Dozens of police in brawl at Downing Centre court
Emma Partridge
Crime Reporter
SMH
April 15, 2014
Dozens of police officers have been involved in a brawl inside a Sydney court with a family on trial for brawling with police.
One officer was "smacked in the face" during the fight, witness and 2UE court reporter Leonie Ryan said.
A number of police cars circled the Downing Centre at lunchtime on Tuesday.
The fight broke out minutes after Adel, Hussain and Ali Mehanna were convicted of numerous offences, including affray, resisting arrest and
assaulting police during a fight that broke out outside their Bankstown home on January 1, 2013.
Five Mehanna family members were facing police assault charges after the brawl.
Ali Mehanna, who was allegedly involved in Tuesday's scrum on level four, kept screaming: "This is police brutality."
Ryan said Adel Mehanna was inside the dock of the courtroom when he started screaming: "I'm going to f---ing kill you."
Officers then stormed in as Corrective Services attempted to take him away.
"We walked out of court, we were standing outside the doors and all of a sudden we just hear screaming. We turned around and it was almost like a football match brawl," she said.
"There were punches being thrown everywhere. It was just fists flying everywhere and screaming."
She said one police officer was punched in the face before a man was tackled to the ground and handcuffed.
Rafah Mehanna is taken out of the Downing Centre Court after her family Rioted inside the Downing Centre Court
Ali Mehanna told reporters outside the court that his brother, who was arrested over the brawl, was the victim of an "unprovoked attack".
"They provoked my brother as he walked out, they found a reason and then 'bang' they jumped on him," Ali Mehanna said.
"There was officers outside of the courtroom, there was no need for officers to be outside of the courtroom and then as we were leaving there was six or seven of them."
Family supporter Hassan Anthony kept repeating the words "police brutality".
"They hit him [a family] to the face, they kneed him in the back," Mr Anthony said.
"There was no mercy, all because they [police officers] are wearing the colour blue," he said.
The case continues.
Police used "excessive force" in dealing with a dispute involving members of a western Sydney family accused of assaulting officers, a court has been told.
Ninemsn
Jan.3 2013
Members of the Mehanna family have been charged with assaulting police, resisting police and affray after police responded to reports of a domestic incident at their home in Bankstown, in Sydney's west, at 12.30am (AEDT) on Wednesday.
Police allege members of the family assaulted officers after they were called to the scene.
As police were in the driveway preparing to leave, a family member allegedly punched a probationary constable, giving him a black eye, police said on Wednesday.
The remaining family members allegedly joined the assault on the officer before other officers came to his aid.
On Thursday, five members of the family were granted bail after appearing via an audio-visual link from the cells at Penrith police station.
As part of their bail conditions, Mohammed Mehanna and his 18-year-old triplets Ali and Zainab Mehanna and Hussain Mehanni are required to report twice a week to Bankstown police station and must live at their Bankstown address.
Another sibling, 21-year old Adele Mehanna, who is charged with affray and resisting police, was also granted bail in a separate hearing.
Appearing for Adele Mehanna, defence lawyer Greg Heathcote told the court there were "two sides to the story" and police had reacted "excessively" in dealing with the matter.
"This is a very emotive matter," he told the court.
"The case of the defence in all matters is excessive force by police.
"In trying to prevent assault on members of his family, as a result, (Adele Mehanna) was arrested.
Prosecutors opposed bail on the grounds that Adele Mehanna had prior police assault charges and five breach of bail conditions.
Appearing agitated, Mehanna interjected as the prosecution put forward its case.
"You are going to make things worse.
"It was a family argument between two girls and police pepper-sprayed my f***ing family.
That's my whole f***ing family."
Relatives of the family in court appeared visibly upset, crying as Magistrate John McIntosh asked Mehanna to stop interrupting proceedings.
Mr McIntosh imposed strict bail conditions, including requiring Mehanna to report to Bankstown police daily and imposing a curfew between 10pm and 5am (AEDT).
Mehanna and his four other family members are due to appear at Bankstown local court on January 24.
His 41-year-old mother, who has also been charged, is due to appear Bankstown Local Court on February 13.
Ninemsn
Jan.3 2013
Members of the Mehanna family have been charged with assaulting police, resisting police and affray after police responded to reports of a domestic incident at their home in Bankstown, in Sydney's west, at 12.30am (AEDT) on Wednesday.
Police allege members of the family assaulted officers after they were called to the scene.
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As police were in the driveway preparing to leave, a family member allegedly punched a probationary constable, giving him a black eye, police said on Wednesday.
The remaining family members allegedly joined the assault on the officer before other officers came to his aid.
On Thursday, five members of the family were granted bail after appearing via an audio-visual link from the cells at Penrith police station.
As part of their bail conditions, Mohammed Mehanna and his 18-year-old triplets Ali and Zainab Mehanna and Hussain Mehanni are required to report twice a week to Bankstown police station and must live at their Bankstown address.
Another sibling, 21-year old Adele Mehanna, who is charged with affray and resisting police, was also granted bail in a separate hearing.
Appearing for Adele Mehanna, defence lawyer Greg Heathcote told the court there were "two sides to the story" and police had reacted "excessively" in dealing with the matter.
"This is a very emotive matter," he told the court.
"The case of the defence in all matters is excessive force by police.
"In trying to prevent assault on members of his family, as a result, (Adele Mehanna) was arrested.
Prosecutors opposed bail on the grounds that Adele Mehanna had prior police assault charges and five breach of bail conditions.
Appearing agitated, Mehanna interjected as the prosecution put forward its case.
"You are going to make things worse.
"It was a family argument between two girls and police pepper-sprayed my f***ing family.
That's my whole f***ing family."
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Relatives of the family in court appeared visibly upset, crying as Magistrate John McIntosh asked Mehanna to stop interrupting proceedings.
Mr McIntosh imposed strict bail conditions, including requiring Mehanna to report to Bankstown police daily and imposing a curfew between 10pm and 5am (AEDT).
Mehanna and his four other family members are due to appear at Bankstown local court on January 24.
His 41-year-old mother, who has also been charged, is due to appear Bankstown Local Court on February 13.
Mother, Rafah Mehanna 41
Daughter Zainab 18
Father Mohamed Mehanna Mother, Rafah, 41,Ali and Hussain, and daughter Zainab 18, Adel, 21,
Father Mohamed Mehanna
