Speaker 1: Just before nine o'clock last night, the jury returned guilty
Speaker 1: verdicts against all three defendants.
Speaker 2: It was absolute shambles, to tell you the truth, just
Speaker 2: absolutely really.
Speaker 3: Pallous blood on his clothing the day after the alleged.
Speaker 4: Attamp on a shallow mud bank and it fits Roy River.
Speaker 5: Basically.
Speaker 6: I think most of the people are used to me,
Speaker 6: there are good people.
Speaker 4: I think a really important question we need to ask
Speaker 4: is how many Indigenous prisoners in Australia are innocent.
Speaker 2: This is Curtain, a podcast where we pulled back the
Speaker 2: blinds to shine a light on the darkest parts of
Speaker 2: our justice system and ask who are the victims. I'm
Speaker 2: Amy Maguire.
Speaker 4: And I'm Martin Hodgson, a senior advocate for the Foreign
Speaker 4: Prisoner Support Service. And a warning this series contains the
Speaker 4: names of deceased peoples and has distressing content that might
Speaker 4: upset some listeners.
Speaker 7: I want to know, well that might turn out of
Speaker 7: jail even live, because he was done and he's seven
Speaker 7: not out. We need justice toy today.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 8: That was Auntie Thelmer Henry, Kevin Henry's mum, speaking at
Speaker 8: a rally that was held this week for Linda and
Speaker 8: for Kevin in rock Hampton. This week's a special episode,
Speaker 8: and the reason we're late in bringing this episode to
Speaker 8: you is because of that rally. This week, we want
Speaker 8: to play you some audio clips of some of the
Speaker 8: speeches that were given at the rally. They include Kevin
Speaker 8: Henry's family, some of Kevin's strongest advocates over the years,
Speaker 8: and some special visitors to rock Hampton who came from
Speaker 8: Afar to lend their support, highly respected people in the
Speaker 8: Aboriginal community. But first, I'm going to play you my
Speaker 8: message to the people at the rally. I hope it
Speaker 8: gives you a broad overview of what's happened so far,
Speaker 8: and it was designed to give those in attendance who
Speaker 8: were not fully aware of the start to finish details
Speaker 8: of Kevin's case a very brief wrapp up of what's happened.
Speaker 8: And also I welcome to those of you who are
Speaker 8: new to the podcast who heard about it because of
Speaker 8: the rally. The rally was covered by many newspapers, on
Speaker 8: TV via NITV channel nine and channel seven, and on
Speaker 8: many radio stations around Australia. From the lands of the
Speaker 8: Jyngung people, I extend my respects to durable elders past
Speaker 8: and present, and express my deepest appreciation to those who
Speaker 8: are here today and all who have gathered. From the
Speaker 8: very first day, Amy Maguire asked me to investigate the
Speaker 8: case against Kevin Henry. I had doubts. Everyone I spoke
Speaker 8: to gave me the same view of what had happened.
Speaker 8: The police got the wrong man, Curtin didn't do it.
Speaker 8: But speaking with Yasmin Johnson, I soon realized this wasn't
Speaker 8: just about the police getting the wrong man. This was
Speaker 8: a total system failure led by people in the police
Speaker 8: force who had no intention or interest in getting justice
Speaker 8: for Linda. In fact, the police at the time said
Speaker 8: in their own words, all they were interested in was,
Speaker 8: and I quote, getting a black for a black Many
Speaker 8: many people were accused of Linda's murder by the police.
Speaker 8: In fact, they originally had four separate people charged in
Speaker 8: two different sets of circumstances. It was absurd. There was
Speaker 8: no real investigation, just pure racism and a desire to
Speaker 8: lock up any blackfellow. Kevin, as we all know, was
Speaker 8: that unlucky man. Like everything in this case, even getting
Speaker 8: my hands on the original court transcripts was a battle.
Speaker 8: But once I did and I was able to launch
Speaker 8: a full investigation and review of Kevin's case with Amy
Speaker 8: as part of our Curtain the podcast series I Knew.
