Road menace’s last chance

A YOUNG road menace whose neck was broken during an assault at the children’s unit of Lara’s Barwon Prison has been given two weeks to turn his life around by a Supreme Court judge.

The 16-year-old boy has a history of motor vehicle thefts, driving offences and burglaries, which began when he was 13, and refused bail repeatedly after a series of thefts and burglaries late last year.

The boy allegedly stole a Subaru and then a Porsche on December 16 which was re- corded travelling at 179km/h on EastLink.

He stole another luxury vehicle on December 29, when he was arrested and taken in to custody.

In January, the boy was transferred to the Barwon Prison’s Grevillea Unit — the controversial facility set up in the wake of riots at Malmsbury and Parkville.

At the unit, the boy claims he was assaulted by a staff member on January 14, and then set upon by three detainees on January 26 in an assault that left him with a fractured neck.

The boy has a tragic his- tory. His mother was 14 and his father 15 when he was born. The family has a long history of involvement with authorities, and his father recently suffered a drug overdose and grave fears are held for his health.

Justice Lex Lasry said holding the boy at the Grevillea Unit was “appalling” and granted provisional bail with strict conditions, ordering him to reappear in a fortnight.

“Any breach will result in revocation of bail,” Justice Lasry said.

“You’ve basically got two weeks to turn your life around.”