2006 Melbourne teenage DVD controversy
Encyclopedia
Cunt: The Movie is a 2006 DVD
produced by a group of Melbourne
based high school students who refer to themselves as "The Teenage Kings of Werribee". The film, depicting graphic violence and degradation of people in the Werribee
area of Victoria
, Australia
, caused widespread controversy after excerpts were broadcast by television current affairs program Today Tonight
on 23 October 2006, and led to a police investigation about the content.
s, harassing a homeless man, throwing eggs at taxi drivers, participating in fights at local parties, and also shows media coverage of incidents that they claim to have been involved in. The footage depicts the group sexually assaulting and humiliating a 17-year-old girl, who has a condition described by The Age
as a "mild development delay
". Several of the boys were filmed urinating on the girl, setting her hair on fire, forcing her to participate in sexual activity, and also throwing items of her clothing into the Werribee River
, where the incident took place. During this time, one boy approaches the camera and states, "What the fuck, she's the ugliest thing I've even seen." The girl had previously communicated with two of the boys using MSN Messenger, and had arranged to meet them at a Werribee shopping centre; when she arrived at Werribee Station, the group of twelve walked with her to the Werribee River.
It is alleged that the group posted segments of the DVD on YouTube
during 2006, with a video entitled Pimp My Wife viewed over 2500 times. On 25 October, the video was removed from the website "due to terms of use violation."
On 29 October rumours emerged of a sequel, titled CTM2, which apparently depicts some of the youths involved in the first DVD breaking into houses, smashing property, and defecating into kettles and cups.
's sexual crimes unit stated that the incident was being investigated: "At this stage I think it would be fair to say it is a rape and some indecent assaults as well. We have taken a statement from the girl and she states quite categorically that she was not a willing participant on what occurred on that particular occasion and that confirms the basis of the offence. At this stage the primary offence is the sexual offence and that's a serious sexual assault we are investigating."
Of the DVD itself, he said: "It is quite disturbing, very disturbing actually. I can tell you I have seen the video and there is no humour in it. The girl is the victim of a serious crime, she's very traumatised, the parents are very traumatised, and anyone who thinks this is a bit of a joke perhaps must have a good look at themselves."
The parents of three boys allegedly involved approached police, asking that their sons be formally questioned as part of the investigation. The move followed a police raid on the home of one of the group's members.
On 7 March 2007, eight youths were charged over the DVD and appeared in the Melbourne Children's Court on 27 April 2007 on charges of assault, manufacturing child pornography and procuring sexual penetration by intimidation.
Eight of the youths pleaded guilty and were required to participate in a sexual offenders program. The remaining four denied the charges.
On 5 November 2007, all eight of the boys involved (aged between 15 and 17 at the time of offending) were ordered to participate in a rehabilitation program for male adolescents about positive sexuality. Seven had convictions recorded against them. Six were placed on youth supervision orders for between 12 and 18 months and two on probation for 12 months.
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
produced by a group of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
based high school students who refer to themselves as "The Teenage Kings of Werribee". The film, depicting graphic violence and degradation of people in the Werribee
Werribee, Victoria
Werribee is a city in Melbourne, Australia, 32 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Wyndham. At the 2006 Census, Werribee had a population of 36,641. Statistically, Werribee is considered part of Greater Melbourne.Werribee is...
area of Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, caused widespread controversy after excerpts were broadcast by television current affairs program Today Tonight
Today Tonight
Today Tonight is a controversial Australian News and Current Affairs program, produced by the Seven Network and shown weeknightly at in direct competition with rival Nine Network program A Current Affair....
on 23 October 2006, and led to a police investigation about the content.
Background
Believed to have been filmed in June 2006, the DVD shows twelve boys - all aged under 18 - making chlorine bombChlorine bomb
A chlorine bomb is a small-scale explosive device using the pressure of chemically produced chlorine gas to produce an explosion. It is made with an airtight container part-filled with rubbing alcohol or similar solvent...
s, harassing a homeless man, throwing eggs at taxi drivers, participating in fights at local parties, and also shows media coverage of incidents that they claim to have been involved in. The footage depicts the group sexually assaulting and humiliating a 17-year-old girl, who has a condition described by The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
as a "mild development delay
Developmental disability
Developmental disability is a term used in the United States and Canada to describe lifelong disabilities attributable to mental or physical impairments, manifested prior to age 18. It is not synonymous with "developmental delay" which is often a consequence of a temporary illness or trauma during...
