A man accused of killing his three-month-old daughter in a central Victorian town last year has had his charge downgraded from murder to child homicide.
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Justice Lex Lasry granted bail to Joby Anthony Rowe, 24, in the Supreme Court on Monday, with the case to return to court for trial next year.
Rowe was initially committed to stand trial after pleading not guilty to a charge of murder in the Bendigo Magistrates’ Court in July, but Crown prosecutor Frances Dalziel said the Director of Public Prosecutions had since considered the matter and opted for the lesser charge of child homicide.
Ms Dalziel said expert evidence was likely to comprise the bulk of the trial meaning it would take considerably longer than previously estimated, with the proceeding now expected to run for up to a month.
“It's hard going for anybody to take in this new level of detailed information and it might be that we have more breaks to let the jury have a break and distil the information than otherwise might usually be the case,” she said.
Justice Lasry said the complexity of the evidence to be presented “tests the jury system obviously … but I'm confident they'll be able to do it”, saying if the courtroom in Bendigo could not accommodate the level of technical evidence the proceeding may have to be moved to Melbourne.
The downgrading of the charge meant the prosecution did not oppose bail, the conditions of which would see Rowe living interstate on a $20,000 surety and subject to a number of conditions.
“Any concerns about Mr Rowe being out of the jurisdiction in New South Wales are ameliorated by the surety and the reporting conditions,” Ms Dalziel said.
Rowe was committed to stand trial in the Supreme Court in Bendigo on March 14 next year.