Showing posts with label New Zealand. Show all posts
Predator Harris may be hit by compo claims
Rolf Harris's multi-million dollar fortune could be whittled away by women he's abused successfully suing him for compensation.
The 84-year-old has been found guilty of 12 indecent assaults against four girls in the UK between 1968 and 1986.
But dozens more women have come forward to say the former star abused them in Britain and overseas, including in Australia and New Zealand.
Twelve potential victims contacted law firm Slater & Gordon following Harris's conviction.
Lawyer Richard Scorer said the women were advised to contact police but his firm could also help them seek civil damages.
"If people want to seek compensation, if they've genuinely been abused, then of course it's right and proper that they can do that," Mr Scorer told Sky News.
The lawyer on Tuesday said the length of any civil litigation would depend on the number of potential victims involved.
The Metropolitan police has confirmed new allegations against Harris are being considered.
UK child protection charity NSPCC says it's received calls from 13 people who claim they fell prey to the performer.
The director of public prosecutions, Alison Saunders, insists it's too early to say if Harris will face fresh criminal charges in Britain.
"We will work with the police and look at any cases that they send to us to see whether there is enough evidence to bring more charges," Ms Saunders told the BBC.
During Harris's eight-week trial it was revealed his estate was worth an estimated STG11 million ($A20 million).
The prosecution read out an email from the entertainer's daughter to her famous father asking if she was the "sole inheritor".
"It's like being told that you might be winning the lottery at some point and you get excited and dream about the things you 'could' do," Bindi wrote in the mid-2012 email.
She said: "I'm not trying to be an 'it' girl, really, I'm just living quite simply and wanting to do my art work and spend precious time with you guys."
Criminal barrister Kama Melly says victims are most likely to sue Harris direct for damages.
The sexual offences specialist said the criminal court could consider awarding compensation when Harris is sentenced on Friday.
But that would only be for the four complainants in the case.
Other victims may turn to the state-funded Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority.
But, overall, Ms Melly thinks victims would be better of going after Harris with his deeper pockets.
"In this situation we've got Rolf Harris, a man of some considerable financial means, and the victims will be far better off in pursuing him directly through the civil courts," the barrister told Sky News.
The standard of proof required in the civil courts is less than the criminal system demands.
"Sometimes it will be just on the word of the victim alone," Ms Melly said, if the evidence is credible and compelling.
She said any damages awarded would be commensurate with a victim's pain and suffering, loss of earnings and counselling costs.
But, the barrister added, Harris might not want to go through another trial, meaning there could be "settlement by his lawyers to these victims who have suffered at his hands".
Harris will be sentenced on Friday at Southwark Crown Court. He will almost certainly be jailed.
The Australian is just the second person to be convicted under Operation Yewtree, which was set up in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal.
Publicist Max Clifford in May was sentenced to eight years' jail after being found guilty of eight indecent assaults on four young women between 1977 and 1984.
Source:
www.dailymail.co.uk
Meyers to host Emmy Awards
LOS ANGELES — Seth Meyers will go from late night to prime time in August: The funnyman will host this year’s Emmy Awards. -
Source:
www.chieftain.com
TV’s biggest night falls on Aug. 25 at 6 p.m. MDT on NBC, and the network certainly has proved to have a pool of worthy hosts (Amy Poehler, Tina Fey). Perhaps only a slightly less obvious choice than recently installed “Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon (who hosted in 2010), the selection of Meyers comes on the heels of the “Saturday Night Live” alum being named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world for 2014.
Recently tapped to replace Fallon as “Late Night” host, Meyers previously served as a writer and performer on “SNL” — and as host of its “Weekend Update.”
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Leto: ‘My Oscar is a filthy mess’
LOS ANGELES — Jared Leto says that while his Oscar has led to new opportunities in Hollywood, he isn’t overly concerned with the trophy itself.
The actor-musician took home the gold statuette last month for his supporting role as transgender drug addict Rayon in “Dallas Buyers Club.” It’s sustained a few scrapes since then after circulating among friends.
“I damaged it. But then I came home and saw it had another nick on it. So it looks like someone else had fun with it, too,” Leto said. “My Oscar is a filthy mess. Everybody was pawing that thing. I kind of was just passing it around at parties. A couple of times I lost sight of it and I thought, ‘You know, if it goes away, it’s not meant to be mine.’ But it always seemed to find its way back to me.”
Leto is now promoting “Artifact,” a documentary he directed about the battle that his band, 30 Seconds to Mars, had with its record label over its contract and a $30 million lawsuit. The film, available on iTunes, airs Saturday on VH1 and Palladia.
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Jackson renames Hobbit finale
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Peter Jackson is tweaking the ending of Bilbo Baggins’ journey.
The Oscar-winning director says the original title of “The Hobbit” finale, “There and Back Again,” felt misplaced since Baggins arrived at his destination in the second film. He says that title better suited a film that wrapped up a two-part story instead of a trilogy.
So the final film based on the J.R.R. Tolkien fantasy adventure has being renamed “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.”
“The Battle of the Five Armies” premieres in December.
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‘Ben-Hur’ set for remake
NEW YORK — Mark Burnett and Roma Downey will produce a new version of the historical epic “Ben-Hur,” as the faith-based film revival continues on the big screen.
Paramount Pictures and MGM announced Friday that they will co-produce “Ben-Hur” with Burnett and Downey, who also made the recent miniseries “The Bible.” The film is set for release in February 2016.
Lewis Wallace’s 1880 novel has been adapted several times, most notably the 1959 film starring Charlton Heston. The film won 11 Academy Awards, including best picture.
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Bob Barker to appear on soap
NEW YORK — The cause is right for Bob Barker, whose love of animals is returning him to TV on Wednesday as a guest star on “The Bold and the Beautiful.”
Appearing as himself, the longtime animal rights activist will be interviewed by Liam Spencer, played by series regular Scott Clifton, for a feature article on control of the pet population.
The 90-year-old Barker was host of CBS’ “The Price is Right” for 35 years. He signed off daily with the words, “Help control the pet population. Have your pet spayed or neutered.”
— The Associated Press, McClatchy-Tribune
Source:
www.chieftain.com
Rapper Tyler, The Creator arrested at South By Southwest
AUSTIN, Texas – Rapper Tyler, The Creator, was arrested Saturday for allegedly inciting a riot during a show at the South By Southwest music festival.
Travis County Sheriff's spokesman Roger Wade said the Odd Future rapper, whose name is Tyler Gregory Okonma, was arrested at Austin-Bergstrom Airport and was likely to be arraigned later Saturday. If convicted of inciting a riot, which is a misdemeanor, he faces up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine.
His bond was set at $3,500.
The rapper's publicist declined to comment about the arrest.
Police say the 23-year-old Los Angeles resident incited a large crowd of fans at the annual music conference and festival to push their way past venue employees controlling access to a Thursday show that was already at full capacity.
Officers who were at the scene said in a warrant that Tyler yelled for fans to push their way inside twice, and that a bartender had to protect a woman from injury in the resulting push.
Police released a video from the concert that shows scores of fans bursting through a gate at the Scoot Inn in downtown Austin.
Tyler and members of the Odd Future collective were denied a visa to travel to New Zealand in February after officials there said they were a potential "public threat" because of past troubles, "including incidents at past performances in which they have incited violence." They pointed to a 2011 incident in which police were called to a comic book store in Boston where fans became unruly.
The group's manager, Christian Clancy, defended them last month after the New Zealand decision, saying they were young at the time and were being judged too harshly.
News Source: www.foxnews.com
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