Battle looms over Packer casino plan

A legal stoush may be looming between local Burswood residents and James Packer's Crown Perth complex. Source: PerthNow

JAMES Packer's $570 million six-star hotel plan for Perth is a step closer to becoming the subject of a Supreme Court challenge by local residents.

A Supreme Court ruling has told 23 Burswood residents, who live just metres from where the billionaire wants to expand his Crown casino complex, that they may have a case against the West Australian government's sale of the land where it will be built.

The state government has been ordered to hand over sensitive documents to the residents, so they can decide whether they could win if they took their grievances to court.

Earlier this year, residents of the Burswood Peninsula went public with their anger after the state government revealed it was selling 5.8ha of land to Mr Packer - and also putting aside more land to build Perth's new football stadium.

They said the developments would ruin their panoramic views of the nearby golf course, Crown Perth, the Swan River and the city.

Premier Colin Barnett said the WA government intended to use the state's 1985 Casino Agreement Act to sell the land to Crown Ltd for $60 million, while exempting the company from having to lodge plans with the local council or the state's planning commission.

But after getting little satisfaction from meetings with the state government, the residents argued in court they should be given access to the terms of the agreement so they could decide whether to fight it.

Today, Master Craig Sanderson ruled the residents should get access to relevant documents "in the interests of justice and the interests of the parties''.

Master Sanderson also said their case did have a chance of success.

"Certainly this is not a case where the plaintiffs' position is hopeless and no encouragement to a pointless action should be given,'' he said.

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Bombers on own as clubs back AFL

Western Bulldogs president Peter Gordon speaks on behalf of the 17 clubs who will support the AFL through the ongoing Essendon saga.

ESSENDON stands as footy's outcast after the 17 other clubs stood shoulder to shoulder with the AFL.

After almost three hours of crisis talks at AFL House, one club president told the Herald Sun: "The 17 clubs have had enough.

"We want it resolved and we want it resolved within the AFL structure. The mood among the presidents was that

Essendon has been fast and loose, and we have to protect the game.

"We all believe Essendon has a right to defend itself, but none of us want one club to stuff up the competition."

HIRD'S DRUG-FREE COURT CHALLENGE

Eddie McGuire leads the presidents out of the meeting today at AFH House. Picture: Tim Carrafa

On a day Bombers coach James Hird launched Supreme Court action against the league over its handling of the drugs investigation, Western Bulldogs president Peter Gordon said the 17 clubs had met without the AFL and Essendon and "resolved to unanimously support the integrity of the AFL Rules".

He said: "In our view, it is of paramount importance that every effort be made to resolve these matters within the AFL industry. We wish to unanimously express our confidence in the AFL Commission and AFL management.

"In the meantime, we call upon all parties to exercise restraint and discretion in any public comments about this matter, and with the safety and welfare of players and their families and the integrity of the game as the paramount considerations," Mr Gordon said.

CAREY BACKS HIRD OVER AFL 'CONFLICT'

Bombers chairman Paul Little declared on Wednesday that his club had "lost total confidence in the AFL executive".

The mother of an Essendon player says the AFL club have created the worst nightmare for parents such as her.

The club declined to comment, but high-level talks to resolve footy's greatest fight are believed to be continuing.

Finals are just 15 days away.

The Bombers are guaranteed a berth in an elimination final - if their points are not docked as punishment for their 2012 supplements program.

PLAYER'S 'MUM' SLAMS HIRD, CLUB

Hird took charge of training and showed no sign of standing down ahead of tomorrow night's clash with Carlton at the MCG.

Port Adelaide president David Koch (left), St Kilda president Peter Summers and Hawthorn president Andrew Newbold arrive for the meeting.

Before the meeting, Port Adelaide president David Koch walked in, saying: "No one wants a slanging match.
"I think there are all sorts of questions that everyone has on where we're up to.

"We just want as much information as we can. We all have a duty of care to our players and that includes having the very best information."

Hawthorn president Andrew Newbold said: "It needs to end as soon as it can.

"I'm really concerned about the good of the game and the effect that it's having on the sport in general, on the kids out there.

''The other codes in Australia must be looking at us and rubbing their hands in glee."

