Commonwealth DPP v Germakian

The Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions appealed to the Court of Appeal of New South Wales against a decision of Murrell J to grant bail to the respondent, Mr Germakian, who had pleaded guilty to a charge of importing a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug. The appeal concerned the principles applicable to a Crown appeal against the grant of bail.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the judge below had erred in law in granting bail, considering the seriousness of the offence and the respondent's guilty plea. The central issue was the application of the principles governing bail applications in circumstances where a defendant has already been convicted.

The Court of Appeal, comprising Ipp JA, Tobias JA, and Basten JA, found that the judge had erred in law. Their Honours applied the principles that, following a guilty verdict, the presumption of innocence no longer applies, and the court must consider the likelihood of the defendant absconding or reoffending. The Court held that the judge had failed to give sufficient weight to these factors and had not adequately considered the public interest in ensuring the respondent attended his sentencing hearing.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal ordered that the conditional bail granted by Judge Murrell on 22 September 2006 be revoked.