Speaker 8: We could not and would not stop until Kevin Henry
Speaker 8: walked from prison a free man. Quite simply, what our
Speaker 8: investigation shows is clear Kevin was forced by the police
Speaker 8: to confess to a crime he did not commit. He
Speaker 8: has rightly maintained his innocence for more than twenty five years,
Speaker 8: and the evidence supports him. There was never any eyewitness
Speaker 8: in court or to this day, who saw Kevin commit
Speaker 8: this crime. There is no forensic evidence of any kind
Speaker 8: that has ever been discovered that links Kevin to this crime.
Speaker 8: There is no DNA evidence, and much of the evidence
Speaker 8: presented at Kevin's trial proved that whoever committed this crime
Speaker 8: would have been covered in mud and water and needed
Speaker 8: access to a car. Kevin did not have access to
Speaker 8: a car. He was fast asleep at the time and
Speaker 8: did not have one drop of water nor one speck
Speaker 8: of mud on his clothes, shoes, or body. What the
Speaker 8: evidence does tell us is that the police got the
Speaker 8: wrong man. The trial was deeply flawed, and the justice
Speaker 8: system found Kevin Henry guilty of a crime he did
Speaker 8: not commit. As these words are being spoken to you,
Speaker 8: I'm working in my living room, where I've been for
Speaker 8: the past twelve months, fighting for Kevin Henry his freedom
Speaker 8: and fighting to deliver justice for Linda. I want you
Speaker 8: to know that we are making good progress and that
Speaker 8: those in power now understand we know the truth. Every
Speaker 8: day is spent reading from hundreds of pages of court transcripts,
Speaker 8: examining evidence, speaking with experts around the world, and writing
Speaker 8: the legal documents that show the truth of what happened
Speaker 8: at Tanuba House all those years ago. We have new evidence,
Speaker 8: we have heard from new witnesses, and we have uncovered
Speaker 8: the police's tactics that sent an innocent man to jail. Thankfully,
Speaker 8: those police officers are no longer in the force, but
Speaker 8: exposing their disgraceful actions and the serious failings of the
Speaker 8: justice system is a vital step we must take for Curtain,
Speaker 8: for Linda, and for all First Nations peoples who have
Speaker 8: been treated in in anything but just way. We are peaceful,
Speaker 8: loving people, rich in the foundations of who we are.
Speaker 8: All we seek is justice. So I ask you to
Speaker 8: join me in calling on the Queensland Governor and the
Speaker 8: Attorney General to set curtain free. I thank each and
Speaker 8: every one of you for being there today and for
Speaker 8: sending that message loud and clear. Know that I will
Speaker 8: not rest until Kevin is a free man and Linda
Speaker 8: has the justice her and her family deserve. Curtin has
Speaker 8: committed no crime, a crime has been committed against him.
Speaker 8: May our voices spread across this land. Free Kevin Henry.
Speaker 8: But before I play you those audio clips, I want
Speaker 8: to make one quick point. The rally was held at
Speaker 8: t Enuba House with the permission of the Queensland Coastguard,
Speaker 8: who currently o what was once known as to Nuber House.
Speaker 8: It was a peaceful rally held in the morning that
Speaker 8: extended until around lunchtime. In attendance were elders from Wurabinda
Speaker 8: and Rockhampton, durable elders there to perform a special smoking ceremony,
Speaker 8: young and old, there seeking justice for Cabin and seeking
Speaker 8: some finality, justice and healing for Linda and her family.
Speaker 8: And yet despite this, the police made twelve separate patrols
Speaker 8: of the event and set up on the opposite side
Speaker 8: of the river with binoculars to observe the event. What
Speaker 8: was the point of this other than to intimidate those
Speaker 8: who were there, who were purely undertaking their democratic right
Speaker 8: to call for an end of injustice. And I'll make
Speaker 8: this point personally. If the police had done their job
Speaker 8: twenty something years ago, we would not be in this position.
Speaker 8: Kevin Henry would not have lost nearly seventy percent of
Speaker 8: his life to the prison system, and Linda's family would
Speaker 8: not have suffered twenty five long years of pain and
Speaker 8: agony of not really knowing what happened to their mother,
Speaker 8: their daughter, their auntie, their loved one. This police behavior
Speaker 8: is unacceptable and it has to stop. And that's why
Speaker 8: more people have to join in in supporting these two
Speaker 8: families who have undergone such an injustice because it keeps continuing. Now,
Speaker 8: I'm going to play for you some of the audio clips.