Western Bulldogs president Peter Gordon says the 17 clubs had confidence in the AFL commission. Picture: Wayne Ludbey

HIRD CLAIMS 'TIP-OFF' IN COURT ACTION

Carlton president Stephen Kernahan said: "We all read (the charges) yesterday and it wasn't great reading. I go in with an open mind."

"Sticks" would later leave, backing the AFL.

On radio earlier in the day the mother of an unnamed Bombers player directed an on-air tirade at the club.

"It's all right for James and the board of Essendon to say they have not cheated," she told Triple M.

21 August 2013 will go down in Australian sporting history as the day that the AFL and one of its oldest clubs, Essendon, declared war on each other.

"The whole question is not about cheating. The whole question is about morals, it's about ethics and it's about the trust that the parents put on the club for the club to take care of their child, their kids."

The club said it couldn't identify the caller.

Hird lodged documents in the Supreme Court alleging that in February AFL chiefs Andrew Demetriou and Gillon McLachlan tipped off the club about investigations into drug use at the club.

The writ detailed a meeting on February 5 where McLachlan allegedly told club officials: "You can't say Essendon did not use drugs, because my information is you have used them.

"(AFL integrity officer) Brett Clothier knows the names of the drugs and he will be here soon.

Essendon coach James Hird wants to have the charges against him heard by an independent tribunal.

"The Australian Crime Commission is going to hand down a report. There is going to be a meeting of all the (sporting) codes.

"If you come forward earlier and invite ASADA to investigate, then the investigation will look better for you."

The AFL declined to comment.

ACC chief John Lawler said: "Given legal proceedings have been initiated, it would be inappropriate for the ACC to make any further statement at this time."

Hird is arguing in court for the convening of an independent tribunal and the removal of Demetriou and other AFL commissioners from any hearing.

He is also seeking:

PROPER particulars of the charges against him.

DETAILS of the witnesses the AFL proposes to call.

COPIES of all documents the AFL will seek to tender.

DETAILS of the substance of the evidence they will give.

It is expected that Hird's legal team, led by Julian Burnside, QC, will front Monday's AFL Commission to repeat its demands, despite the other clubs' resolve.

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Will we go to war in Syria?

Foreign Minister Bob Carr condemns the use of chemical weapons in Syria.

NEITHER Kevin Rudd nor Tony Abbott will talk of armed intervention in the Syrian crisis, but Australian officers are already working with US allies on a plan if one is needed.

No such plans are being made in Canberra, but concerns are growing in the wake of chemical weapons claims and strong words from the Prime Minister.

Mr Rudd fears the situation has the potential to turn into a "major international crisis".

Asked on Channel 10's The Project whether he supported Australian intervention in the country in the wake of reports up to 1300 were killed in a chemical massacre, the PM would not go that far, but left the door open.

"The challenge now is to establish the absolute fact of whether the regime used those chemical weapons," he said.

"If they did then I believe we have a major international crisis on our hands."

Mr Rudd also reiterated Australia's major alliance with the United States, where Australian military officers are working alongside the the US military in the Pentagon to help draw up war plans for an American-led intervention.

The news comes a day after it was alleged that government forces had attacked and killed up to 1300 civilians with chemical weapons in and around the capital Damascus.

"Planning sessions involving Australians are under way to brief the administration on options,'' a well-placed source said.

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Images from Syria have shocked the world. This link will take you to a gallery of some of them, but the reader is warned that these pictures could be extremely distressing and discretion is very strongly advised.

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While no specific plans are being considered as yet by the Australian Defence Force, senior officers in Canberra have demanded updated intelligence briefings on the situation.

That material includes top-secret human intelligence summaries from Australian and allied spies in the field and hi-tech signals intelligence collected by satellites and other interception methods, including radio and phone traffic.

It is aimed at verifying claims that the regime of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad had murdered civilians with chemical weapons.

Unverified videos distributed by anti-regime activists apparently showed medics attending to suffocating children, and hospitals being overwhelmed.

Footage also showed dozens of people, including many children, laid out on the ground with some covered by white sheets.

A wounded Syrian girl waiting for treatment after an alleged poisonous gas attack fired by regime forces, according to activists in Arbeen town, Damascus, Syria. Picture authenticated by AP Source: AP

France has threatened the international community will use armed force against Syria if the chemical massacre is confirmed.

