Kingdom Hall bombing; the Leonard Warwick trial

[➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone]

Guilty!

Old (Downunder) Tone

[hatcheckgirl]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-23/leonard-warwick-family-court-bomber-found-guilty/12483286
 

Guilty

[Ferb]

On 7/21/2020 at 11:56 PM, bagwell1987 said:

The pic of this madman is horrifying. He looks absolutely evil. There are so many like him now.

They always do though.  You know if you pause your TV at a random moment, the person in halfway through speaking usually looks really weird, so it's easy to make someone look that way.  I've never known a picture of the accused in a news article not look horrifying, even when they turn out totally innocent.

[CHecker]

28 minutes ago, Ferb said:

They always do though.  You know if you pause your TV at a random moment, the person in halfway through speaking usually looks really weird, so it's easy to make someone look that way.  I've never known a picture of the accused in a news article not look horrifying, even when they turn out totally innocent.

I was referring to the middle finger he showed for the camera. Ultimate defiance.

[Fiona]

Yeah, I noticed the middle.finger also. So glad he got guilty. Sentencing next month.

Sent from my SM-G930F using Tapatalk

[Sheep]

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-23/leonard-warwick-family-court-bomber-found-guilty/12483286

 

Quote

A man has been found guilty of three murders and a string of bombings in Sydney in the 1980s following a feud with his ex-wife.

https://au.news.yahoo.com/sydney-family-court-bomber-leonard-warwick-found-guilty-062428814.html

 

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A terrifying chapter in Australia's history has ended with Leonard Warwick being found guilty of a series of brazen Sydney murders and bombings related to his Family Court battles.

https://www.newcastlestar.com.au/story/6847152/warwick-found-guilty-of-family-court-bombs/

 

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More than three decades after his bitter Family Court battles, Leonard Warwick has been convicted of murdering a judge, another judge's wife and a man attending church.

The only charge he wasn't found guilty on was the killing of his brother-in-law.

 

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The judge acquitted Warwick of murdering his brother-in-law Stephen Blanchard, whose body was found with bricks attached around his waist in a national park creek, far from where he was said to have been shot dead. "I am not satisfied that Mr Blanchard had any connection of any relevance or significance to the accused's family law proceedings," he said. It was highly likely a minimum of two people were involved in the murder and there was no direct evidence which connected Warwick to the crime.

I don't think it was a difficult decision to find him guilty of the bombing of the Kingdom Hall, since his DNA was found on the premises. That came to be his undoing.

 

Quote

Central to his guilty verdicts was his findings on the final event, the explosion which ripped apart the Jehovah's Witnesses hall. The bomb, which had been placed under the stage, killed Mr Wykes and seriously injured 13 other members of the congregation, which had offered support to Ms Blanchard. The judge was satisfied Warwick had broken into the hall one week earlier as a reconnaissance, breaking a window resulting in his bleeding onto the carpet and cardboard boxes.

So this means he was found guilty on only 20 of the charges against him. I don't know whether or not they have capital punishment down under, or just life imprisonment. But whatever his sentence, it won't make much difference. We have to wait until August to find out what the sentence will be. But from Jehovah's standpoint, the only thing that will totally remove all of Warwick's guilt would be his own death.—Romans 6:7, 23.

 

[Sheep]

5 hours ago, Thomas Walker said:

The wife in question had a sister, who was a JW. So the Cong gave this woman the assistance of some brothers to get her things out of the house quickly and safely, moving her to another part of the state.

 

So, this man then proceeded to plant a bomb under the stage of the Kingdom Hall, and there were casualties. (Notably, Peter and Susie Schultz, who are currently serving at the Brooklyn Bethel. I'm not sure which one, but one of the Monthly Broadcasts has them being interviewed by Geoffrey Jackson.) He planted the bomb to go off with the blast aiming out at the audience, but it fell over, and instead  up, and blew the Public Talk Speaker straight out the roof. (He survived, and continued to give talks, with the assistance of two walking sticks. He remains a strongly active and respected brother to this day.)

Thanks for the background. I was never clear on the relationship between Leonard Warwick's wife and Jehovah's Witnesses. It was only stated in the news that the congregation had helped her in some unstated way. So your story fills in a lot of the blanks.

 

As for Peter and Sue Schulz, their interview was in the March 2016 monthly broadcast. The stand-alone video of the interview is here.

[Sheep]

There have been a couple of articles recently that shed more light on some details of the trial, and other things of interest. For example:

 

https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=7d4b837c-7b74-4c19-8a46-ec895ac47902

provides some background information about the history of the killings and bombings:

(This link only appears to work once, after which it needs a subscription.)

 

It also provides an interesting quote:

 

Quote

“If you want to see the face of ‘terrorism’ in Australia then this is it.” described Greens MP, David Shoebridge, in relation to Mr Warwick.

https://pannulawyers.com.au/family-court-bomber-found-guilty-of-murders/

reports what kind of sentence we could expect...

