David Gaunson
Encyclopedia
David Gaunson was a criminal solicitor
who handled the defence of the infamous
Australia
n bushranger
, Ned Kelly
in the pre-trial stages. He found a loophole in the prosecution case whereby Kelly was not guilty of murder as the police
unit attacking him was out to kill him and thus Kelly fired in self-defence. Unfortunately, this argument was not carried by the defence lawyer in the actual trial and Kelly went to hang.
At the dawn of the 20th century, Gaunson became involved with John Wren
, a businessman who ran illegal betting houses for Australian rules football
in the Irish slum of Collingwood
, Melbourne
. The police eventually caught up with Wren and Wren went to Gaunson for help. What happened is not clear, but Gaunson managed to get the police off the back of Wren. Gaunson advised Wren on the best ways to cover-up his illegal betting houses and Wren became the patron saint of Collingwood
football.
Gaunson remained a prominent figure throughout his life and the Wren affair was not discovered until much later in the 1950s. His role in the Wren machine is famously depicted in the Frank Hardy
novel, Power Without Glory
.
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
who handled the defence of the infamous
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...
n bushranger
Bushranger
Bushrangers, or bush rangers, originally referred to runaway convicts in the early years of the British settlement of Australia who had the survival skills necessary to use the Australian bush as a refuge to hide from the authorities...
, Ned Kelly
Ned Kelly
Edward "Ned" Kelly was an Irish Australian bushranger. He is considered by some to be merely a cold-blooded cop killer — others, however, consider him to be a folk hero and symbol of Irish Australian resistance against the Anglo-Australian ruling class.Kelly was born in Victoria to an Irish...
in the pre-trial stages. He found a loophole in the prosecution case whereby Kelly was not guilty of murder as the police
Police
The police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
unit attacking him was out to kill him and thus Kelly fired in self-defence. Unfortunately, this argument was not carried by the defence lawyer in the actual trial and Kelly went to hang.
At the dawn of the 20th century, Gaunson became involved with John Wren
John Wren
John Wren was an Australian businessman. He has become a legendary figure thanks mainly to a fictionalised account of his life in Frank Hardy's novel Power Without Glory, which was also made into a television series...
, a businessman who ran illegal betting houses for Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
in the Irish slum of Collingwood
Collingwood, Victoria
Collingwood is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Yarra...
, 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...
. The police eventually caught up with Wren and Wren went to Gaunson for help. What happened is not clear, but Gaunson managed to get the police off the back of Wren. Gaunson advised Wren on the best ways to cover-up his illegal betting houses and Wren became the patron saint of Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
football.
Gaunson remained a prominent figure throughout his life and the Wren affair was not discovered until much later in the 1950s. His role in the Wren machine is famously depicted in the Frank Hardy
Frank Hardy
Francis Joseph Hardy, or Frank, was an Australian left-wing novelist and writer best known for his controversial novel Power Without Glory. He also was a political activist bringing the plight of Aboriginal Australians to international attention with the publication of his book, The Unlucky...
novel, Power Without Glory
Power Without Glory
Power Without Glory is a 1950 novel written by Australian writer Frank Hardy. It was later adapted into a mini-series by the Australian Broadcasting Commission .- Publication :...
.