Speaker 8: We're going to begin with some of Kevin's elderly uncles
Speaker 8: and aunties who have known Kevin his entire life and
Speaker 8: who are calling for his freedom and for justice for Kevin,
Speaker 8: and for peace and justice for Linda's family. The audio
Speaker 8: quality at the beginning is not great, but please listen on.
Speaker 8: These two families who have suffered deserve your time and attention.
Speaker 3: Today we just asked that you know and plead Kevin's
Speaker 3: case that he will be set free. You know.
Speaker 5: He's due. You know it's due to him.
Speaker 6: Now, yeah, thank you.
Speaker 5: I am Wanton.
Speaker 9: I just want to speak on about Kevin.
Speaker 5: Kevin. I've known Kevin all my life. Anne.
Speaker 10: This is where the event took place here, right in Kanouba.
Speaker 10: This is where it all happened here. This is where
Speaker 10: Kevin and was framed. Who was framed under this house
Speaker 10: here and you know he's been crazy's birthday. He locked
Speaker 10: up with the twenty five years of his life and
Speaker 10: they did nothing wrong. Come on, he's a political prisoner.
Speaker 6: Let him out.
Speaker 2: Come on.
Speaker 10: You know we need justice for the family and for Kevin.
Speaker 10: Come on, you people that get beyond the family and
Speaker 10: Kevin Henley, the Foundation and you know, I just could
Speaker 10: thank you very much to Gasmin Johnson and have family
Speaker 10: who's took by Kevin for the last twenty five years
Speaker 10: of their life, and have family and Kevin Without Jasmine
Speaker 10: and with that, Martin Archie and Amy and the Maguire,
Speaker 10: this wouldn't took place without these people.
Speaker 11: Now, I need the people.
Speaker 10: I'll say him falls for Kate, Gasmin, Amy and my
Speaker 10: advoters because this wouldn't happen without them. Yeah, and come
Speaker 10: on your people, beneath justice to Kevin.
Speaker 6: Bring email on money Moon, bring Kevin alone. Hello everybody,
Speaker 6: I'm Michelle Lisha. This morning, we brought Anna del Marin
Speaker 6: with this, with this.
Speaker 12: Dudly event to get out, to get her sign out.
Speaker 12: We want to pick the Palachet government. And now that
Speaker 12: Martin Odgers and Amy has come on board, things are
Speaker 12: starting to happen now and we need everybody in this community,
Speaker 12: rock Anton community, to stop keeping your mouth shut, speak
Speaker 12: up if you know something about it.
Speaker 6: Come and see the people. Come and see Amy, Come
Speaker 6: and see my know my silence.
Speaker 12: This young boy gone for twenty six, twenty six years,
Speaker 12: and no one knows the plight that his mother has suffered.
Speaker 12: I've been in Warabinda since her curtain left, and I've
Speaker 12: seen Arlie Thelma deteriorate.
Speaker 6: This mother is suffering every night.
Speaker 9: She cries.
Speaker 6: For her son because there's no people or no person at.
Speaker 5: Power to help her.
Speaker 6: But now we've got this help.
Speaker 12: We've got her as an Aboriginal community or First Nation people,
Speaker 12: we've got to support this movement for Palischet government and
Speaker 12: bring all these corrupt, a use of powers of police to.
Speaker 13: Justice, taken away people's rights, but they can't take away
Speaker 13: our soul and our spirits.
Speaker 9: There's be here since day one when our creator.
Speaker 13: Created our people of this land, and there's always justice,
Speaker 13: and there was.
Speaker 9: Always laws, and there was all the right way to
Speaker 9: do things.
Speaker 13: And the disease that follows through the colonization still flows
Speaker 13: through every country that has been invaded of their indigenous
Speaker 13: brothers and sisters around this world, in these countries.
Speaker 9: And it happened to one of ours.
Speaker 13: And we know Brockamter knows ceneral queens and knows queens
Speaker 13: and knows, and this nation knows. Then what happened here
Speaker 13: on these grounds did never have happened, but it didn't,
Speaker 13: and it was covered up and circumstantial evidence was made
Speaker 13: to look like proove you know, lies told all the time.
Speaker 13: And I need these couples stew back in the days.
Speaker 13: And I've seen the regular video footage of seven Kevin's
Speaker 13: so called confession, and I tell you, my brother, he
Speaker 13: was still hung over, still have chides up, And I
Speaker 13: just want to say every bethday of Kevin.