". Several of the boys were filmed urinating on the girl, setting her hair on fire, forcing her to participate in sexual activity, and also throwing items of her clothing into the Werribee River
Werribee River
The Werribee River is located on the plain west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The headwaters of a tributary, the Lerderderg River, are north of Ballan near Daylesford and it flows across the basalt plain, through the suburb of Werribee to enter Port Phillip. A linear park follows the Werribee...
, where the incident took place. During this time, one boy approaches the camera and states, "What the fuck, she's the ugliest thing I've even seen." The girl had previously communicated with two of the boys using MSN Messenger, and had arranged to meet them at a Werribee shopping centre; when she arrived at Werribee Station, the group of twelve walked with her to the Werribee River.
It is alleged that the group posted segments of the DVD on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
during 2006, with a video entitled Pimp My Wife viewed over 2500 times. On 25 October, the video was removed from the website "due to terms of use violation."
On 29 October rumours emerged of a sequel, titled CTM2, which apparently depicts some of the youths involved in the first DVD breaking into houses, smashing property, and defecating into kettles and cups.
Police response
Detective Inspector Simon Clemence of Victoria PoliceVictoria Police
Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of Victoria, Australia. , the Victoria Police has over 12,190 sworn members, along with over 400 recruits, reservists and Protective Service Officers, and over 2,900 civilian staff across 393 police stations.-Early history:The Victoria Police...
's sexual crimes unit stated that the incident was being investigated: "At this stage I think it would be fair to say it is a rape and some indecent assaults as well. We have taken a statement from the girl and she states quite categorically that she was not a willing participant on what occurred on that particular occasion and that confirms the basis of the offence. At this stage the primary offence is the sexual offence and that's a serious sexual assault we are investigating."
Of the DVD itself, he said: "It is quite disturbing, very disturbing actually. I can tell you I have seen the video and there is no humour in it. The girl is the victim of a serious crime, she's very traumatised, the parents are very traumatised, and anyone who thinks this is a bit of a joke perhaps must have a good look at themselves."
The parents of three boys allegedly involved approached police, asking that their sons be formally questioned as part of the investigation. The move followed a police raid on the home of one of the group's members.
On 7 March 2007, eight youths were charged over the DVD and appeared in the Melbourne Children's Court on 27 April 2007 on charges of assault, manufacturing child pornography and procuring sexual penetration by intimidation.
Eight of the youths pleaded guilty and were required to participate in a sexual offenders program. The remaining four denied the charges.
On 5 November 2007, all eight of the boys involved (aged between 15 and 17 at the time of offending) were ordered to participate in a rehabilitation program for male adolescents about positive sexuality. Seven had convictions recorded against them. Six were placed on youth supervision orders for between 12 and 18 months and two on probation for 12 months.
Reactions
- On 24 October 2006, the girl's father was interviewed on 774 ABC Melbourne774 ABC Melbourne774 ABC Melbourne is an ABC Local Radio station in Melbourne, Australia. Originally known by its callsign 3LO, it began transmission on 13 October 1924 – Melbourne's second radio station after 3AR.-History:...
by host Jon FaineJon FaineJon Faine is an Australian radio presenter and host of a morning program on 774 ABC in Melbourne.Faine was born in Dunedin, New Zealand, and emigrated to Sydney with his parents at a young age. Later they moved to Melbourne, where he attended Melbourne High School.In the late 1970s and early 1980s...
. He stated, "We are going to pursue this to the end to ensure justice comes. It's a horrible, horrible thing that's happened to my daughter." - Steve BracksSteve BracksStephen Philip Bracks AC is a former Australian politician and the 44th Premier of Victoria. He first won the electoral district of Williamstown in 1994 for the Australian Labor Party, and was party leader and Premier from 1999 to 2007....
