Bart Bassett

Bart Edward Bassett (born 4 March 1961) is an Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 2011 to 2015, representing the electorate of Londonderry. He was elected as a member of the Liberal Party of Australia, but resigned to sit as an independent in August 2014 following revelations about his conduct at hearings of the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). He was formerly mayor of the City of Hawkesbury from 2007 until 2012.

Early years and background

Bassett was born and raised in western Sydney and, as a helicopter pilot, co-founded in 1989 the Australian arm of Child Flight, an Australian helicopter service dedicated to the emergency transport of sick children. Bassett was chair of the Windsor Road Taskforce, which campaigned for the upgrading of the key arterial route to the north west of Sydney.

Political career

Bassett was elected to Hawkesbury Council in 2004 and became mayor later that year. He held the post until 2006 when he became deputy mayor, until regaining the position a year later.

Public defender

A public defender is a lawyer appointed to represent people who cannot afford to hire an attorney. It is also a literal translation of the Spanish-language term abogado de oficio, which usually refers to an ombudsman office; it is also the English-language title of the Jamaican ombudsman.

Brazil is the only country where an office of government-paid lawyers, with the specific purpose of providing legal assistance and representation to the destitute, free of charge, is established in the Constitution. In the United States, a 1963 US Supreme Court case Gideon v. Wainwright ruled that the Sixth Amendment of the Bill of Rights requires the government to provide free legal counsel to indigent defendants in criminal cases. Many other countries provide people with public defenders.

By country

In civil law countries, following the model from the French Napoleonic Code of criminal procedure, the courts typically appoint private attorneys at the expense of the state.

Brazil

The Constitution of Brazil uniquely provides for a public defender's office (Defensoria Pública) at both state and federal levels. Public defense is a right to poor people, who must declare, formally, that they cannot afford regular legal aid, to benefit from public defenders' services.

Erskine Park, New South Wales

Erskine Park is a suburb of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Erskine Park is located 42 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Penrith and is part of the Greater Western Sydney region.

Erskine Park is a growing, predominately residential suburb with some industrial developments. The suburb has a high school, primary school and some local shops.

History

Erskine Park is named after James Erskine, Lieutenant Governor to Lachlan Macquarie, who was granted land in this area in the early days of the colony. James Erskine Public School The local school, is named in his honour. .

Population

At the 2011 census, there were 6,668 residents in Erskine Park. This suburb has a younger population than average, with a median age of 31 and 22.6% of people aged 14 years or under. The most common ancestries in Erskine Park were Australian 27.9%, English 21.6%, Irish 5.2%, Filipino 4.5% and Maltese 4.5%. The top responses for religious affiliation were Catholic 42.0%, Anglican 20.8% and No Religion 10.9%. Top industries of employment included Road Freight Transport 4.4%, and Cafes, Restaurants and Takeaway Food Services 4.3%. The median weekly household income was $1,858 and this was higher than the national median of $1,234.