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Suspect arrested in deadly Australian fires

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You know, this is one of those times where if he did commit one of the arsons I question my disagreement with the death penalty. < :-)

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The death penalty would be too soft. Life solitary confinement it should be.

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Burnt at the stake? If they've got any stakes left...

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Since there is no death penalty in Oz, if convicted, this waste of human skin will be sent to prison for 25 years, released and allowed to do this type of crime again.

And the anti-death penalty crowd will be OK with this.

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Since there is no death penalty in Oz, if convicted, this waste of human skin will be sent to prison for 25 years, released and allowed to do this type of crime again. And the anti-death penalty crowd will be OK with this.

Hardly relevant and frankly insensitive - a political, inflammatory and ideological comment about the death penalty. Anyway - the counts would be modified by manslaughter and possibly murder charges, which would go to Life imprisonment. Also, there is State and Federal legislation to make convictions of serious arson such as these instances automatic life sentences.

But that is down the track - they need to be tried and convicted first, and that could take months and/or years. It is a terrible situation in which the urge to commit to mob justice must be resisted.

This is all irrelevant for the moment. The fires are still raging and getting closer to Melbourne, and there are still hundreds unaccounted for. This is by no means over.

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KumaNiku - well said.

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Important thing is to tell us "who" did it? why? will be secondary question. then...legal actions.

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The suspect’s identity was being kept secret for his own safety

How considerate.

I have a strong suspicion this isn't just your typical pyromaniac getting his jollies lighting fires.

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Just to provide an update, the suspect was reportedly found with child pornography in his home and on his computer. The court has supressed the suspect's identity for now, pending a committal hearing on Monday. The suspect will be in protective custody through the legal proceedings, and if found guilty is almost certain to spend the rest of thier lives in solitary.

On a personal note, visiting my mother's place on the Eastern side of Melbourne yesterday, I could smell, see and even feel the smoke from the fires - even if you had no exposure, news or otherwise about the fires, you could tell that it was bad. Also, the Victorian community is genuinely grateful for the offers and actions of help and support from all over the world - it is heartening to recieve messages of support from friends and strangers all over the world.

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theage.com: "Angry survivors blame council 'green' policy"

"Angry residents last night accused local authorities of contributing to the bushfire toll by failing to let residents chop down trees and clear up bushland that posed a fire risk.

During question time at a packed community meeting in Arthurs Creek on Melbourne's northern fringe, Warwick Spooner — whose mother Marilyn and brother Damien perished along with their home in the Strathewen blaze — criticised the Nillumbik council for the limitations it placed on residents wanting the council's help or permission to clean up around their properties in preparation for the bushfire season. "We've lost two people in my family because you dickheads won't cut trees down," he said. …

Another resident said she had asked the council four times to tend to out-of-control growth on public land near her home, but her pleas had been ignored.

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