By Andy Young 

Anti-lockout pressure group Keep Sydney Open’s plans to run a rally in Kings Cross on Saturday night were crushed by the Supreme Court on Friday.

NSW Police Commissioner, Andrew Scipione, headed to the Supreme Court to stop the planned night rally, arguing that a crowd of 7000 people would be too dangerous in the Kings Cross area on a Saturday night. In putting the case forward Scipione said that he “would, or might well, support a public protest in an open area during daylight hours” but added he had concerns regarding public safety and crowd management given that the event was to be held “at night and in a confined, semi-residential area”.

The Supreme Court also noted: “The proposed event involves large logistical questions about crowd management that bear upon the safety of participants, and the general community in the vicinity of the venue. The defendants have endeavoured to cater for the orderly conduct of the event (for example) by arranging for volunteer marshals to assist in crowd control, and for St John Ambulance officers to be available to render medical assistance, if required. They have not, however, made comprehensive arrangements (for example) for the control of traffic and pedestrians – they rely upon the police for that – and they do not presently have insurance cover in the event of misadventure.”

Read more here.

This story first appeared in The Shout. 

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