 

Quote

Murder shall be taken to have been committed where the act of the accused, or thing by him or her omitted to be done, causing the death charged, was done or omitted with reckless indifference to human life, or with intent to kill or inflict grievous bodily harm upon some person, or done in an attempt to commit, or during or immediately after the commission, by the accused, or some accomplice with him or her, of a crime punishable by imprisonment for life or for 25 years.

See the video in this article:

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/leonard-john-warwick-found-guilty-of-family-court-bombings-20200723-p55esl.html

 

Statement from the Family Court of Australia in response to outcome of the trial of Leonard John Warwick:

https://lst.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/18MR_WARWICK-STATEMENT_23-July-2020.pdf

[Sheep]

The sentencing of this case is scheduled for this Wednesday evening, Australian Eastern Standard Time. It can be viewed live.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrUToXO4TnU

 

For those in North America, it will be Wednesday morning (5:45 Eastern Time, and earlier in points west).

 

[Sheep]

Concerning the above: I thought the date and time mentioned at that YouTube link was Australian NSW time. However it is not. The time mentioned there is your local date and time, so you don't have to worry about converting it. I have been clarified on that by @hatcheckgirl, who lives Down Under. (Thank you Lucy.)

[Sheep]

An investigative background story on Leonard Warwick will appear on 7 News Spotlight in Australia on the weekend.

 

https://tvtonight.com.au/2020/08/7news-spotlight-aug-23.html

https://tvblackbox.com.au/page/2020/08/19/how-the-family-court-bomber-was-caught-on-7news-spotlight/

 

In those links it mentions a previous investigative story from a few years ago. I remember seeing that story, but I can't find a link to it.

 

At the time of this post, we are about nine hours away from the sentencing hearing.

[Sheep]

The hearing has just finished, lasting about two hours. The crown attorney recommended life in prison, but sentencing has been adjourned to September 3.

 

The crown related many details about the means of killing, or attempting to kill, the judges involved in the Family Court cases, and other victims. This included how the bombs had been fabricated. Details were also given regarding the bomb used to blow up the Kingdom Hall in Casula on July 21, 1985. It was said that bomb was specifically designed with the intent of killing or injuring as many as possible who were present. The congregation was targeted because they had aided Warwick's ex-wife and their daughter to relocate to a safer vicinity out of danger from Warwick.

 

Victim impact statements were read to the court. Virtually all the victims said they are affected in some way until this day, 35-40 years following the crimes, including feeling high anxiety and stress. They were all fearful they will never overcome the trauma. Others became emotional during the delivery of their statements, their voices cracking under the stress as they were relating their experiences.

 

Victim impact statements of many of our brothers and sisters were also read to the court, who had been present at the Kingdom Hall bomb blast. First, the court heard from Jo Wykes, the wife of Graham Wykes who was killed in the explosion. She related how the last words she heard her husband say were "I love you." He died immediately after. She also told of the trauma of going through their wedding anniversary alone the following month. Graham Wykes' daugher Alaine also delivered her statement, and she described her injuries. She had been advised following that event that she not look in the mirror because of the injuries she sustained, not even recognizing herself. It was difficult to listen to without losing my own composure. Peter and Sue Schulz, mentioned in the opening post of this topic, had their statements read. A court agent read theirs, describing in detail their injuries. Those injuries were spoken of to some extent in their interview. Others who were present in the Kingdom Hall at the time had their statements read, also by the agent of the court. So we were well represented, able to give a witness to the court relating how their faith supported them following that day.

[hatcheckgirl]

Eric, really appreciate you keeping us up to date on this horrific criminal case. It brings back memories of the shock we all felt when we heard of what had happened. I was pioneering in Sydney then, I remember feeling very shocked, yet amazed not more of our brothers were killed. Thanks again for your diligent follow up.  We know it is such a comfort to know true justice will be delivered very soon.

[hatcheckgirl]

It is newsworthy after all! Most of the news is about the coronavirus second wave, so I’m amazed they reported it.

 

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-08-20/family-court-bomber-victim-impact-statement/12577810

 

 

[Sheep]

Yes, all kinds of articles are out on yesterday's hearing. They're calling for three life sentences. However the fact that he is already 73 years old was mentioned there. Warwick was described by many colourful adjectives during the address of the Crown attorney. After all this, Warwick still claims he is innocent.

 

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/hateful-extremely-wicked-prosecutor-calls-for-leonard-warwick-to-be-jailed-for-life-20200820-p55nkk.html

https://www.9news.com.au/national/family-court-bomber-leonard-john-warwick-victims-last-words-to-wife-i-love-you/06dc3431-eba3-41ed-9ae3-968b0c345f85

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/breaking-news/family-court-bomber-leonard-warwick-expresses-no-remorse/news-story/2012a3348edf286224fdfcc285779a80

https://www.youngwitness.com.au/story/6887090/sydney-bombers-victims-tell-of-their-pain/?cs=9397

[Romain]

Thanks Éric for keeping us to date about that case. At the time it happened my grandparents weren't even in the Truth yet, so they had never heard of that before. Now I know and what happened to this congregation was awful. Hopefully Jehovah was there to comfort our brothers and sisters who lived this tragic moment...

[Sheep]

"Unspeakable evil". That is how the judge described Leonard Warwick's attack on a congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses. He sentenced him to die in jail.

