BIKER NEWS: Qld riot bikie tries to change guilty plea
BN- A former Bandidos member says he only admitted to his involvement in the infamous 2013 Gold Coast bikie brawl because his lawyer made him sign a document he didn't read.
Ricky Chapman is now trying to get his guilty plea for rioting set aside.
He told a hearing in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday that he only signed a document admitting his guilt moments before he made his guilty plea in Southport Magistrates Court on May 4 this year.
Chapman said his lawyer, Campbell MacCallum, didn't tell him what was in the document he signed and he didn't bother to read it.
It was only when he asked another lawyer while entering the court what it was, that he realised he had just admitted his guilt to rioting.
Chapman said he was shocked, but continued to plead guilty in the court anyway because he just "wanted to get it over with".
Crown prosecutor Jeff Hunter QC asked Chapman, who admitted he was dyslexic and had trouble reading, why he wouldn't ensure he knew what he was signing.
"And you're telling us at no point did you see the words written in bold capital letters at the top of the page `guilty plea instructions'?" Mr Hunter asked.
Chapman replied: "No, I didn't."
The alleged bikie, who was sporting a brown leather belt with the word "Bandidos" written on it in court on Monday, said he had repeatedly told Mr MacCallum that he wanted to go to trial.
Chapman was one of nine men who either pleaded guilty to riot or downgraded charges in Southport Magistrates Court on May 4.
Bandidos member Peter Mauric was the only person to go to trial and was later found to be not guilty of riot.
Chapman is the last Bandidos member left in the court system following the infamous brawl, which involved the club's show of force in a busy Broadbeach restaurant in September 2013.
Brawl ringleaders and former Bandidos Jacques Teamo and Adam White each walked free from court with four-month suspended sentences after being painted by their lawyers as changed men.
Mr MacCallum will give evidence at the hearing, before Magistrate Michael Quinn, on Tuesday.
Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2015/09/07/16/13/riot-bikie-tries-to-change-plea#5ki9uW2tfoOPcRjt.99
Ricky Chapman is now trying to get his guilty plea for rioting set aside.
He told a hearing in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Monday that he only signed a document admitting his guilt moments before he made his guilty plea in Southport Magistrates Court on May 4 this year.
Chapman said his lawyer, Campbell MacCallum, didn't tell him what was in the document he signed and he didn't bother to read it.
It was only when he asked another lawyer while entering the court what it was, that he realised he had just admitted his guilt to rioting.
Chapman said he was shocked, but continued to plead guilty in the court anyway because he just "wanted to get it over with".
Crown prosecutor Jeff Hunter QC asked Chapman, who admitted he was dyslexic and had trouble reading, why he wouldn't ensure he knew what he was signing.
"And you're telling us at no point did you see the words written in bold capital letters at the top of the page `guilty plea instructions'?" Mr Hunter asked.
Chapman replied: "No, I didn't."
The alleged bikie, who was sporting a brown leather belt with the word "Bandidos" written on it in court on Monday, said he had repeatedly told Mr MacCallum that he wanted to go to trial.
Chapman was one of nine men who either pleaded guilty to riot or downgraded charges in Southport Magistrates Court on May 4.
Bandidos member Peter Mauric was the only person to go to trial and was later found to be not guilty of riot.
Chapman is the last Bandidos member left in the court system following the infamous brawl, which involved the club's show of force in a busy Broadbeach restaurant in September 2013.
Brawl ringleaders and former Bandidos Jacques Teamo and Adam White each walked free from court with four-month suspended sentences after being painted by their lawyers as changed men.
Mr MacCallum will give evidence at the hearing, before Magistrate Michael Quinn, on Tuesday.
Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/national/2015/09/07/16/13/riot-bikie-tries-to-change-plea#5ki9uW2tfoOPcRjt.99
BIKER NEWS: Qld riot bikie tries to change guilty plea
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September 07, 2015
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