R v AC (No 4)

[2016] NSWSC 354

Supreme Court

New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation:	R v AC (No 4) [2016] NSWSC 354
Hearing dates:	29 March 2016
Date of orders:	29 March 2016
Decision date:	29 March 2016
Jurisdiction:	Common Law - Criminal
Before:	Hamill J
Decision:	Bail refused.
Catchwords:	CRIMINAL – application for bail - bail refused
Legislation Cited:	Court Suppression Act 2010 (NSW)
Category:	Procedural and other rulings
Parties:	Regina Witness M
Representation:	Counsel: K McKay & P Hogan (Crown) H Dhanji (Witness M)   Solicitors: Solicitor for the NSW DPP(Crown) Oxford Lawyers (Witness M)
File Number(s):	2014/90422; 2014/315510
Publication restriction:	No publication until further order.

EX TEMPORE Judgment (REVISED)

1. Witness M has been on bail for an extended period. A forceful application for her detention was made when she entered a plea of guilty to two offences, including an offence of being an accessory before the fact to murder. I refused that detention application.

2. She has remained on bail for the three weeks and she has done, to her credit, everything that she and her solicitor said she would do. However, the situation is that there is no doubt that a lengthy period of incarceration will follow these sentencing proceedings and I think the motivation that she has to flee has reached a point where bail can no longer be justified.

3. The sentence has to commence at some point and whilst plainly the purpose of bail is not some pragmatic way of having people start to serve their sentence, in the present case the situation has been reached where I think bail must be refused.

4. A concern raised by Mr Dhanji was that because of the nature of her potential incarceration, she may be at some risk in the time between today and when sentence is finally imposed. However, I have been assured by the Corrective Services officers in Court that she will in fact be taken directly to the [redacted] and so that concern really falls away.

5. For that reason, bail will be refused and Witness M should go into custody today. Otherwise the matter is adjourned until Friday 1 April.

6. I order for the safety of the witness pursuant to section 8(1)(b) of the Court Suppression Act 2010 (NSW) that the place where the offender is to be incarcerated is suppressed.

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Decision last updated: 13 December 2016