Garry David
Encyclopedia
Garry David, also known as Garry Webb, was an Australia
n criminal. Born on 20 November 1954, to Rupert and Betty David. Rupert David is said to have served more time in prison than any other person in the history of the State of Victoria. His mother was an alcoholic and David and his siblings were placed in an orphanage when he was four. From that time until 1972, when he escaped from legal custody, he spent his life in a number of orphanages, boys' homes and youth training centres.
At the age of 11 David began committing various offences including larceny, making threats and offences of dishonesty. When he was 13, he was first diagnosed as having a personality disorder
with psychopathic traits. David was subsequently admitted to psychiatric facilities on eight separate occasions between 1976 and 1984, and was variously diagnosed with antisocial, borderline, histrionic and narcissistic personality disorders. It was during this time that he began self-mutilating to an extreme degree. Among other things, he swallowed razor blades, cut off parts of his ears and his left nipple, injured his genitals, hammered nails into his feet and swallowed corrosive liquids.
In 1982 David was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for the attempted murder
of three people, during a robbery-gone-wrong at a pizza restaurant in Rye, Victoria
. The robbery appeared to be an attempt to draw police into a shootout. The pizza shop owner and one of the responding police officers were severely wounded in the incident, while David was wounded in the legs by police. A news crew spotted David fleeing the scene and he was arrested.
Whilst imprisoned, David wrote many manuscripts, one titled Blueprint for Urban Warfare, which spoke of committing massacres upon his release from prison
. The "Blueprint" listed 49 "combat situations", ranging from horror movie clichés (cigarette machines dispensing severed fingers, drink machines dispensing blood) to far more disturbing scenarios, such as the bombing of bridges and public buildings, the assassination of prominent politicians, the poisoning of water supplies and indiscriminate shooting in public places. David later claimed that he had been instructed to write his more graphic fantasies down as a form of therapy. He also manifested a great deal of hostility to the police force and prison system, resorting to violence and self-mutilation whenever his requests or demands were not met. In January 1990, David was declared mentally ill by government health department officials. The Mental Health Act 1986 entitled David the right to appeal, which he did in February and March 1990. In May 1990 the board found David was not mentally ill and recommended he be discharged as an involuntary patient. This was a consequence of the Board's assertion that a personality disorder is not a mental illness as per the Mental Health Act.
judges the power to hold David in "preventative detention" for twelve months if the judge was convinced by evidence before them that David was still a risk to the community and likely to commit further offences if released from prison.
David was an intelligent man, with significant literary, analytical and computer skills. But as he had a long history of responding to the most minor frustrations with violence, damage to property and self-harm, and refused on principle to co-operate with attempts to reduce such behaviours prior to his re-entry to society, the Supreme Court repeatedly applied the legislation to continue his confinement.
David committed suicide by inflicting wounds upon himself. They led to peritonitis
and he died on 11 June 1993. At the time of his death aged 38, David was still a prisoner and had spent a total of 33 years in various institutions.
A similar act was passed by the Parliament of New South Wales
in an attempt to enforce similar preventative detention against Gregory Wayne Kable. This act was challenged in Kable v Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW) and overturned as unconstitutional.
The song, He's On The Run by Gene Bradley Fisk
was written about David.
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 criminal. Born on 20 November 1954, to Rupert and Betty David. Rupert David is said to have served more time in prison than any other person in the history of the State of Victoria. His mother was an alcoholic and David and his siblings were placed in an orphanage when he was four. From that time until 1972, when he escaped from legal custody, he spent his life in a number of orphanages, boys' homes and youth training centres.
At the age of 11 David began committing various offences including larceny, making threats and offences of dishonesty. When he was 13, he was first diagnosed as having a personality disorder
Personality disorder
Personality disorders, formerly referred to as character disorders, are a class of personality types and behaviors. Personality disorders are noted on Axis II of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders or DSM-IV-TR of the American Psychiatric Association.Personality disorders are...
with psychopathic traits. David was subsequently admitted to psychiatric facilities on eight separate occasions between 1976 and 1984, and was variously diagnosed with antisocial, borderline, histrionic and narcissistic personality disorders. It was during this time that he began self-mutilating to an extreme degree. Among other things, he swallowed razor blades, cut off parts of his ears and his left nipple, injured his genitals, hammered nails into his feet and swallowed corrosive liquids.