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said if the United Nations Security Council was unable to make a move, "decisions will be taken in other ways".

"If this is proven, France's position is that there must be a reaction," Mr Fabius told French television network BFM.

"There would have to be a reaction with force in Syria from the international community, but there is no question of sending troops on the ground."

UN chief Ban Ki-moon's office said the Secretary-General was "shocked'' by the reports and that talks had begun with President Bashar al-Assad's government to gain access to the alleged attack sites.

The most likely Australian military involvement would be in support of a United Nations monitoring force under a strict UN mandate, but the US could intervene without UN cover.

Mr Rudd described the use of terror weapons as "repugnant'' while Opposition Leader Tony Abbott urged caution until a full investigation was completed.

Mr Rudd hinted that if chemical weapons had been used against civilians then Australia could not ignore such a breach of international law and decent human behaviour.

A Syrian soldier's AK-47 carries a sticker of Syrian President Bashar Assad and Arabic that reads, "Syria is fine." (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar) Source: AP

"No civilised country can stand idly by when there is the threat of chemical weapons being used ... against civilians,'' he said.

"The use of weapons of mass destruction in any circumstances is intolerable and unacceptable in any civilised nation.''

Mr Rudd did not elaborate on the options that Australia might pursue, but others noted that he was a very vocal supporter of the Libyan intervention without making a contribution.

Mr Abbott said if the claims of chemical weapons attacks were true it would be "utterly reprehensible".

"And I've got to say, of a piece with the kind of horror we have come to expect from one of the worst regimes in the world,'' he said.

However, he warned that no one should underestimate the difficulty of intervening in the Middle East.

A UN chemical weapons team arrived in Syria at the weekend to investigate three sites where chemical weapons were previously alleged to have been used. But they would need Syria's approval to investigate the new allegations.

Russia reacted cautiously to the new claims, saying that it suspected provocation by rebels as UN weapons inspectors were about to begin their work.

Syrian refugees cross into Iraq at the Peshkhabour border point in Dahuk. Around 30,000 Syrians, the vast majority of them Kurds, have fled the region. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban) Source: AP

Head of the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University, Hugh White, said the world had been wrestling with the question of a military intervention in Syria for two years.

"The arguments for intervention were already high before this latest incident, but there are simply no effective means for intervention,'' Professor White said.

He said Mr Abbott was correct to be cautious but he warned that the US could intervene without United Nations support.

"It really depends on what you want intervention to achieve,'' he said.

"If it is to destroy stockpiles of chemical weapons then that it very difficult to achieve. First you have to find them and then you have to be able to destroy them.''

Professor White said calls for intervention in Syria were even muted in the US, where people had no appetite for another American war in the Middle East.

Australan Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr described images coming out of Syria of children apparently affected by chemical weapons as "appalling''.

Invoking President Obama, Mr Carr urged Syria's supporters such as Iran, Russia and China to tell the Assad regime that chemical weapons were a ``red line'' that could not be crossed.

-with Sarah Michael and Bernard Humphreys

###

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Mrs Abbott to hit the hustings

Opposition leader Tony Abbott's wife Margie steps into the spotlight to champion the coalition's childcare policy.

HE'S surged ahead in the polls but Tony Abbott has reserved a secret weapon for the final two weeks of the election campaign - his wife Margie.

Mrs Abbott has revealed she will join her husband for the home stretch and flank her husband as he toured the country in a last major push to secure an election win.

It will be a take-no-risks final fortnight for Team Abbott despite polls showing an almost certain victory in store against the flailing Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

When asked what shortcomings her husband faced on the final leg, Mrs Abbott said there were none.

"I don't think weakness is something that Tony would even entertain," Mrs Abbott told News Corp.

"Tony he will keep going forward, he will build on the momentum he has.

"He is a disciplined campaigner and that's what I expect to see, a lot more of that."

Mrs Abbott said she had been trying to lead "a normal life" before taking leave from work from next week.

She will spend the next two weeks "actively involved where I can" and leading "a less normal life" on the campaign trail.

"It is an exciting time," she told News Corp.

"It's opportunity for me to be with Tony, it's an opportunity to see first hand what he is doing to meet a range of Australians of all walks of life and this is an important time for Australia.

"So I'm happy to be going, I'm proud to be going."