Speaker 9: From our family in the show, and that gang and.
Speaker 13: Decided that brother looked theirs. The doors open and we
Speaker 13: gotta foot of that door. Then it's not gonna close
Speaker 13: that door. And I gotta kick that door in, kick
Speaker 13: that door in that they've been hiding behind those time.
Speaker 13: All the truth, you know, all the truth that was
Speaker 13: hidden and concocted lies the people in this town. But
Speaker 13: we're on the police force at the time. That's still here.
Speaker 13: Some have died, some have moved on, but there's people
Speaker 13: here and rock after those those people knows then what
Speaker 13: happened here a long time ago. There's still freshing a
Speaker 13: lot of people's minds. There's still fresh in a lot
Speaker 13: of people's mind And I'd like to thank I am
Speaker 13: in my outing for get me in the world again. Yeah,
Speaker 13: but we want another track myself.
Speaker 9: But we always fight for justice, whether for example like
Speaker 9: Capain case or any other case. We know it's not right.
Speaker 9: We know there's a lot of wrong done. Even today,
Speaker 9: when you.
Speaker 13: See people walking in the street, you know you always
Speaker 13: get that look, or someone walking outside of the street
Speaker 13: or the foot path down to pass a black flow.
Speaker 9: We might be prefer mathematics at the university.
Speaker 13: I don't know that, you know, take a lot of
Speaker 13: brilliant black who was sitting around here not on five.
Speaker 9: People who know the law too, and they use that
Speaker 9: and they see.
Speaker 13: Through all the rubbish, you know, all the blind little
Speaker 13: roads that the government does. They've played all the policemen,
Speaker 13: all the coppers know they have an agenda. They have
Speaker 13: an agenda wiping out our race, wiping out the truth,
Speaker 13: covering up the truth in the Curtain's case, a big
Speaker 13: cover up.
Speaker 5: You know.
Speaker 8: That was Kevin's cousin, uncle Doug Graham from Murabinda. Now
Speaker 8: you'll hear from Yasmin Johnson. Yasmin's been Kevin's most staunch
Speaker 8: advocate for all these years. She's the one that brought
Speaker 8: this case to Amy Maguire's attention and kick started this
Speaker 8: whole new inventstigation and the podcast that Amy and I
Speaker 8: have created. He hasmen comes from a radical black family
Speaker 8: who have always been involved in politics and bringing the
Speaker 8: truth into the light.
Speaker 2: So every time Kevin would apply for parole to the
Speaker 2: state board, they'd refuse him. So that's when I sort
Speaker 2: of got on board and use my well, asked my
Speaker 2: dad too. When Actick was running to have a talk
Speaker 2: Michael White, have a talk to the parole board and
Speaker 2: see what's happening. So they would use breaches like you
Speaker 2: would do something wrong in the prison, They'll breach out
Speaker 2: throwing the du and that'll against that'll go against your
Speaker 2: prison termb you know, any little thing if you talk
Speaker 2: back and say, you know, have a guard of screws,
Speaker 2: and felt breaching for anything, because he was a talker,
Speaker 2: like Norman said, straight out stood up for his rights.
Speaker 2: So all these sort of things went on and on
Speaker 2: and on, and now he's up.
Speaker 11: That was that was his fifteen year mark.
Speaker 2: Now it's twenty five years and he's still sitting there,
Speaker 2: still getting refused parole by the State Parole.
Speaker 11: Board based in Brisbane.
Speaker 2: So I contacted my cousin here, Amy the Choir, who
Speaker 2: was living in Sydney working at newspaper The Mitill the newspaper.
Speaker 2: I emailed him when I came back from Alice Springs,
Speaker 2: I was living over there, and I said, Amy, your local. Well,
Speaker 2: my mother told me that contacted and haven't got Kevin's
Speaker 2: story because you know, she's a rocky girl who might
Speaker 2: be interested, and in which she was. So then she said,
Speaker 2: oh I have to talk to I've got contacts and whatever.
Speaker 2: So then Amy got in contact with Martin Hodson. Now
Speaker 2: Martin deals with prisoners that are locked up all around
Speaker 2: the world, not here in Australia. People that go overseas
Speaker 2: and get into trouble get locked up. Martin helps these people.
