Magistrate clashes with police over delays in case of alleged Renmark High stabber Amber Brea Rover
A COURT hearing for alleged Renmark High School stabber Amber Rover has boiled over into a heated argument between the magistrate and a police prosecutor about the length of time taken to compile evidence.
- Renmark High student stabbed ‘in dispute with fellow student’
- Alleged school stabber in custody, victim in hospital
- ‘Stabber’ to be assessed — but only after court’s ‘courtesy call’
- Efficiency laws instead causing huge delays, courts warn
SA POLICE’S approach to prosecuting major criminal cases is “unsatisfactory”, with investigators “relaxing” and providing key evidence “in any way” they feel like, a magistrate says.
But police have hit back, saying courts “don’t necessarily like to hear” how long it takes to complete a “diligent, exemplary” investigation before handing it over to state prosecutors.
Tensions regarding the controversial court efficiency laws boiled over again, on Monday, during a hearing for alleged Renmark High School stabber Amber Brea Rover.
Magistrate Simon Smart and police prosecutor Courtney Hood clashed over her request for further time to hand the case file to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
When she defended detectives against Mr Smart’s criticism, she was admonished for speaking out of turn.
“The point I want to make is that the order of the court was that charge determination be made by today,” Mr Smart said.
“It’s not satisfactory for investigators to relax and provide material in any way — don’t talk over the top of me.
“If I’m speaking, you do not interrupt me — don’t interrupt me — if you are going to turn up and ask for an adjournment, you need to be in a position to justify it.”
On Tuesday, The Advertiser reported warnings, from judges and magistrates, they would throw out cases and release offenders from custody if charges took too long to finalise.
They said the current year-long wait for decisions on whether cases would go ahead at all had “devastating consequences” for offenders, victims and public faith in justice.
Rover, 18, has yet to plead to one aggravated count of causing serious harm to another person.
It is alleged she stabbed a fellow Renmark High School student, 17, in July during a “dispute” between the pair who, police have alleged, were friends.
Rover has been in the care of James Nash House, a secure mental health facility, since her arrest and has been described, by her counsel, as “an acute patient”.
However, the court last month declined to formally remand her to that facility without first making a “courtesy call” to bureaucrats to check there was room for her.
On Tuesday, Ms Hood said the DPP had wanted further medical evidence before making its decision, which had taken SA Police time to obtain.
She said those documents — indicating the alleged victim had suffered a punctured lung — were among 38 statements gathered by “diligent” police.
“I know that you don’t necessarily like to hear this, but the original amount of time sought (to prepare this case) is not what was granted,” she told Mr Smart.
“Investigating officers have done an exemplary job in getting together all the evidence, it’s now ready to be provided, and we need four weeks for a charge determination to be made.”
Mr Smart said that was “very nice” but “didn’t answer” why he should grant a further delay.
“I will grant the matter one month,” he said, remanding Rover in custody until early December.