, Former Premier of Victoria, commented on the DVD on 24 October: "Frankly I think it's behaviour which the whole of the Victorian community will reject and I know the police are investigating the matter." - Mary Bluett, the president of the Victorian branch of the Australian Education UnionAustralian Education UnionThe Australian Education Union is an Australian trade union, founded in 1984 as the Australian Teachers Union, which is registered with Fair Work Australia as an employee group, and is affiliated with the Australian Council of Trade Unions...
, which represents teachers in the public education sector, stated: "Parents and schools have to be ever vigilant and aware that young people will act in that way and imitate shows like JackassJackass (TV series)jackass is an American reality series, originally shown on MTV from 2000 to 2002, featuring people performing various dangerous, crude, ridiculous, self-injuring stunts and pranks...
, which humiliate people." - When interviewed by the Nine NetworkNine NetworkThe Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
, child psychologist Dr. John Cheetham said, "It's the sort of behaviour you would expect in a prison camp. It's something like a flashback to the Second World WarWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and the way the Jews were treated." - Helen CoonanHelen CoonanHelen Lloyd Coonan is a former Australian politician, who was a Liberal member of the Australian Senate representing New South Wales from July 1996 to August 2011.-Early life:...
, the federal Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, said that the use of the internet by the group was "a sobering reminder of the underbelly of the internet. While undoubtedly it is a remarkable resource with many positive uses, its ubiquity across the globe means criminal acts are increasingly being captured on video and streamed around the world in seconds." - Johnny KnoxvilleJohnny KnoxvillePhilip John Clapp , better known by his stage name Johnny Knoxville, is an American actor, comedian, screenwriter, stunt performer, best known for being the co-creator and principal star of the MTV reality series Jackass, with the catchphrase "I'm Johnny Knoxville, and welcome to Jackass."-Early...
, the principal star of the Jackass series, denied suggestions that the series may have inspired the DVD, saying: "We're not mean spirited, we're not evil...Shoot those little bastards." - Some of the young men involved in the DVD are unrepentant, reportedly "boasting and laughing" about the incident.
- When interviewed on radio on 26 October, Shane Bourke - the mayor of the City of Wyndham, which includes the suburb of Werribee - had been "an eye-opener not just for our community, but for the rest of Australia." He also said that "what these young people have done is disgusting and abhorrent."
- Les TwentymanLes TwentymanLeslie Jack "Les" Twentyman AO is a prominent youth outreach worker and community activist in the western suburbs of Melbourne, Australia. Raised in Braybrook, he is one of Victoria's best known social campaigners, on issues ranging from homelessness, drug abuse, prison reform and social...
, a prominent Melbourne social worker, called for an "urgent summit" to address teenage gangs - which represented "signs now of a youth culture that's thumbing their nose at our quality of life" - in the city following the DVD's media coverage. - John North, president of the Law Council of Australia, stated that any persons found to have been involved in the making of the DVD should not be publicly named. He said: "It's appalling behaviour, it's outrageous behaviour, but we shouldn't punish it with that feeling of retribution and revenge. We should try and make sure that people are punished properly if they commit a crime but that the rest of their lives aren't ruined, and some of these people might be quite young and some of them might be quite easily led by stronger peer group pressure."
- On 27 October, Former Prime Minister of Australia John HowardJohn HowardJohn Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
commented that the DVD was "appalling, and I hope [the people involved] are caught." - Lynne KoskyLynne KoskyLynne Janice Kosky is a former Australian politician and senior minister in the Parliament of Victoria. She represented the electoral district of Altona in the Victorian Legislative Assembly for the Australian Labor Party from 1996 to 2010...
, Victoria's Minister for Education, cancelled a planned visit to Werribee Secondary College on 27 October, with a spokesperson stating that this was to allow for the school to focus on student welfare. A teacher at the school reported that students in uniform and teachers had been abused in the wake of public controversy, and that "just when we most need some support [Kosky's] visit has been pulled."