 

Quote

A man who carried out a calculated and hateful campaign against judges and their families in retaliation for decisions made during Family Court proceedings has been handed three life sentences without parole and will die in jail.

 

. . .

 

Not content with such attacks, the offender – in a final act of unspeakable evil – then sought to wreak revenge on innocent members of the [Jehovah's Witness] congregation.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/unspeakable-evil-leonard-warwick-to-die-in-jail-for-family-court-bombings-20200903-p55s00.html

 

"Calculated, violent and hateful". He had no kind words to say to the remorseless Warwick, who still denies his involvement in any of the crimes of which he was convicted.

 

Quote

In his sentencing today, Supreme Court Justice Peter Garling said Warwick's crimes "cannot be viewed as anything other than an attack on the very foundations of Australian democracy".

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-03/family-court-bomber-leonard-warwick-jailed-for-life/12624080

[Sheila]

Today I watched the 49 minute programme on Leonard Warwick and the crimes this absolutely evil person committed.  His wife was  a Jehovahs Witness and the congregation helped her and her young daughter move (hide) away from the area they had been living.  He retaliated by harming anyone involved who helped his wife during the custody dispute.  First her brother was shot in his bed but Warwick was found not guilty.  He then shot a Family Court judge at his front door; bombed the house of another Family Court judge (fortunately killing none of the three people inside);  blew up the Family Court Courthouse in Paramatta (no casualties); blew up a third Family Court judges home, killing the judges wife; placed a bomb in the car of the Family Court solicitor acting for his wife.   THEN, blew up the Kingdom Hall in Casula, Sydney where 125 congregation members were meeting, killing Brother Graham Wykes who was giving a talk.   His totally distraught wife gave the little girl back to this monster and the violence stopped.   He was finally nailed by his own DNA - a blood sample taken at the time of a break-in at the Kingdom Hall the night before the explosion.   Blood splatter was left after he cut himself on broken glass whilst entering the building - DNA testing was unknown back in 1985.    A dreadful and ghastly experience for the witnesses involved, many would've had nightmares for years.   We were at an Assembly at the time, and the Circuit Overseer gave the sad news after lunch that day.   Its taken over 30 years, but justice has finally been served. 

 

I'm not sure if the wife is still in the truth.

 

 

[Sheep]

3 hours ago, Sheila said:

Today I watched the 49 minute programme on Leonard Warwick and the crimes this absolutely evil person committed.  His wife was  a Jehovahs Witness and the congregation helped her and her young daughter move (hide) away from the area they had been living.  He retaliated by harming anyone involved who helped his wife during the custody dispute.  First her brother was shot in his bed but Warwick was found not guilty.  He then shot a Family Court judge at his front door; bombed the house of another Family Court judge (fortunately killing none of the three people inside);  blew up the Family Court Courthouse in Paramatta (no casualties); blew up a third Family Court judges home, killing the judges wife; placed a bomb in the car of the Family Court solicitor acting for his wife.   THEN, blew up the Kingdom Hall in Casula, Sydney where 125 congregation members were meeting, killing Brother Graham Wykes who was giving a talk.   His totally distraught wife gave the little girl back to this monster and the violence stopped.   He was finally nailed by his own DNA - a blood sample taken at the time of a break-in at the Kingdom Hall the night before the explosion.   Blood splatter was left after he cut himself on broken glass whilst entering the building - DNA testing was unknown back in 1985.    A dreadful and ghastly experience for the witnesses involved, many would've had nightmares for years.   We were at an Assembly at the time, and the Circuit Overseer gave the sad news after lunch that day.   Its taken over 30 years, but justice has finally been served. 

 

I'm not sure if the wife is still in the truth.

I was unclear for a while on the relationship between Warwick's ex-wife and Jehovah's Witnesses. However it was her sister who was a Witness, not her.

 

https://jwtalk.net/topic/44188-kingdom-hall-bombing-the-leonard-warwick-trial/?do=findComment&comment=749202

 

Where is this 49-minute programme you watched?

 

Edited September 3, 2020 by Sheep

[➕👇 ꓤꓱꓷꓠꓵ🎵Tone]

It might be this show. It runs 50min.

Channel 7 (Australia) ran it called: Catching  a Madman.

You can watch it from their app called '7plus'.

Old (Downunder) Tone
 

Edited September 3, 2020 by Maʹher-shalʹal-hash-baz

[Sequoia]

I don't know if anyone's mentioned this but the was sentenced to three life terms in prison without parole.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/sep/03/family-court-bomber-leonard-warwick-73-sentenced-to-three-life-terms

[Sheep]

22 hours ago, JW2017 said:

I don't know if anyone's mentioned this but the was sentenced to three life terms in prison without parole.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2020/sep/03/family-court-bomber-leonard-warwick-73-sentenced-to-three-life-terms

Yes, it was mentioned above:

https://jwtalk.net/topic/44188-kingdom-hall-bombing-the-leonard-warwick-trial/?do=findComment&comment=758870

 

I hope they give him nothing to do while he's in jail. He'll die of boredom.