BACKGROUND
At the end of last year our client was arrested for allegedly stabbing their child with intent to cause grievous bodily harm with a butter knife. The mature aged women was arrested and charged with wound with intent to cause grievously bodily harm, a serious indictable offence pursuant to section 33 of the Crimes Act 1900. Our client had never been in such a situation, she had never been arrested or dealings with the police, and there was no history of previous violent conduct. Furthermore, the accused was not in any position to enter into a formal plea. Our client made a bail application before the Local Court which was refused. Our client then realised the seriousness of the alleged offence and decided to act quickly and instructed National Criminal Lawyers®, Sydney’s top lawyers. Our office acted quickly and prudently made a release application to the Supreme Court pursuant to section 49 of the Bail Act 2013.
OUTCOME
Today justice was achieved before the Supreme Court of NSW where the Judge granted our client bail with strict bail conditions. The Judge was strongly persuaded with submissions drafted by our team that bail must be granted given the client is not an unacceptable risk. A family that was once torn was reunited today thanks to National Criminal Lawyers®.
WHAT FACTORS ARE CONSIDERED WHEN DETERMINING BAIL?
Before considering the factors, one must understand what bail is. Bail is defined under section 7 of the Bail Act 2013 (NSW). It is authority that is granted to be at liberty (free) for an offence until the matter is dealt with by the Courts.
Show Cause
Pursuant to section 16A of the Bail Act 2013, an offender must show cause why their detention is not justified. A list of offences which show cause is required can be found in section 16B of The Act.
Unacceptable Risk
If an accused can show cause why their detention in prison is not justified, the bail authority must then consider whether the accused is an unacceptable risk. The main factors that determine whether one is an unacceptable risk if contained in section 19 of The Act, these factors include the following:
- Fail to appear at any proceedings for the offence, or
- Commit a serious offence, or
- Endanger the safety of victims, individuals or the community, or
- Interfere with witnesses or evidence.
If the bail authority considers there is a real risk of any of these factors occurring, then bail must be refused. If there is no risk, then bail must be granted pursuant to section 20 of The Act.
Bail Concerns
The final factor that the bail authority must consider is whether there are any bail concerns. Bail concerns must be considered under section 17 of The Act. To that end, if the bail authority believes that there is a bail concern then bail conditions must be imposed to address the concerns pursuant to section 20A of The Act.
WHAT TYPE OF CONDITIONS CAN BE IMPOSED BY THE COURT?
Pursuant to division 3 of The Act, there are a variety of conditions can that be imposed. These conditions include but are not limited to:
- Conduct requirement pursuant to section 25. A conduct requirement is defined as a requirement that the accused do or refrain from doing anything. A common type of conduct requirement can be reporting to a police station every week or adhering to a curfew.
- Security requirement pursuant to section 26. A common type of security requirement can be an agreement to forfeit a certain amount of money to the bail authority before the accused can be released.
- Accommodation requirement pursuant to section 28. This is where suitable arrangements must be made before the accused is released on bail.
WHAT CAN I DO IF I AM ARRESTED?
If you are someone who has been charged with an offence and are in custody until your criminal matter is to be heard, it is advised that you should make a bail application pursuant to section 49 of The Act immediately. No one wants to be held in custody while they await the finalisation of their criminal matter. Sometimes people can be held on remand for a considerable period. National Criminal Lawyers® has acted on instructions given the night before and even on the day a matter is listed for a Bail application and have achieved successful outcomes. National Criminal Lawyers® has extensive experience dealing with bail applications in both the Local and Supreme Court. Most importantly, National Criminal Lawyers® make submissions to persuade the Court on the given day why you should be released on bail.
Bail applications prepared by National Criminal Lawyers® is second to none and today’s achievement is one of many. Feel free to visit our website. Alternatively, contact us for a free conference to discuss your criminal matter.
CONTACT US
Call Michael and his team of expert drug defence lawyers at National Criminal Lawyers® on 02 9893 1889 | 0415 179 794