Speaker 2: He's worked in eighteen different continents around the world. When
Speaker 2: he had a look at Kevin Henry's case, he could
Speaker 2: not believe all the bullshit, all the floors, all the
Speaker 2: different lies, all the different statements, all the different statements
Speaker 2: that were changed from the peace station to the courthouse.
Speaker 2: When he went to court, everything was rigged.
Speaker 11: It was all lies. And we all know that everybody's
Speaker 11: sitting here.
Speaker 2: So what Martin has done now, he's got a fine
Speaker 2: tooth comb and he's just pulled it right through from
Speaker 2: the day it all happened here at Chanooba House right
Speaker 2: up until today. Martin he's a professional, he's a senior
Speaker 2: advocate and he said, this is the worst case.
Speaker 11: He's ever seen in his career.
Speaker 2: Now, this man works around the world, he's done no
Speaker 2: working in Australia. But Kevin Henry, he's taken this on.
Speaker 2: So you know, we need to appall Martin Hodson and
Speaker 2: his work. He's done a really great job. That's why
Speaker 2: you will see he on the Curtain podcast before us
Speaker 2: and I think I contacted Mahma Brickprap I used to
Speaker 2: talk on Talk Black with Gregory back in the day.
Speaker 2: Who's not who would have heard me talking about this
Speaker 2: same story about the parole board and the prison system
Speaker 2: and how Kevin has been treated, and not only that,
Speaker 2: all of our mold being treated and what's happened with
Speaker 2: the recommendations in the black des and custing nothing, but
Speaker 2: they're not being practiced. We don't even have Nadoff anymore
Speaker 2: out in the prisons. We don't even have We're struggling
Speaker 2: to get our elders out there for Elder's Day because
Speaker 2: the money and just the red neck take that's going
Speaker 2: on in our country today. So I'll go back to Martin.
Speaker 2: Martin's he works look right through. He's up three four
Speaker 2: o'clock in the morning working on the Kevin Henry case
Speaker 2: to build a case and to present it to the
Speaker 2: Attorney the Attorney General and the Governor of Australia because
Speaker 2: we have to deal with all this the racism and
Speaker 2: the discrimination. He at a local level and state level,
Speaker 2: Martin wants to go straight to the top. And if
Speaker 2: you can release prisoners from around the world, eighteen different continents,
Speaker 2: I'm sure we can get Kevin Henry out and all
Speaker 2: these other political prisoners that are sitting in prisons right
Speaker 2: around Australia. And I think we need to have people
Speaker 2: like Martin Hodson come be the Central Queensland and bust
Speaker 2: open this corrective services because this system is over eighty
Speaker 2: years old. It was set up in the World War
Speaker 2: One days.
Speaker 11: The system is parole board system.
Speaker 2: You see how all our mob got to come out
Speaker 2: and they're going back in again.
Speaker 11: Well this is this is how old this system is.
Speaker 2: It was set up in World War One, and our
Speaker 2: mobil is sitting filling up in the prisons all these years,
Speaker 2: and Kevin Henry's not getting out because of this system.
Speaker 2: You understand what I'm talking about. Now Here there's a
Speaker 2: bit of a clear picture with Martin and what he's doing.
Speaker 11: So they want a we want to retroll.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's right, but I think at the moment they
Speaker 2: want to give him out as quick as they can
Speaker 2: so they can work better with him. If he's in
Speaker 2: a system on parole, well there's might be restrictions, but
Speaker 2: if they can give him out in a queen's pardon.
Speaker 2: On a queen's pardon, well they got sort of more
Speaker 2: free room to move with him. And you know this
Speaker 2: is also for Kevin's family. They've been struggling with this
Speaker 2: for many years. You know, they didn't have the help.
Speaker 2: They didn't have Kevin didn't have the help when he
Speaker 2: went to court that day. No, a lot of his
Speaker 2: family was home and more of mind and reading it
Speaker 2: in the paper.
Speaker 11: They're looking at Kenny in the paper. That's where does
Speaker 11: that happen today? When it happened then back then?
Speaker 8: That was Yasmin Johnson. The next voice you'll hear is
Speaker 8: that of Gwendas Stanley. Gwenda is an incredible advocate for
Speaker 8: all Aboriginal peace. On Invasion Day this year, large banners
Speaker 8: in Brisbane were held up saying free Kevin Henry. They
Speaker 8: were organized by Gwenda and she did that literally overnight.
