From the ABC:

Praise for Rockhampton racism judgement
Saturday Oct 27, 2007

The Queensland Anti-Discrimination Commission has praised a central Queensland judge for recognising that racism motivated the perpetrators of a shooting incident in Rockhampton.

District Court judge David Searle sentenced 19-year-old Hayden John Nitz to two years imprisonment for shooting at several members of the Aboriginal community last year.

A 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl required medical treatment and Judge Searle said the incident reminded him of Alabama in the 1960s.

Anti-Discrimination Commission spokeswoman Neroli Holmes says racially motivated crime can not be tolerated.

“The court has seen fit to identify and make comment that the crime was a racially motivated crime,” she said.

“All agencies and all sectors of society need to recognise that race-based crime and vilification and discrimination are serious issues and need to be taken seriously and dealt with firmly by the police and the courts.”