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All aboard Hay St protest express

A 42-metre plywood train is sitting in Perth's CBD, part of a council protest against government plans to run the real thing down the middle of the city's shopping malls.

Perth City Council has erected a mock light railcar in Hay Street Mail to demonstrate the  space it would take up. Picture: Kerris Berrington Source: PerthNow

Perth City Council has erected a mock light railcar in Hay Street Mail to demonstrate the  space it would take up. Picture: Kerris Berrington Source: PerthNow

A 42-metre plywood train is sitting in Perth's CBD, part of a council protest against government plans to run the real thing down the middle of the city's shopping malls.

The $100,000 scale model of the dual light-rail line popped up overnight.

And in an inflammatory move, Perth Lord Mayor Lisa Scaffidi says the model will stay in place for a week to illustrate the inconvenience and potential danger of the plan.

``Once our malls are lost they are lost forever, and we want a city that is welcoming to people,'' Ms Scaffidi said.

``We don't want people to be be conscious of having to dodge trams, and we don't want the city to lose the special unique elements that give it its character.''

The Max Light Rail scheme was one of the centrepieces of the state government's election promises.

But funding problems have emerged, on top of the Lord Mayor's opposition to the positioning of the CBD part of the plan.

She'd rather see it run down St Georges Terrace or William Street.

Transport Minister Troy Buswell has fiercely argued for light rail through the city's shopping malls, saying the council is ``strangling'' the development of Perth.

The federal government has promised far less funding for the light rail plan than the WA government had hoped, while the coalition has refused to contribute cash to urban rail altogether.
 

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Two Northam escapees found

Two asylum seekers who escaped from Northam Detention Centre have been caught.

Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre in Northam. Picture: Kerris Berrington Source: PerthNow

TWO of the five men who climbed fences to escape from the Northam detention centre at the weekend have been found.

The men were found in Bakers Hill, about 20km west of the facility, this afternoon.

The Immigration Department has confirmed two of the five Vietnamese men who escaped from the Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre have been located.

Call for details on Northam escapees

"I can confirm two of the detainees who escaped…have been located and they are currently being transported to the Northman police station," a department spokeswoman said.

"They were located at Bakers Hill following information from the public and strong assistance from WA Police."

Three of the escapees remain unaccounted for.

An investigation into the escape is underway by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, and Yongah Hill detention centre contractor Serco.

The news comes after opposition immigration spokesman Scott Morrison demanded the federal government release descriptions of the five asylum seekers to assist with their swift apprehension.

Mr Morrison said the men had lost their right to privacy because they had violated the terms of their detention.

Immigration Minister Tony Burke accused Mr Morrison of hysteria.

"Before the rate of hysteria goes up any more notches from Scott Morrison, can I just flag a note of caution,'' he told reporters.

"Yes, it is unacceptable whenever there is an escape.

"But to try to turn this into something that is a Liberal-Labor divide when the largest escapes occurred under the Howard government just beggars belief.''

Mr Burke said he had a strong view about the level of security that should apply to the men in a future detention environment.

"In terms of priority for processing, they have put themselves at the very back of a very long queue once they are found,'' he said.

Mr Burke also said there would consequences for Serco. Penalties apply to Serco under its contract.

There were unconfirmed suggestions the escapees may have received outside assistance.

The Northam community is said to be divided over the facility, with some saying the asylum seekers were welcome, but others were concerned for the safety of locals, despite the department saying the men were not dangerous.

And shire president Steve Pollard was critical of the department, saying it did not inform him of the escape and he instead found out through the media.
 

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Hird to sue as clash with AFL heats up

Essendon coach James Hird launched a scathing attack at the AFL at a press conference into the use of performance drugs at the Essendon Football Club

JAMES Hird will launch Supreme Court action against the AFL over its handling of footy's drugs investigation.

"We will be instituting proceedings in the morning," the Essendon coach's lawyer, Stephen Amendola, told the Herald Sun.

The move comes as it emerged the AFL wanted the Bombers to accept a penalty deal which would have included Hird's head, a multi-million-dollar fine, the loss of possibly two years of draft picks and exclusion from this year's finals.

Essendon said it never considered the proposed "deal" from the AFL because it considered the sanction "armageddon".

