1. SNNEWS SHEPPARTON NEWS, FRIDAY, OCTOBER 9, 2015 3
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Pushing to fast track rail plan
State Member for Shepparton Suzanna
Sheed attempted to prompt an early announ-
cement about the future of rail services in
Shepparton as V/Line released annual data
showing continued passenger growth.
Ms Sheed rose during question time in
parliament yesterday to ask Public Transport
Minister Jacinta Allan when the Regional
Network Development Plan would be
released and when the government would
respond.
Ms Allan said it would be in the next few
months and Ms Sheed rose again to ask Ms
Allan to offer an early announcement about
the plans for the Shepparton-Seymour-
Melbourne line.
Ms Allan acknowledged that Shepparton
delivered the largest community gathering
during the statewide consultation phase.
‘‘I think that reflects a long-held desire in
the local community to see some action,’’
she said.
Ms Allan said she shared the community’s
resolve to get better public transport and
would continue to work for more improve-
ments for Shepparton.
V/Line tabled its annual report in parlia-
ment yesterday which shows total rail and
coach passenger numbers rose 3.9 per cent
in 2014-15 to 15.04 million.
Train patronage increased on all corridors,
with the new early morning train from
Shepparton contributing to growth on the
Seymour line.
The Seymour line has gone from 1.32 mil-
lion passengers to 1.48 million in five years
— a rise of 21.3 per cent.
Ms Sheed said the growth, and the demon-
strated community backing for better Shepp-
arton rail services, meant the government
should act quickly once the new regional
network plan was finalised.
‘‘I am really concerned they treat this as an
urgent issue for us,’’ she said.
‘‘Our need is great and the delivery of that
plan must happen this year if it is to inform
the budget next year.’’
In her foreword to the annual report,
V/Line chair Jenny Dawson said the organi-
sation strongly supported the continued
investment in regional rail and coach
services.
‘‘V/Line’s focus over the past three years
in improving our ability to deliver efficient,
safe, customer-focused services, has well-
positioned us to deliver on the government’s
regional objectives for Victoria,’’ she said.
Michelle Buckingham trial
Verdict considered
MURDER TRIAL’S JURY HAS RETIRED TO DECIDE VERDICT IN BUCKINGHAM CASE
By Elaine Cooney
Michelle Buckingham
The jury in the trial into the
1983 murder of teenager Mich-
elle Buckingham retired to con-
sider its verdict before 1 pm
yesterday.
Judge Robert Osborn delivered
his charge where he summar-
ised the entire evidence given to
the court in the past seven days
and told the jury members what
they needed to consider to find
the accused man, Steven James
Bradley, 53, guilty or not guilty.
Steven James Bradley pleaded
not guilty to the murder.
Justice Osborn said if they did
not find Mr Bradley guilty of
murder they then had to decide
if he was guilty of the charge of
‘‘assist offender’’ to which Mr
Bradley pleaded guilty at the
beginning of the trial.
He said Mr Bradley’s
admission of guilt was sufficient
evidence for a conviction for
‘‘assist offender’’.
Justice Osborn said if the jury
found Mr Bradley lied, they
could use the lies to assess his
credibility and whether he lied
about other things.
But he told the jury just
because Mr Bradley may have
lied about one thing did not
mean he lied about other things.
Justice Osborn said neither
the crown prosecutor or the
defence barrister claimed the
evidence of Rodney Butler or
Trevor Corrigan should be relied
upon as truthful, but added that
they were not standing accused
of murder at this trial.
He explained to the jury that
to convict Mr Bradley of murder
as part of a joint criminal enter-
prise, they needed to believe the
men had an understanding to
deliberately kill Miss Bucking-
ham and did actually kill her.
‘‘You must not only be satis-
fied that the three men formed
an agreement but the accused
many was a party to it,’’ he said.
‘‘(Witness) Norm Gribble said
they formed a pact.
‘‘Obviously it’s not like signing
up to Foxtel or buying a new car
. . .’’
He said the jury had to be sat-
isfied that Mr Bradley agreed to
kill Miss Buckingham.
At 3 pm, the jury re-entered to
ask Justice Osborn if a unani-
mous decision needed to be
reached, to which he replied that
it did.
‘‘You must all agree that one
set of the element has been
proven beyond reasonable
doubt,’’ he said.
He referred to one set of ele-
ments for the conviction of mur-
der and another set for ‘‘assist
offender’’, about which he had
spoken to them before they
retired.
● Jury deliberation continues
today.
Pink ladies spread cancer awareness message
By Emily Woods
Parade of pink: Michelle Parish and Allison Hartney want to see you at Victoria Park Lake for the Mini-Fields of
Women. Picture: Holly Curtis
Little pink women donning
meaningful messages will be
scattered across the grounds at
Victoria Park Lake again this
year.
The Goulburn Valley Mini-
Fields of Women will be held on
October 22.
‘‘It’s about recognising ladies,
men and families that have
gone through breast cancer and
recognising that it affects the
community as well,’’ Goulburn
Valley Health breast care nurse
Michelle Parish said.
‘‘When they arrive we give
them a card, they write their
own personal message on it
and attach it to a pink lady,
which is placed in the ground
and that’s when the ceremony
starts.’’
The event has been running
in Shepparton for six years and
spreads awareness about breast
cancer.
‘‘It highlights to the commun-
ity for Breast Cancer Awareness
Month the importance of get-
ting those breast checks,’’ Ms
Parish said.
Mini-Fields of Women,
hosted by GV Health Breast
Cancer Service, will start with a
morning tea at 10 am, followed
by a ceremony at 10.45 am and
a stroll around Victoria Park
Lake at 11.30 am.
There will be limited seating
at the ceremony.