In Australia one of the biggest spreaders of COVID-19 has been cruise ships disgorging sick passengers and without much, if any government management or common sense. Lawyers Weekly looks at the issue and what lawyers think of the affair and NSW Police investigation
There have also been a few articles linking the debacle to the fact that on the ship there were a number of members of the Hillsong evangelical church to which Australia’s Prime – Minister and other senior cabinet members have close links to.
Were the evangelicals given a free pass to wander off the ship without any government intervention other than be requested to go home. Hopefully it all comes out in the wash
Medium
Hillsong Gets Away Scott Free
The Australian government has played a game of pass the buck over the last week trying to distance itself from their responsibility of allowing the Ruby Princess to dock in Sydney on Thursday, March 19. Whilst a silver boat trophy emblazoned with “I stopped these” sits on top of the Prime Minster’s desk, Scott Morrison would have you believe the cruise ship responsible for 400 cases of COVID19 was nobody’s fault.
Whilst the government refuses to identify the ministers responsible for docking, in thinly veiled hopes the incident will somehow blow over, sources have grown frustrated with the negligence and reached out to journalists. Speaking under the condition of anonymity, a source names the man responsible as Assistant Defence Minister Alex Hawke — the Liberal member for Mitchell. Allegedly the in-laws of Hawke were on board the ship, along with other passengers from the Hillsong church that his family are a part of.
Hawke has frequently been identified as Prime Minister Morrison’s ‘Right Hand Man’ and was influential in the leadership spill that saw Morrison replace Malcom Turnbull as the country’s leader in 2018. The source’s tip adds up with Hawke working as Defence Minister Peter Dutton’s assistant and with the Prime Minster in Hawke’s debt after acting as his“spear thrower” for being “brutally effective at marshalling numbers” for the leadership ballot.
Read more. https://medium.com/@Elle_Black/hillsong-gets-away-scott-free-49dbf11112d0
Lawyers Weekly report
Police have launched a criminal investigation into whether the operator of the Ruby Princess downplayed potential coronavirus cases before thousands of passengers disembarked in Sydney last month. Here’s the reaction from lawyers.
Eleven passengers have died from COVID-19 since the vessel docked at Circular Quay on 19 March 2020 – the latest being a 78-year-old who died in Queensland early Sunday afternoon.
NSW Police commissioner Mick Fuller said there were “many unanswered questions” about the cruise, which was operated by Carnival Australia.
“The key question that remains unanswered, and a criminal or coronial investigation will need to be conducted, was if Carnival or crew were transparent in conceptualising the true patient [and] crew health conditions relevant to COVID-19,” Mr Fuller said.
Meanwhile, Attorney-General Christian Porter said on Monday that the legal fallout from the Ruby Princess scandal could be “very serious” as homicide detectives investigate how infected passengers were let off the ship.
In response to the latest development, Trudie Cameron, criminal lawyer and senior associate at Armstrong Legal says that with 340 positive cases and 11 deaths apparently linked to the Ruby Princess, an investigation is certainly necessary.
“Whether it will result in criminal charges being laid is something that will be determined by NSW Police in the coming weeks or months,” Ms Cameron said.
“In due course, the Ruby Princess will likely be at the centre of inquiries and/or commissions in relation to Australia’s response to this pandemic.”
According to Ms Cameron, criminal charges can be brought against not just the individuals as well as corporations. This investigation will no doubt consider not only individuals but also the prosecution of Carnival Cruises itself.