Doc's letter reveals he was kept in dark

Watch 24/7 coverage on Fox Sports News with news+

The seven-month drugs scandal exploded yesterday after the AFL chose to release its full list of charges against the Bombers.

The 34-page document revealed a litany of allegations detailing drug injections, substances brought back from China by a convicted drug dealer and claims of a health scare for Hird after he was injected with an exotic substance.

Bombers coach James Hird told the media that AFL has ''continued its trial by media''. Picture: Getty Images

Essendon described the move as an "ambush", and said a different set of charges had been presented to the club by the league in tense negotiations last week.

The list of charges states:

PLAYERS may have been given banned performance-enhancing drug Thymosin Beta-4, among 15 substances administered.

HIRD had suffered unspecified "significant" side-effects from drugs he injected in 2012.

CLUB doctor Bruce Reid expressed his concern and frustration over the supplements regime in his missing letter to other club officials.

HIRD was warned by an AFL integrity officer to avoid peptides.

PLAYERS were to receive 1500 injections of AOD-9604 and a version of Thymosin and more than 16,500 doses of Colostrum and 8000 doses of Tribulus.

AFL boss Andrew Demetriou has publically anounced the charges Essendon will be facing, while also confirming a meeting of all club presidents will be held in the near future.

"The AFL is determined to punish the Essendon Football Club, and four individuals personally, as though we were drug cheats," club chairman Paul Little said.

AFL Commission chairman Mike Fitzpatrick has called an extraordinary meeting of 18 club presidents for this afternoon.

Detailing the charges, AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou said: "The Essendon Football Club and other parties will be given every reasonable opportunity to answer these charges. There has been no predetermination of this matter."

AFL, Bombers head for legal showdown

Hird health scare claims

One club president told the Herald Sun he expected the league to seek club support in punishing the Bombers and, potentially, kicking them out of the finals.

Little confirmed he would front the meeting.

Essendon chairman Paul Little defends the club during a press conference. Picture: Stuart Walmsley

The league is determined to resolve the dispute in a hearing before the AFL Commission.

But Hird's lawyers, acting with the support of the club, will today ask the Supreme Court to back the coach's demands for an independent hearing and the removal of AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou from any proceedings.

The Supreme Court statement of claim is also expected to detail the events of early February and the AFL's alleged involvement in the club's decision to "self-report" to the league and Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority.

What Little and Hird said in full

AFL knew about AOD-9604

The AFL charged Essendon and its four officials - Hird, club doctor Bruce Reid, assistant coach Mark Thompson and footy boss Danny Corcoran - with bringing the game into disrepute 10 days ago over the 2012 supplements program.

A former member of the AFL's anti-drug tribunal tells AFL 360 the supplement at the centre of the Essendon scandal was "not illegal".

The full text of Dr Reid's letter and supporting documentation relating to the possible use of banned drugs feature in the 34-page document released.

Essendon also took aim at the AFL over claims a former member of the AFL's anti-doping tribunal was told in February that AOD-9604 was safe and not prohibited.

Dr Andrew Garnham, currently working as a consultant for Essendon, said scientific evidence showed AOD-9604 had minimal side-effects.

"That the AFL has known this for six months but let questions hang over the head of the club and most unforgivably our players, is reprehensible," Little said.

ASADA maintained it had never approved the use of AOD-9604.

A defiant Hird said: "The AFL today continued its trial by media of me. We only received notification minutes before the AFL charges were made public.

"The announcement by ambush confirms the AFL is running an agenda, which again calls into question its impartiality."

AFL boss Andrew Demetriou fronts the media at AFL House. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

Demetriou said the charges were only alleged, and that Essendon and its officials, had "every opportunity" to defend themselves.

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Worst fine dodgers named and shamed

West Australia's worst 100 fine defaulters, some owing up to $250,000, have been revealed after a government website went live today naming and shaming them all.

WA's worst fine defaulters will be named and shamed under new laws. Picture: Theo Fakos Source: PerthNow

WEST Australia's worst 100 fine defaulters, some owing up to $250,000, have been revealed after a government website went live today naming and shaming them all.

A Perth cabinetmaking firm, Quadtilla Pty Ltd, has been revealed as having the biggest outstanding fine in WA - $250,316.

The company was fined $250,000 in 2011 over the death of a 17-year-old pre-apprentice.