Speaker 8: Now Gwenda was mceing the event, and I have a
Speaker 8: feeling she might have seen those police patrolling and thought
Speaker 8: she'd drop a little truth.
Speaker 11: See the black man.
Speaker 3: No one really gives a fuck about black men in
Speaker 3: this country. Sorry for the language, people, but we're angry.
Speaker 3: We got every right to be angry because the history
Speaker 3: of this country runs through the brains of each or
Speaker 3: one of every one of us here today, Let's look
Speaker 3: at the history of the Queensland Police Service eighteen sixty three.
Speaker 3: In twenty fourteen, on January first, the Queensland Police Services
Speaker 3: celebrates one hundred and fifty years. Let's go back before
Speaker 3: eighteen sixty three, before your Queensland Police Act, and go
Speaker 3: back to the Native police. We have many massacre sides
Speaker 3: around here. Let's not forget our grace here was established.
Speaker 3: Let's not forget our canambula iides viol and the rest
Speaker 3: of the station's Derandra Baranba now which is Sherberg.
Speaker 6: Let's forget.
Speaker 3: Let's not forget about the Native police that came in
Speaker 3: and had done the job before they add their queens
Speaker 3: and Police Services. I like tock knowledge of paying my
Speaker 3: respect everyone here today. But this isn't a heartbreaking day
Speaker 3: for all of us. Not only is it only Kevin's birthday,
Speaker 3: there's also.
Speaker 11: Twenty five years with an injustice.
Speaker 9: In this country.
Speaker 8: We thank GNDA for everything she did on the day
Speaker 8: and everything she's done for Curtin. This is also a
Speaker 8: good time to mention that along with Gwenda making the trip,
Speaker 8: so did her partner David tex Chapman, who you've heard
Speaker 8: on this podcast. If you go on to Curtain the
Speaker 8: podcast the facebook page, you can see video of David
Speaker 8: giving a speech at the rally, as well as a
Speaker 8: number of other videos of those who attended and gave
Speaker 8: speeches on the day. Now, the next voice you'll hear
Speaker 8: is also someone who traveled from Afar to be at
Speaker 8: the rally and support Kevin, Linda and their families, and
Speaker 8: that's Uncle Sam Watson, the very well known and highly
Speaker 8: regarded Aboriginal activist.
Speaker 14: Thank you and thanks to the organizers and the family
Speaker 14: for inviting us up here.
Speaker 5: Well, I was little Popo Hills for a long time.
Speaker 4: Com you here.
Speaker 14: We've got family here amongst the crowd. So first I'd
Speaker 14: acknowledge the Fishliners, Casadians. The country on which we gathered
Speaker 14: was likenles Elder, particularly Kevin's family. It's privily to be here, thinks,
Speaker 14: such a strong, strong leading. I don't worry, but they
Speaker 14: follows are here. Let's worry about Let's build on people
Speaker 14: who are here. Strength to you and as revel X knows,
Speaker 14: with all the trials and tribulations we've been through. Well,
Speaker 14: build on that strength so you always get a strong outcome.
Speaker 14: Since I've been reading a material about brother Kevin that
Speaker 14: lasted a while, this is one of the most appalling
Speaker 14: injustices I've ever encountered. Looking at the material, and even
Speaker 14: a first year law students wouldn't send this into a court.
Speaker 9: There is no forensic.
Speaker 5: Material that connects Kevin for the incident that took place.
Speaker 14: There is no material for evidence at all that connects
Speaker 14: Kevin to this area.
Speaker 5: There is Frend's friends of material that should be president,
Speaker 5: but it is a prison. Again.
Speaker 14: This is just the case of corrupt and rotten pobs
Speaker 14: who found a vulnerable exposed in This young abriaginal man
Speaker 14: who had no experience with the legal process was starting
Speaker 14: intimidators by what was saddening, and the commers used their power,
Speaker 14: their authority, their weapons to force this young man into
Speaker 14: a situation where he confessed to a crime he knew
Speaker 14: nothing about and he'd not been involved. And there're litterally
Speaker 14: hundreds thousands of our people across Australia and Kevin's situation,
Speaker 14: but Kevin's been there for twenty five years. He should
Speaker 14: never have gone before the court, should never have gone
Speaker 14: in the jibs, to never have been victed. First step
Speaker 14: should be that verdict, the original verdict should be satisfied.
