We chose this topic because as we are all grounded in Perth due to COVID we decided that it would be interesting to learn about our peer’s view on travel. This would also give us a different perspective of our peers, giving us an idea of people’s plans for traveling and how many people have been to different areas of their world.
•Sampling basically means selecting people from a population in order to test the population for something. Our Sampling, to receive information on people’s background and travel was Year 9’s (and extension year 8’s) that attend All Saints’ College. The type of Sampling was convenient sampling. The reliability of this sampling method may have been effected this is because people may have been influenced by their peers to their answers as the forms was answered in class. The forms survey took a long time and this could affect the results people wrote as they may have wanted to get the survey over and done with not giving us an accurate result. The sample size was quite decent however we can only assume that the results apply to only All saints’ college year 9 students.
A Bias was present was the fact that we go to a private school and the results will be different between private and public schools since All Saints’ is a private school and this affects the results in how many holidays people have visited. This is because we can assume that people of private school are wealthier than students of public schools. Another possible bias is that we surveyed year 9’s, so when we display this data they we must apply this data for year 9 students at All saints’. Another possible bias is the factor of people lying.
The wrongful imprisonment of John Button in 1960 illustrated the importance of various aspects of the law which are designed to protect the innocent. In John’s case the police beat a confession out of him which resulted in his conviction for murder. If the principles of innocence, right to silence and burden of proof had been applied he would not have gone to jail.
SUMMARY OF CASE:
In 1960, John Button was having an argument with then 17-year-old girlfriend Rosemary Anderson. She then decided to walk home. That night she was killed by the impact of a moving vehicle. When Button was looking for her, he found her passed out on the side of the road. As soon as this happened, he took her to the hospital. The police officers took him in a room and beat a confession out of him, resulting in a conviction for murder. More than 30 years later he won an appeal earning him $460,000.
Not Supported – Innocent until proven Guilty:
Innocent until proven guilty is the responsibility of prosecution to probe guilt. The accused does not have to prove anything and is to be treated as innocent through the investigation and the trial. While John was waiting in the hospital, the police took him into a room asking him questions for hours. They beat him multiple times demanding him to sign a confession. He knew that he must sign the confession, even though it would provide enough evidence to convict him of murder. Following a court case, he was convicted to 10 years hard labour.
Not Supported – Burden and Standard of Proof:
The burden and standard of proof is the degree of proof used to give the jury and judge a beyond reasonable doubt or almost certain. John Button, even though he signed a confession, there was not sufficient evidence he had committed the crime. What the police should have done is examined his vehicle to see any obvious evidence. Also, they should have looked for any bystanders that were present that night. The police officers also did not collect any evidence to he had killed her.
Not Supported – Right to Silence:
The right to silence gives a person suspected of criminal offence the right to not speak and remain silent. They are allowed this right to silence through the whole investigation and the trial, however they are legally required to give their name and address. In the court room the only evidence given was the signed confession, even though the law says it can have him convicted with murder charges it did not give sufficient evidence of murder except a signature. If anything, a judge, and jury must be ninety nine percent sure in their mind that the evidence is enough to have them convicted, however in Johns’ case, there should have been more evidence required to convict him, such as damage on his vehicle or a witness. In the hospital, John was interviewed by the police officers for hours. When Button wished to stay silent, the officer punched him in the stomach several times. When he signed the confession the police officers left, and Button went into a corner to cry about his lost girlfriend.
Supported – Right to Appeal:
The right to an appeal is a person who has been convicted by a jury or has pleaded guilty and been sentenced by a court judge has a right of an appeal. An appeal is an application to a higher court by a party who believes that a decision of a lower court was incorrect. In 1963 the parole system came out giving Button a minimum of 5 years. When he got out, he tried everything to prove his innocence. In 1998, 30 years later there was news about the real killer Eric Edgar Cooke who murdered 8 other people and 14 attempted. In 2000 Button appealed and won his case, this appeal then led him to start a project in Perth that helps those wrongfully committed.
In conclusion, this case showed some flaws in the application of the Australian legal system and while since then there has been many improvements this is one of the rare times where the legal system was misused.
