Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

News and events in the media and political arena relating to firearms.

Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by beepar » 04 Dec 2013, 8:01 am

Before I posts this I stress the word Motorcycle "club" for this bloke, not gang.

POLICE fear outlaw motorcycle gangs will harass smaller social motorcycle clubs in a bid to arm themselves.

Authorities seized weapons from members of social clubs in August, concerned that larger groups such as the Hells Angels, Comancheros or the Bandidos might stand over them for weapons.

Yesterday, Benalla builder and farmer Thomas Finnie won back his firearms licence.

His guns were seized by Echo taskforce detectives because of his membership of the Derelicts Motorcycle Club, a group of 13, formed in 1968.

"If we were like a building, we'd be heritage-listed," Mr Finnie told the Firearms Appeal Committee.

The 56-year-old told the committee he was once fined $2000 after police seized a small amount of drugs while he worked as a truck driver.

But he avoided larger motorcycle clubs, and the Derelicts were more interested in looking after their families, he said.

Mr Finnie used the seized guns to control a fox problem on his 100ha property.

Gerard Maguire, for the Chief Commissioner, said: "There's no allegation of systemic criminality in relation to the Derelicts."


How worrying is it that they're now seizing your guns "just in case" some criminal who you're not involved with approaches you for them. By that logic the whole country's next.

I don't know anything about the guy personally obviously, but a club of 13 riders formed 45 years ago hardly sounds like a criminal enterprise to me.

Good to hear an innocent guy got his license back eventually though. Source.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Hatter » 04 Dec 2013, 10:06 am

beepar wrote:I don't know anything about the guy personally obviously, but a club of 13 riders formed 45 years ago hardly sounds like a criminal enterprise to me.


Express any interest in motorbikes at all these days and it seems you're a "bikie" (read: criminal.)
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Warrigul » 04 Dec 2013, 11:06 am

The Police are starting to sound like a bunch of schizophrenic nutters,,,,,,,,,,
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Broom » 04 Dec 2013, 12:01 pm

There's no allegation of systemic criminality in relation to the Derelicts.


So no conviction, no charges pressed, not even an allegation, and yet they still cancel his license and take this guns.

Fantastic.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by rainwalker » 04 Dec 2013, 12:08 pm

Someone's got 'innocent until proven guilty' backwards...
Nothin' like a good thirty aught six
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Davies » 04 Dec 2013, 12:20 pm

Assuming there isn't more to the situation than the article says...

That's ridiculous that it can reach that point for the guy without even an allegation.

Would have cost him heaps of his time and possibly $$$$ for a solicitor just to get back what was rightfully his to behind with.

God I hate it that people can get put through this kind of crap because of a 'concern' or just a complaint, even if there's to a scrap of evidence to support it.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Warrigul » 04 Dec 2013, 12:30 pm

Davies wrote:Assuming there isn't more to the situation than the article says...

That's ridiculous that it can reach that point for the guy without even an allegation.

Would have cost him heaps of his time and possibly $$$$ for a solicitor just to get back what was rightfully his to behind with.

God I hate it that people can get put through this kind of crap because of a 'concern' or just a complaint, even if there's to a scrap of evidence to support it.


Yep,

It is okay for the Government to say that the laws will not be misused and that there is always the court system if someone feels the wrong decision has been made by Police but there is ALWAYS a financial cost to the party involved.

I mean how paranoid and lacking in even the smallest amount oif due diligence in this case were the police involved,

They basically took away his guns and licence for no other reason than they THOUGHT he may have been targeted by bigger clubs for firearms.

FFS.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Kater » 04 Dec 2013, 12:33 pm

Davies wrote:God I hate it that people can get put through this kind of crap because of a 'concern' or just a complaint, even if there's to a scrap of evidence to support it.