Speaker 5: So we need to go to the Premier.
Speaker 14: We need to go to the sack Governor pulled a
Speaker 14: jersey and we need have that jury verdict set aside.
Speaker 14: Once that happens, then Kevin's released and we got a
Speaker 14: fly for appeal by then Crown Law a little the
Speaker 14: material and decide whether or not to go to another
Speaker 14: trial on the evidence before the original trial. As I said,
Speaker 14: there is no way in the world they should have
Speaker 14: even gone to a magistrate's court the middle, let alone
Speaker 14: a trial. So there is just no evidence. There no
Speaker 14: safe evidence. This entire prosecution of Crown Law was unsafe
Speaker 14: and that verdict should be set aside.
Speaker 5: Heaven should be released and it has to be done.
Speaker 5: It has to happen.
Speaker 4: Now.
Speaker 5: That's in our mob in Brisbane. We're on sandbacuse we've got.
Speaker 14: Twelve months ago to the come Off Games next year
Speaker 14: and next April. We'll continue to make an issue out
Speaker 14: of this. We've had high profile case before we marched
Speaker 14: on part. We've fronted the Premier. We've round the government,
Speaker 14: We've froun the ministers, were frond of the the Attorney General,
Speaker 14: and we'll do it again. Kevin deserves out the poet,
Speaker 14: he deserves our love and he deserves his freedom. He
Speaker 14: shouldn't be in this place. And then we need to
Speaker 14: take further steps. We need to investigate the role of
Speaker 14: these coppers because say, fitted an innocent Aboriginal man those
Speaker 14: coppers is going to be held to account. The police
Speaker 14: are going to react to this case. We'll find this
Speaker 14: monster who committed the original crime. That person is still
Speaker 14: out there. That person's going to be investigated, charged and arrested.
Speaker 14: But most of all, Kevin must go free one time.
Speaker 14: Twenty five years is a long long time the State
Speaker 14: of Queensland. How's Kevin an enormous debt? You can ever
Speaker 14: replace that last twenty five years go through the struggle.
Speaker 14: Hopefully number one Kevin comes free, and number two we
Speaker 14: make sure that no other young original people en have
Speaker 14: to go through what Kevin's gone through. And we need
Speaker 14: to send a clear message to our brother there, Kevin
Speaker 14: where he is. Let him know that we love it
Speaker 14: and we support him, and he's going to be free.
Speaker 5: We need to send a clear message to the state
Speaker 5: premier and a state of palachhet.
Speaker 14: The state Governor, pauled New Jersey, the state Attorney general,
Speaker 14: the bet the art and we'll make this an absolute
Speaker 14: urgent priority and it will happen. Is how Bob and Brisbane,
Speaker 14: like I said, that's wrong. They know about this case
Speaker 14: now and we'll move on this one time. It's been
Speaker 14: absolute privilege to be here with you and the organized
Speaker 14: through inviting us up.
Speaker 5: That's good to book back walking on these country, so
Speaker 5: thank you.
Speaker 8: The final person you'll hear from was a very special
Speaker 8: guest on the day he traveled all the way to
Speaker 8: Rockhampton from Palm Island. That's Lex Wotten. As many people
Speaker 8: will and should know, Lex was a leader on the
Speaker 8: Shire Council. When in two thousand and four Mrunji was
Speaker 8: killed on Palm Island at the hands of police. Lex
Speaker 8: led the demonstrations and protests against the police violence and brutality,
Speaker 8: although they were reported in the media as riots. Lex
Speaker 8: was sentenced to seven years in prison and so he
Speaker 8: knows greatly what Kevin is going through. But Lex was
Speaker 8: released and only recently successfully won a case of unlawful
Speaker 8: racial discrimination against the Queensland Police Service his legs, and
Speaker 8: again we want to thank him for making the journey
Speaker 8: down to Rockhampton today.
Speaker 1: We become this voice for Kevin. You know, and I
Speaker 1: understand Kevin feels. I know what it's like to be
Speaker 1: in any situation. You're sitting in prison, you think that
Speaker 1: no one cares, but you being here today you prove
Speaker 1: that you do care. And our speech is about where
Speaker 1: I sit and people are not is but that's okay.
