news, crime, Morgan Facer
A former childcare worker says she “felt sick to the stomach” after acting as the getaway driver for violent “vigilantes”. Morgan Facer, 25, last month told the ACT Supreme Court she had wanted to “blow off some steam” when she met with a group at Wanderlust Gentleman’s Club on the night of July 9. She said she had an “excessive” amount of cocaine and alcohol and, when a woman in the group became upset and claimed she’d been raped by a man who lived in Spence, Facer drove them to his house. The 25-year-old later told police she was being directed by a man and didn’t initially realise they were bound for Spence. Facer said when the group arrived at the house, she stood in the driveway and later returned to the car once a window of the house had been smashed. She admitted to police that she “knew something bad was going to happen” then, yet “didn’t do anything to stop it”. In a published judgment, Justice Chrissa Loukas-Karlsson detailed what happened once the rest of the group got inside the house. “It was accepted by the prosecution that the offender remained outside and was never inside the house,” the judge said. Justice Loukas-Karlsson said a woman was confronted by five people in her loungeroom about 1.50am on July 10, and one of the men told her, “If you don’t shut up, I’ll knock you out”. The same man pushed the woman’s pregnant daughter into a bedroom, and later swung at the man of the house. The punch didn’t land, but the victim fell backwards onto a bed. Later, the same attacker smashed a decorative glass plate on the victim’s head, and another two men punched the victim. Facer, having waited out the front, later drove the group back to Wanderlust. Three days later, she turned herself in to police. “Words cannot begin to describe how sorry I am for my behaviour and actions,” Facer later said in a letter to the court. “Once I saw that the other parties involved were breaking into the house, I should have called for help or tried to stop them. “Instead, as my thinking was impaired because of the drugs and alcohol I had consumed, I froze, I panicked and I didn’t do enough to stop it or make sure [the victim] and his family were OK.” The 25-year-old said she’d felt sick to her stomach with embarrassment when she’d had to tell her mother about the incident, and put her alcohol and drug consumption that night down to losing her ACT Government job about a week before. Justice Loukas-Karlsson, in sentencing Facer, said the 25-year-old had very good prospects of rehabilitation, no criminal history, and had shown “raw and genuine remorse”. She said she took into account the prosecution’s submission that the incident involved “vigilante justice”. “Vigilante justice is the opposite of what is required in a civilised society and a civilised justice system,” Justice Loukas-Karlsson said. The judge recorded a conviction against Facer for aggravated burglary, and sentenced her to a two-year good behaviour order with 200 hours of community service. The judge noted Facer may not be able to work in childcare again because of the conviction.
/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/fdcx/doc768lyvwfw1u1jm9jth2u.jpg/r0_194_4256_2599_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg
A former childcare worker says she “felt sick to the stomach” after acting as the getaway driver for violent “vigilantes”.
Morgan Facer, 25, last month told the ACT Supreme Court she had wanted to “blow off some steam” when she met with a group at Wanderlust Gentleman’s Club on the night of July 9.
She said she had an “excessive” amount of cocaine and alcohol and, when a woman in the group became upset and claimed she’d been raped by a man who lived in Spence, Facer drove them to his house.
The 25-year-old later told police she was being directed by a man and didn’t initially realise they were bound for Spence.
Facer said when the group arrived at the house, she stood in the driveway and later returned to the car once a window of the house had been smashed. She admitted to police that she “knew something bad was going to happen” then, yet “didn’t do anything to stop it”.
In a published judgment, Justice Chrissa Loukas-Karlsson detailed what happened once the rest of the group got inside the house.
“It was accepted by the prosecution that the offender remained outside and was never inside the house,” the judge said.
Justice Loukas-Karlsson said a woman was confronted by five people in her loungeroom about 1.50am on July 10, and one of the men told her, “If you don’t shut up, I’ll knock you out”.
The same man pushed the woman’s pregnant daughter into a bedroom, and later swung at the man of the house.
The punch didn’t land, but the victim fell backwards onto a bed. Later, the same attacker smashed a decorative glass plate on the victim’s head, and another two men punched the victim.
Facer, having waited out the front, later drove the group back to Wanderlust. Three days later, she turned herself in to police.
“Words cannot begin to describe how sorry I am for my behaviour and actions,” Facer later said in a letter to the court.
“Once I saw that the other parties involved were breaking into the house, I should have called for help or tried to stop them.
“Instead, as my thinking was impaired because of the drugs and alcohol I had consumed, I froze, I panicked and I didn’t do enough to stop it or make sure [the victim] and his family were OK.”
The 25-year-old said she’d felt sick to her stomach with embarrassment when she’d had to tell her mother about the incident, and put her alcohol and drug consumption that night down to losing her ACT Government job about a week before.
Justice Loukas-Karlsson, in sentencing Facer, said the 25-year-old had very good prospects of rehabilitation, no criminal history, and had shown “raw and genuine remorse”.
She said she took into account the prosecution’s submission that the incident involved “vigilante justice”.
“Vigilante justice is the opposite of what is required in a civilised society and a civilised justice system,” Justice Loukas-Karlsson said.
The judge recorded a conviction against Facer for aggravated burglary, and sentenced her to a two-year good behaviour order with 200 hours of community service.
The judge noted Facer may not be able to work in childcare again because of the conviction.
The ACT courts. Picture: Karleen Minney
