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Thursday's news in just two minutes.

Tom Meagher

 

 

1. Jill Meagher’s husband, Tom, appeared on ABC’s 7.30 last night and gave a moving interview in which he expressed anger that his wife’s murderer Adrian Bayley was allowed to walk the streets at the time of Jill’s attack; and shared his personal memories of Jill. He said that when he learned of Bayley’s previous convictions he, “felt furious. I’m still furious when I hear anyone say it, whenever I read it, my blood boils.” He said of Bayley, “This man is unrepentantly evil. He’s been let off too many times by our justice system.”

Yesterday Adrian Bayley was sentenced to life in prison with a non-parole period of 35 years. You can read more here.

2. St Kilda Football Club has placed player Stephen Milne on indefinite leave after he was charged with four counts of rape over an incident in 2004. St Kilda president Greg Westaway released a statement yesterday, which read:  “The Board acknowledges this is a most serious matter, one that is distressing to all the parties involved. It also recognises that the extended timeframe of the matter and the complexities of the issues involved, make it without precedent. In considering the matter the Board has been mindful of the rights and obligations of everyone impacted.”

Milne will remain as a listed player and according to reports from News Limited, Milne will fight any ban that is longer than two weeks.

Serena Williamsfor the comments she made about the victim of the Steubenville rape case.

“I have fought all of my career for women’s equality, women’s equal rights, respect in their fields – anything I could do to support women I have done. My prayers and support always goes out to the rape victim. In this case, most especially, to an innocent sixteen year old child.”

4. Fashion designers Dolce and Gabbana have been sentenced to almost two years in jail for tax evasion. They’re accused of trying to avoid paying tax on $1.3 billion of income. Lawyers for the Italian pair say they will appeal.

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5. For the first time ever, an airline will offer XL seats for people over 130 kilograms. The new rows on the Air Samoa flights will give those passengers an extra 35 centimetres of legroom. The airline’s chief executive Chris Langton told the media: “Once you’re up and around that sort of weight, a traditional seat on any airline is going to be uncomfortable…. Quite often the access is difficult and even the space between the seats is enough that even when you’ve squeezed into the seats there’s no room for your legs.” Earlier this year, the airline introduced a ‘pay by weight’ system where passengers paid per kilo for travel.

6. Same-sex marriage legislation is being introduced in the South Australian parliament today and South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill says he will vote in favour of the bill. “Loving couples should have the right to have their relationships legally and publicly recognised,”Weatherill said. South Australia will be the first state to legalise gay marriage if the bill is passed, but it would likely face a challenge in the High Court.

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8. Doctors at the American Medical Association have voted to declare obesity as a disease. According to the Los Angeles Times, that effectively means one third of adults and 17 per cent of children in the United States are suffering from a medical condition. One board member said: “Recognizing obesity as a disease will help change the way the medical community tackles this complex issue that affects approximately 1 in 3 Americans.”

9. The percentage of the world’s refugees who are settled in Australia is a lot lower than most people might think. According to the United Nations, Australia took just 0.3 per cent of the world’s 9.9 million registered refugees last year.

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