+1

We're all going to end up in rubbers rooms "just in case" at this rate.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Boatman » 04 Dec 2013, 1:06 pm

A small victory I guess but good for him.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by MasterBlaster » 04 Dec 2013, 6:30 pm

Does that mean I won't get my license because I have a shaved head and a big beard???
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by on_one_wheel » 04 Dec 2013, 8:25 pm

Thats the problem with stories.... we never hear the whole story.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Kaine » 04 Dec 2013, 9:32 pm

There are a lot of stories circulating around right now, about people being arrested for wearing an article of clothing, that matches gang attire.
And here I thought, Australia supported the human rights agreement that they made.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by SendIt » 05 Dec 2013, 6:01 am

on_one_wheel wrote:Thats the problem with stories.... we never hear the whole story.


He got his license back, so I supposed the story is true enough for the purposes of this conversation?
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Warrigul » 05 Dec 2013, 8:50 am

Kaine wrote:There are a lot of stories circulating around right now, about people being arrested for wearing an article of clothing, that matches gang attire.
And here I thought, Australia supported the human rights agreement that they made.


I think basic human rights violations have been at the core of each high court challenge on these types of laws.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Rocker » 05 Dec 2013, 9:25 am

Warrigul wrote:I think basic human rights violations have been at the core of each high court challenge on these types of laws.


Doesn't make it any less miserable for the person involved though :(
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Warrigul » 05 Dec 2013, 11:57 am

Rocker wrote:
Warrigul wrote:I think basic human rights violations have been at the core of each high court challenge on these types of laws.


Doesn't make it any less miserable for the person involved though :(


Exactly, this law discriminates directly against certain people within Australia.

Very oppressive.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Kaine » 05 Dec 2013, 1:19 pm

Warrigul wrote:
Kaine wrote:There are a lot of stories circulating around right now, about people being arrested for wearing an article of clothing, that matches gang attire.
And here I thought, Australia supported the human rights agreement that they made.


I think basic human rights violations have been at the core of each high court challenge on these types of laws.


As well they should, it even says on the Oz tourism website that Australia has freedom of association. Which is one of the many human rights that our country agreed to quite a while ago.
I don't imagine this law is going to be around for very long, if it is then things will have to be done to change them.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Tiiger » 05 Dec 2013, 1:47 pm

Kaine wrote:As well they should, it even says on the Oz tourism website that Australia has freedom of association. Which is one of the many human rights that our country agreed to quite a while ago.


Agreed to but not enforced apparently.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by redrum » 06 Dec 2013, 2:21 pm

MasterBlaster wrote:Does that mean I won't get my license because I have a shaved head and a big beard?


Means you'll get chosen for lots of "random" additional testing at the airport :lol:
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by reddog » 06 Dec 2013, 9:49 pm

redrum wrote:
MasterBlaster wrote:Does that mean I won't get my license because I have a shaved head and a big beard?


Means you'll get chosen for lots of "random" additional testing at the airport :lol:



Yep straight to the explosives test line , apparently all bomb makers and terrorists can grow facial hair as well :D
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by jeebo » 07 Dec 2013, 8:01 am

reddog wrote:Yep straight to the explosives test line , apparently all bomb makers and terrorists can grow facial hair as well :D


I just like that they think anyone who's up to no good turns up to the air port trying to match a 'stereotypic' profile.

Like you said, if you've got a shaved head, scraggy beard, alternative clothing, any of that - instant bomb test.

If you're wearing a suit, through you go.

Apparently anyone trying to do something bad intentionally tries to bring attention to themselves by matching one of these profiles instead of just cleaning up a bit :lol:
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by Oldboy 7mm Dakota » 07 Dec 2013, 10:27 am

If your beard gets dreadlocks and you smell like stale sh'''t and drive a bomb smoking car with green sticker on the windows you might be ok . As you might be seen as being part of the minority communist group of wankers that are running our free democratic country ????? . But if you are a normal looking Aussie that works and pay taxes you will be picked on and discriminated. Is this not called bullying which is a legal in our country or are the minority that is mention above exempt from this??? Things have to change for us normal people of Australia.
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Re: Motorcycle club member wins his guns back

Post by dustin » 08 Dec 2013, 12:02 pm

redrum wrote:Means you'll get chosen for lots of "random" additional testing at the airport :lol:


A mate of mine has a couple of surgical pins.

Gets the 'random' bomb and drug test every time after the pins set off the alarm a few times
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