Sacked paramedic cleared of rape

Sacked paramedic cleared of rape	22.05.2008
A MELBOURNE paramedic has been acquitted of raping a patient in the back of an ambulance, but the Metropolitan Ambulance Service (MAS) says he won`t get his job back because of a separate breach of contract case. The ambulance union today called on the MAS to reinstate sacked paramedic Simon Paul Howe, 33, after a County Court jury found him not guilty of digitally raping a drug-affected female patient in 2006. But the MAS said Mr Howe was sacked because he breached his employment contract - not because of the rape claim - and would not return to work with them, despite today`s verdict. Mr Howe`s counsel, Peter Morrissey, argued Mr Howe was trying to restrain the woman, who was thrashing her arms and legs and masturbating loudly during the short trip to the hospital. He and a colleague had picked up the woman outside a Melbourne nightclub and transported her to the Royal Melbourne Hospital early on November 5, 2006. The woman, 23, cannot be named. Mr Howe was immediately stood down without pay by the MAS and was dismissed in February 2007. Ambulance Employees Australia Victorian secretary Steve McGhie said the MAS should reinstate Mr Howe and apologise because the service had acted as "judge, jury and executioner`` long before the hearing. "This has been one long nightmare for Simon. He is a first class paramedic who had no blemishes in his career,`` Mr McGhie said. "He should now be allowed to get on with his life and get his career back together. "He should be immediately reinstated as a paramedic and be compensated for lost wages. "He should also receive an immediate apology from the Metropolitan Ambulance Service, for being denied natural justice.`` The union also called for Health Minister Daniel Andrews to sack MAS chief executive Greg Sassella, saying his position was now untenable. But the MAS tonight confirmed Mr Howe would not return. "MAS dismissed Mr Howe ... after an internal investigation found him to be in breach of key elements of his employment contract,`` an MAS spokeswoman said. "The breaches related to events during and immediately after the incident, which has been the subject of recent court proceedings. "At the time of his dismissal, MAS made it clear that its decision to dismiss Mr Howe was entirely separate from upcoming court proceedings and was not based on his guilt or otherwise of criminal charges.`` Share this article Digg this Post to del.icio.us Post to Newsvine Post to Facebook Add to kwoff
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	09. 2008

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