Dr Ash Gordon: Grieving family of young doctor allegedly stabbed to death pleads for tougher youth crime laws after teen charged over horror fatal crash skipped bail
The grieving sister of a young doctor allegedly stabbed to death by two teenagers has called for tougher sentences after a 17-year-old accused of being involved in a fatal crash breached his bail conditions.
Dr Ash Gordon, 33, died in the early hours of January 13 after a suspected burglary at his home in Doncaster, Melbourne’s east.
He was allegedly murdered by two 16-year-olds, one of whom was on bail, during a botched burglary.
Dr Gordon’s sister Natalie is now calling for tougher sentences for teenage offenders, following the tragic death of a 17-year-old driver in Melbourne last week.
The teenager is accused of being behind the wheel of a suspected stolen Jeep Cherokee that collided with a Toyota Corolla driven by 28-year-old junior doctor William Taylor at a junction in Burwood in the city’s east.
Mr Taylor, who was returning from football training, died at the scene.
The 17-year-old was charged with drink-driving causing death, dangerous driving causing death, failing to stop and render aid, theft of a motor vehicle and driving without a licence.
But he reportedly breached his bail conditions just two days after they were imposed by failing to report to police and is now back in custody.
Dr Ash Gordon (pictured), 33, died in the early hours of January 13 after his Doncaster home was reportedly broken into. He was allegedly murdered by two 16-year-olds, one of whom was on bail at the time, in a burglary gone wrong
Ms Gordon said she was “not at all surprised” by the alleged breaches of bail rules.
“Unfortunately, more often than not, they reoffend, so why do we let them back into society?” she said. A current case on Wednesday evening.
Ms Gordon has started a petition calling for tougher measures against young offenders.
“The community is fed up with these problems happening over and over again,” she said.
‘These kids are constantly stealing cars, breaking into houses and just scaring the community.
‘So often people want to sign more than once.’
The grieving sister said she believes the government should change the laws to make it “harder to grant bail and easier to keep prisoners in prison.”
Dr Gordon’s sister Natalie has now called for tougher sentences for teenagers accused of serious crimes, following another tragic death in Melbourne’s east last week.
“I really believe we need to introduce tougher sentences for less serious offences so we can prevent them from getting to this point in their lives,” Ms Gordon said.
‘We really need to re-educate people on how to properly discipline children, so that they learn from an early age that you can’t treat people like that.
‘Things like ankle monitoring systems only work with young people who still have a conscience. And by the time they get to that stage, they’re unfortunately too far gone.’
Mrs Gordon said the care workers she dealt with after her brother’s death were equally frustrated.
William Taylor, 28, died when a suspected stolen, speeding Jeep driven by teenagers crashed into his Toyota in Melbourne’s inner-city Burwood neighbourhood
Police have launched a manhunt for the 17-year-old, who they believe was behind the wheel of a stolen Jeep Cherokee that collided with Dr Taylor’s Toyota Corolla after he breached his bail. He is now back in custody
“You can see the pain on their faces when they have to tell families like mine what the procedure is likely to be,” Ms Gordon said.
‘The police, the detectives, the emergency workers, they risk their lives every day… they are always the ones who get the criticism, but unfortunately they are just as frustrated as the rest of the community.’
Mrs Gordon said she hoped to make a change in honour of her late brother.
“He always wanted to make a change and he always wanted to treat people the best he could, so he chose the medical path,” she said.
“I’m doing it purely for his memory and to keep his memory alive. His death was not in vain.”
She added: ‘I don’t want any other family to have to go through this pain, but unfortunately there is another family going through this process and I feel for them very much.
“I wish they never had to go through this. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.”