The website is just one of a number of tough new measures that come into effect today targeting the thousands of people who owe $259 million in unpaid infringements and court fines, with the most serious fine defaulters owing $67 million.

Under the new measures, the Sheriff's Office will be able to wheel clamp vehicles for 48 hours or seize licence plates for 28 days if a person has more than $2000 in unpaid fines and infringements.

WA's top 100 fine defaulters will have their names, suburbs and amount of outstanding fines published on the government website launched today.

The website was officially launched by Attorney General Michael Mischin about 10am. It can be accessed here: http://www.courts.dotag.wa.gov.au/_apps/outstandingfines/default.aspx

"The top 100 fine defaulters list is frankly staggering. Every person on the list each owes tens of thousands of dollars, with a handful of individuals and companies owing between $100,000 and $250,000 each," Mr Mischin said today.

"It not only indicates a pattern of law breaking, but a complete disregard for our laws and for their fellow West Australians. The money from these unpaid fines and infringements should rightly be available for schools, hospitals and infrastructure.

"I suggest those individuals and companies who don't want their names and details published for all to see on the web should immediately pay their fines and infringements or enter into time to pay arrangements with the Fines Enforcement Registry."

Individuals and companies can also visit the site to pay outstanding fines or infringements or they can phone the Fines Enforcement Registry on 1300 650 235 or 9235 0235 from mobile phones.

WA's TOP 10 FINE DEFAULTERS:

QUADTILLA PTY LTD,  Northlands Private Boxes            $250,316.00
ABLE LOTT HOLDINGS PTY LTD, Coolbelup                     $247,586.00
SALIBA, Carmelo Charles, Noranda                                        $192,760.20
COASTLINE PLASTERING & PAINTING SERV P/L, Bunbury $165,813.70
GENG, Tiexiang, Rivervale                                                   $121,134.00
IENCO, Sandra,  Balcatta                                                       $101,545.50
MARSH, Roger John,  Bendigo                                               $82,255.10
CHANEY, Joseph Bryant,  Doubleview                                   $73,796.10
WU MING ENTERPRISES PTY LTD,  Canning Vale              $60,550.70
STEWART, Paul Christopher, Kewdale                                   $56,947.10

 

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'Boycott US after Aussie's murder'

An image from the Facebook page of Sarah Harper, the girlfriend of Australian baseballer Chris Lane. Supplied: FACEBOOK Source: Supplied

AUSTRALIAN tourists should boycott the US in the wake of the shooting murder of a Melbourne baseball star, former deputy prime minister Tim Fischer says.

Mr Fischer said he was deeply angered by the latest tragedy and said turning our backs on America would help send a stern message about the need for tighter gun control.

Christopher Lane, 22, was randomly gunned down while jogging through the town of Duncan in Oklahoma on Friday afternoon local time.

Mr Fischer, who led Australia's gun control reforms alongside former prime minister John Howard in 1996, said choosing not to travel to the US would help build pressure on the US Congress to finally act.

"Tourists thinking of going to the USA should think twice,'' Mr Fischer said.

"This is the bitter harvest and legacy of the policies of the NRA that even blocked background checks for people buying guns at gunshows.

"People should take this into account before going to the United States.

"I am deeply angry about this because of the callous attitude of the three teenagers (but) it's a sign of the proliferation of guns on the ground in the USA.

"There is a gun for almost every American.''

Chris Lane wears his baseball equipment in Australia. Picture: Essendon Baseball Club Source: AP

Meanwhile, Lane's American girlfriend today revealed her heartbreak at losing her "best friend", and parents of the accused protested their innocence.

Sarah Harper, 23, also told the Herald Sun that she didn't know what punishment would be appropriate of the three teenagers, aged 15, 16 and 17 years, accused of Lane's murder.

It comes as Duncan Police Chief Danny Ford said he had secured the confession of the 17-year-old who summoned investigators to his jail cell and claimed he and the younger boys were bored "so they decided to kill somebody".

"He said he was the driver of the car," Chief Ford said.

"They saw Christopher jog by the house they were at, they chose him to be the target, they got in the car, drove up behind him and shot him in the back.

"He said the 16-year-old fired the shot."

The three teenagers are being held in the Stephens County Jail in Duncan.

