Police in Bendigo have welcomed news the state government will establish a new “night court” to allow magistrates to hear bail applications out of hours as providing more “consistency” in regional areas.
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The move was announced after it was revealed alleged Bourke Street killer Dimitrious Gargasoulas was released by a volunteer bail justice despite police opposition just days before Friday’s rampage.
Bendigo acting senior sergeant Rosie Rowe said having an on call magistrate available to hear matters outside court hours would be something local police would “certainly” make use of.
“It can be a difficulty for regional stations in accessing bail justice services, sometimes there can be delays in obtaining the services of bail justice just simply by virtue of the travel and so on, given that they also are voluntary services and not always available,” she said.
“I don’t necessarily know about better outcomes [but] perhaps there might be some more consistency through the entirety of the process, and again, without knowing the detail of what’s being proposed there are also in certain circumstances a broader range of powers that a magistrate can exercise as well.”
While Senior Sergeant Rowe said she would be interested to see the detail of the final proposal and acknowledged its potential benefits, she was quick to defend the performance of local bail justices, who she said did a “wonderful job in providing the service they do”.
“It’s just simply the mechanics of their travel and the hours they have to be called upon that they’re not always available to us,” she said.
Bail justices who spoke to Fairfax Media anonymously said they were hurt and angry after calls for their jobs to be scrapped, saying they had been “hung out to dry”.
“It's unfair to say the system of bail justices is broken and therefore it needs to be scrapped. It's just unfair. We're highly trained professional volunteers and just as you might have a magistrate that can make an error, the same things can happen with bail justices,” one said.
Government launches appeal
The state government has launched a fundraiser to assist the families of those killed during Friday's rampage in Bourke Street, in which five people died, including a three-month-old baby and a 10-year-old girl.
The Andrews government has kicked off donations by pledging $100,000 towards the Bourke Street Fund, and the federal government will also be pitching in, as well as Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his wife Lucy.
"We mourn those who were killed by this evil criminal act and we offer our deepest condolences to their loved ones," Mr Andrews said.
The money will go towards the victims' immediate family members, and help pay for services such as funeral costs as well as ongoing psychological support.
To donate visit www.vic.gov.au/bourkestreet.html
With – The Age