In 1982 David was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for the attempted murder
Attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful killing and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
of three people, during a robbery-gone-wrong at a pizza restaurant in Rye, Victoria
Rye, Victoria
Rye is a seaside resort town, approximately 83 km south of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, on the Mornington Peninsula, Victoria, Australia. Its bay beach is popular with swimmers, fishermen, yachtsmen and kitesurfers. Its ocean beach is also popular with surfers...
. The robbery appeared to be an attempt to draw police into a shootout. The pizza shop owner and one of the responding police officers were severely wounded in the incident, while David was wounded in the legs by police. A news crew spotted David fleeing the scene and he was arrested.
Whilst imprisoned, David wrote many manuscripts, one titled Blueprint for Urban Warfare, which spoke of committing massacres upon his release from prison
Prison
A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...
. The "Blueprint" listed 49 "combat situations", ranging from horror movie clichés (cigarette machines dispensing severed fingers, drink machines dispensing blood) to far more disturbing scenarios, such as the bombing of bridges and public buildings, the assassination of prominent politicians, the poisoning of water supplies and indiscriminate shooting in public places. David later claimed that he had been instructed to write his more graphic fantasies down as a form of therapy. He also manifested a great deal of hostility to the police force and prison system, resorting to violence and self-mutilation whenever his requests or demands were not met. In January 1990, David was declared mentally ill by government health department officials. The Mental Health Act 1986 entitled David the right to appeal, which he did in February and March 1990. In May 1990 the board found David was not mentally ill and recommended he be discharged as an involuntary patient. This was a consequence of the Board's assertion that a personality disorder is not a mental illness as per the Mental Health Act.
Community Protection Act
The Victorian Government faced the dilemma of respecting David's right to freedom and the protection of the community upon his release from prison. The government sought to keep David imprisoned indefinitely by introducing the Community Protection Act 1990. That legislation gave Victorian Supreme CourtSupreme Court of Victoria
The Supreme Court of Victoria is the superior court for the State of Victoria, Australia. It was founded in 1852, and is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited jurisdiction within the state...
judges the power to hold David in "preventative detention" for twelve months if the judge was convinced by evidence before them that David was still a risk to the community and likely to commit further offences if released from prison.
David was an intelligent man, with significant literary, analytical and computer skills. But as he had a long history of responding to the most minor frustrations with violence, damage to property and self-harm, and refused on principle to co-operate with attempts to reduce such behaviours prior to his re-entry to society, the Supreme Court repeatedly applied the legislation to continue his confinement.
David committed suicide by inflicting wounds upon himself. They led to peritonitis
Peritonitis
Peritonitis is an inflammation of the peritoneum, the serous membrane that lines part of the abdominal cavity and viscera. Peritonitis may be localised or generalised, and may result from infection or from a non-infectious process.-Abdominal pain and tenderness:The main manifestations of...
and he died on 11 June 1993. At the time of his death aged 38, David was still a prisoner and had spent a total of 33 years in various institutions.
A similar act was passed by the Parliament of New South Wales
Parliament of New South Wales
The Parliament of New South Wales, located in Parliament House on Macquarie Street, Sydney, is the main legislative body in the Australian state of New South Wales . It is a bicameral parliament elected by the people of the state in general elections. The parliament shares law making powers with...
in an attempt to enforce similar preventative detention against Gregory Wayne Kable. This act was challenged in Kable v Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW) and overturned as unconstitutional.
The song, He's On The Run by Gene Bradley Fisk
Gene Bradley Fisk
Gene Bradley Fisk, born in Colac, Victoria is an Australian country singer.Fisk formed his first band called 'The Sidewinders' in 1959.He served in the Royal Australian Air Force for 15 years before embarking on a career in radio as an announcer with 3UZ and 3GL.Fisk currently resides in Geelong...
was written about David.
Quotes
- If Governments are going to lock us in cages and allow us to be treated like animals, society should not expect us to act like men!