Speaker 1: You matter most to Kevin. I spoke him this morning.
Speaker 1: I wished him happy bed day. Also, my little grand
Speaker 1: order be a day today. I'm very pleased and honored
Speaker 1: to be called to come and say a few words
Speaker 1: on his behalf. I'm very proud to be here today
Speaker 1: and show my support.
Speaker 5: To his mum, his family. My respects are with you,
Speaker 5: his brother Gordon.
Speaker 1: I went to school with him when Gordon was on
Speaker 1: Palm Island back in the seventies. And only last week sometime,
Speaker 1: yesmin teakes me one in the morning after one and
Speaker 1: he said, could I have a weird with you back
Speaker 1: coming to arally and stuff? So I left in my
Speaker 1: number and stuff and we communicate and.
Speaker 5: I made it my business to be here.
Speaker 1: You know, when you walk away from here today, keep.
Speaker 5: This stuff going. Don't let anything die.
Speaker 1: If you know of things, as it was said, bring
Speaker 1: it to light, talk to the right people. I was
Speaker 1: hoping to go out and see Kevin, but because things
Speaker 1: were too late and organizing stuff. But I suppose there
Speaker 1: was an opportunity, but they just probably didn't want me
Speaker 1: to go out and see him. But it was good
Speaker 1: to speak to him this morning. He sounded very positive.
Speaker 1: You know, he's in good spirit. He knows you know
Speaker 1: that things are happening. And I just tried to reassure
Speaker 1: him that, you know, we'll do the best we can.
Speaker 5: On his behalf and that he has to be and
Speaker 5: like I.
Speaker 1: Said to him, it's wrong for me to say it,
Speaker 1: he has to be a little bit more patient. You know,
Speaker 1: twenty five years of your life, that's a quarter of
Speaker 1: a century, and that's more than half of his life,
Speaker 1: sixty sixty nearly seventy percent of his life. You can't
Speaker 1: replace that, not even money. I've spoken to my lawyers
Speaker 1: about this case of Kevin, and last night I got
Speaker 1: the lawyer.
Speaker 5: We spoke. They were speaking to Hamian and Kasmine. Hopefully
Speaker 5: they're gonna they want to get involved.
Speaker 1: They're gonna talk to Martin and see what assistants however,
Speaker 1: anyway they can assist to bring this thing so that
Speaker 1: we free Kevin. We have to make a deadline. I believe,
Speaker 1: you know, not more than a year from now. You know,
Speaker 1: I think twenty days ago was actually twenty five years.
Speaker 1: So we have to make it a deadline, not one
Speaker 1: more year after this year that he stays in there.
Speaker 5: We have to be his boys. We have to talk
Speaker 5: about it.
Speaker 1: You know, a lot of your young people today you're
Speaker 1: on Facebook, post those things out, post his story out there.
Speaker 5: It gets around.
Speaker 1: That's the new way of doing things today. So I
Speaker 1: encourage you to support Kevin, his family and his community.
Speaker 1: Let's bring justice for Kevin.
Speaker 8: That was Lex Wotton. For more of the speech from
Speaker 8: the day. To see photos and videos, please go to
Speaker 8: Facebook and search Curtin the Podcast where you'll find all
Speaker 8: that content and more, and like the page while you're there.
Speaker 8: You can also find more information on our Twitter page
Speaker 8: at Curtin the Podcast and on the website www dot
Speaker 8: Curtin the Podcast dot com. I want to thank the
Speaker 8: durable elders, the traditional custodians of the land on which
Speaker 8: the rally took place, as well as the organizers Yasmin Johnson,
Speaker 8: Sean Sandout, Dwaine Maser, my co host Amy McGuire, Gwenda Stanley,
Speaker 8: and Tex Chapman, Uncle Sam Watson and Lex Wotton, all
Speaker 8: of whom traveled at considerable distance to be at the rally.
Speaker 8: We'll return later in the week with a regular episode
Speaker 8: of kurtin the Podcast, and we've got plenty of updates
Speaker 8: to fill you in for now. Please spread the word,
Speaker 8: like us on Facebook, catch us on Twitter, and remember
Speaker 8: to tell everyone you know free Kevin Henry