The trio were due to appear in a local court over the shooting at 1.30pm Monday (4.30am Tuesday AEST), but it has been pushed back a day.

A spokesperson for District Attorney Jason Hicks said the charges were still being reviewed.

Lane, who grew up in Oak Park in Melbourne's north, had only been back in the US for three days after an eight-week break in Australia with Ms Harper.

"I don't want them to have any future that Chris wasn't able to have as well," Ms Harper said of the accused teenagers today.

"It's been pretty rough. It's been hard knowing he was taken so close to home, let alone taken in the way he was. To be pointed out like that …"

Ms Harper said she and Lane had joked about America's soft gun laws before he was shot.

"He wasn't a fan of guns," she said.

She fondly described Lane as a smart, kind and curious guy who would "do anything for anybody".

Ms Harper, also a talented sportswoman, said she and Lane just "meshed together" within weeks of meeting at college in Oklahoma in August 2009.

"It was more of a personality (we had in common), not so much interests. He was intellectual, into world news, and I found that quite boring," she said.

"He really wanted to travel more. He loved the idea of seeing the world."

Two of the accused teens' parents insist they were not involved in the killing.

"That's my baby boy," said the mother of the 16-year-old accused of firing the single bullet from a handgun into the back of Mr Lane.

She doesn't believe her son was involved in the shooting, saying today he was not a member of a gang and definitely not the one who pulled the trigger.

The father of the 15-year-old accused of being in the car admitted his son had been in some previous "kid stuff" trouble with the law, but described him as a good boy who also was not part of a gang.

"I don't think so," the father replied when asked if his son could have been part of the murder.

"Because he's not the type of person. He likes to wrestle. He's into sports."

The two teens have suffered tragic lives, their parents said. The 15-year-old's mother is in jail. The 16-year-old last year dealt with the death of his stepfather and brother.

The parents of the teens sent their condolences to Lane's family in Australia and Ms Harper.

"My prayers go out to them," the father said.

"I have lost several loved ones recently myself. I feel sorry for the individuals and family."

Chris Lane was gunned down in Duncan, Oklahoma. Source: Supplied

If convicted of first-degree murder, the boys face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

The boys can be tried as adults, but the spokesperson said because they are under the age of 18 they can't face a death sentence.

Ms Harper today said the accused "will be taken care of eventually".

Ms Harper said she wasn't thinking about the killers at the moment.

"I don't really care what happens to them,'' she told the Nine Network.

"I feel that if they don't get what they deserve now in the present they will eternally.

"They're evil people and they'll be taken care of eventually.''

It comes amid claims Lane was the victim of a gang-related drive-by shooting gone wrong.

Outside the court a woman told reporters the three accused teens had a falling out with a fellow gang member.

She told Channel Nine the teens were angry when they set out and wanted her brother dead.

"I guess he has hung out with gang-affiliated people. I don't know if he's really claimed it or tried to be like them so that might be a reason why they're after him," she said.

However Chief Ford yesterday said the accused "just wanted to kill someone".

Chief Ford said the three teens had no motive other than to ''make a name for themselves'' and were on their way to another house to murder a second, unrelated victim when they were arrested.

Lane's death a tragedy with no rhyme or reason

Christopher Lane's mother and sister. Source: News Limited

Lane had been in the US on a baseball sports scholarship with East Central University (ECU) as the team's catcher.

He was jogging through an area of "high dollar homes" after leaving Ms Harper's home, when he was followed and shot.

Witnesses saw him stumble across the road and then go down on his knees before struggling to a drainage area at the side of the road.

'I love you so much': girlfriend's moving tribute to baseball star

A woman who came from a nearby house tried CPR while another woman who was in a car stopped and called 911.

Chris Lane RIP: Facebook tribute page

The father of baseballer Chris Lane says the murder of his son in a random drive-by shooting is senseless.

Ms Lane said she would come back to Australia to farewell Lane with his family.

"I'm probably going to go back and say goodbye with the people he loved the most," she said.

"It was a great time getting back there and seeing him in his element with all his favourite friends.

"It's going to be hard going back but it's something I need to do.

"Thank you to everyone who supported and loved Chris. I really appreciated it."

A tribute left on the home plate at Essendon Bombers Baseball field for murdered Melbourne baseballer Christopher Lane. Source: News Limited

Chief Ford said yesterday the attack was not racially motivated.

