sunday, referencing her veneers.
In a follow-up comment, Teigen added, “You guys are somethin” when a separate fan asked why she is always “changing” her face, Page Six reports.
The comments came alongside an adorable photo of Teigen, 36, enjoying a boat ride with her son Miles lying on top of her.
“Keeping up with this one somehow,” she captioned the snap.
Despite the critical commentary from her followers, the Cravings founder glowed in the image, likely because she is pregnant again after suffering a tragic loss nearly two years ago.
“The last few years have been a blur of emotions to say the least, but joy has filled our home and hearts again,” Teigen began the lengthy caption that announced the news last week.
“1 billion shots later (in the leg lately, as you can see!) we have another on the way. Every appointment I’ve said to myself, ‘Ok if it’s healthy today I’ll announce’, but then I breathe a sigh of relief to hear a heartbeat and decide I’m just too nervous still.”
Teigen shared how nervous she was to announce the news publicly after her and her husband, John Legend’s, third child, Jack, was stillborn in October 2020, but she explained how she is pushing through those emotions.
“I don’t think I’ll ever walk out of an appointment with more excitement than nerves but so far, everything is perfect and beautiful and I’m feeling hopeful and amazing,” she wrote. “Ok phew it’s been very hard keeping this in for so long!”
This article originally appeared on Page Six and was reproduced with permission
All Blacks five-eighth Richie Mo’unga has a message for the New Zealand public. He gets your hurt, he understands your angst and he accepts your criticism – but, sorry, he’s too busy trying to help fix a broken team to dwell on it right now.
That was the gist of a heartfelt and emotional reflection from the 28-year-old, 36-test No 10 in Johannesburg on Monday as he let the barriers down in an impressive chat with the small New Zealand media contingent on tour with the team.
Of course, these are demanding, almost unprecedented, times for the All Blacks. Only four times in their 616-test history have they lost by more than the 16-point margin against the Springboks at Mbombela Stadium last Sunday (NZT), and it was their heaviest defeat in the republic in 94 years.
They are also on a three-test losing skid in 2022, and have dropped five of their last six internationals, dating back to last November’s loss in Dublin. They simply cannot take a trick right now, and appear to be stuck in a spiral of ineptitude. And their public have had enough, piling on the team, and especially their head coach, with toe-curling fervour.
Christiaan Kotze/Photosport
It was a sobering time at Mbombela Stadium as the All Blacks reflected on a 26-10 defeat to South Africa.
There is no respite on the horizon either, with the weekend’s Rugby Championship rematch against the world champion Springboks at their imposing Johannesburg fortress of Ellis Park. Not the place you want to play the South Africans when your confidence, form and rhythm is shot.
With that in mind, and Mo’unga poised to slot in as starting No 10 if there are any doubts around the neck injury sustained in Nelspruit by Beauden Barrett in a nasty mid-air collision with Kurt-Lee Arendse, the normally ebullient Cantab was asked how the All Blacks were handling the public reaction to their losing run.
“It’s part of it, but we’ve got younger guys in the group who haven’t experienced it at this level before, so it’s really tough on them,” he said at the team hotel in Sandton on a fine winter’s day. “It’s not just us, it’s our families. As someone who’s been there before and been around for a while, my mindset doesn’t change, my energy doesn’t change.
“I’m chomping at the bit to have another crack, but I’m also at the point where the outside noise doesn’t matter for me. It doesn’t affect me. I’m at a stage now if you’re not in our squad, I don’t really care what you think, with all respect.
“I understand the fans and people out there can get frustrated with results. But we’re trying our best, and we know it’s not good enough for All Blacks standards. So preparations will be very deep to get the result this weekend.”
Asked if he felt the criticism was fair, Mo’unga nodded slowly.
Joe Allison/Getty Images
Richie Mo’unga has come off the bench in all four tests so far in 2022, but would love to get a starting crack this week.
“It’s very fair,” he replied. “A team they support that usually gets results is not getting results, and it’s fair the fans care. They care about our team and care about our results, but it’s also fair of us to not care about what they think because we have a job to do and hearing that isn’t going to help us.”
Later Mo’unga, who is clearly a conscientious fellow, reached out to clarify his comments about “not caring” what fans think. He meant to say they “weren’t bothered” by what people were saying.
Fair due. It’s an important distinction.
So, Ellis Park, with its devilish mix of altitude and attitude? Mo’unga has played there before, with the Crusaders, and at nearby Loftus Versfeld with the All Blacks. He has a fair idea what to expect.
“Nothing compares to it,” he says, as a smile breaks out. “For me this is the pinnacle. This is where you want to be playing against a team that is just awesome. There’s the noise, 60-odd thousand at altitude – you feel the blood in your lungs, you can taste it, and you understand the history. It’s a privilege to play at a place like that.”
Mo’unga is a little more guarded when it comes to any frustrations he may or may not have been feeling around his diminished status in these All Blacks. Since midway through last year he has ceded the regular starting No 10 spot to Barrett, and you just know the impact role off the bench doesn’t sit comfortably with him.
He hints at a burning desire to prove himself – and somehow disprove the notion he gets lost behind a struggling pack – but is careful to toe the team line.
“I wouldn’t say frustrated,” he says of four straight outings off the pine in ’22. “I’m the type of guy whatever role you give me in this team, I’ll do the best I can. But also I’m just ready. I’m capable of a start as well, I’m capable of being the guy, if the team needs me to be that guy.
“But I also understand if I have a role to come on for the last 20-30 to change a game around, I’m ready.”