"It was just three clowns who got together and decided to kill,'' he said.

Chief Ford said the police had released the body but was unsure of plans to repatriate Lane's body back to Melbourne.

He also said the killer left a chilling message on Facebook before the spree - "Bang. Two drops in two hours".

"They wanted to be Billy Bob Badasses," Chief Ford said yesterday.

"I think they were on a killing spree.

"We would have had more bodies that night if we didn't get them.

Christopher Lane with girlfriend, Sarah Harper. Supplied: Facebook Source: Supplied

"Lately there has been some pretty weak motives, but I don't know that I've had one that they told us they were just going to kill somebody.

"I know everybody thinks there has to be a reason, but I've been in this business for 30 years and there doesn't have to be a reason with these kids.

"It is a sad, sad thing what happened with that young man."

Yesterday, shocked family and friends were trying to make sense of the tragedy.

Peter Lane paid tribute to his son and said the family was still waiting on news from the US authorities regarding the repatriation of the body.

Christopher Lane's devastated family. Source: News Limited

"There is not going to be any good come out of this. It was so senseless. There was nothing he did or could have done," Mr Lane said.

"It's happened. It's wrong and we just try and deal with it the best we can."

Flowers and a baseball were placed on the home plate at Essendon Baseball Club yesterday morning with a message. "A wonderful young man taken too soon," it read. "Why?"

College friend Marshall Veal added Lane had "brought light to each of us''.

"Lanes would have done anything in the world for all of us and we would do the same, he was a best friend, teammate, and most of all a Brother. We love you Laney."

Local Bill Renfrow, who lives just metres from the intersection where Lane was shot, said Duncan locals had erected a flower memorial for him at the site of the attack.

"It's sad to us, more than anything. It's shocking. He was a visitor in our country," he said.

"This is a very quiet neighbourhood, there's never any trouble here."

Essendon Baseball Club's match against the University of Melbourne on Sunday will be turned into a tribute to Lane to raise money for the family.

- with Stephen Drill Andy Burns and AAP

Christopher Lane and girlfriend, Sarah Harper. Supplied: Facebook Source: Supplied

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WA schools to close, 500 education jobs cut

Western Australia's harsh budget reality has seen Premier Colin Barnett admit schools in Perth could be closed to save money, on the same day as 500 education staff were told they would lose their jobs.

Colin Barnett, pictured at West Beechboro Primary School in 2012, has admitted WA schools could be forced to close. Picture: Kerris Berrington Source: PerthNow

WESTERN Australia's harsh budget reality has seen Premier Colin Barnett admit schools in Perth could be closed to save money, on the same day as 500 education staff were told they would lose their jobs.

Adding more fuel to a growing anger among voters who returned the WA Liberal government to power just five months ago, education minister Peter Collier revealed a new funding model for the state's schools.

While spinning the reform as an attempt to "deliver equity and efficiency'', the headline effect will be the loss of 500 jobs.

And Mr Barnett then told a parliamentary committee his government could go further, and force small schools to join larger campuses, or close others altogether.

"Where small class sizes occur, I think there is a strong case for some amalgamation for senior high schools,'' Mr Barnett said.

"To the north of Perth, there are schools built in the 60s that are now old and I would love to see them brought up to standard - that probably means closing some, and amalgamating (others) to produce a better product.''

Having said on Friday there was "no allocation, no indication and no desire'' for redundancies in education, Mr Collier said four days later that 150 support staff could go, along with 150 education assistants and 200 other staff.

"Since 2004/05 the number of education assistants has risen 73 per cent - up from 4455 to 7709 - but they haven't always been allocated effectively,'' Mr Collier said.

The state opposition called Mr Collier a liar, and called on Mr Barnett to sack him.

The government overhaul means school funding will be allocated on a child-by-child rather than by school types or programs, and will be rolled out in time for the 2015 school year.

Schools will receive a base amount for each student, with additional funding to help children with extra needs.
Anne Gisborne, State School Teachers Union's president, accused the government of trying to educate the state on the cheap.

The loss of education staff is the latest in a series of post-budget nasties to dog the WA Liberal government.

Today, it was also revealed a train service from Northam to Perth would be replaced by a coach service from the end of the year and four career advice centres would close their doors.

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