NSW Bail Division centralised model causes concern for the bush

A plan to have city magistrates remotely dealing with bail applications from the country has raised alarm about fairness and the possibility of recidivist offenders getting out more often.

Every person from the bush charged with criminal offences will soon have their bail applications heard remotely by city magistrates, prompting significant concerns about the fairness and wisdom of making crucial decisions outside their communities.

The NSW Local Court introduced a suite of procedural changes through the Bail and Other Legislation Amendment (Domestic Violence) Act 2024 following the alleged murder of Forbes mother Molly Ticehurst after her partner and accused killer was let out on bail by a registrar.

A centralised bail court model first introduced on weekends and public holidays at Parramatta Bail Court will now be implemented on weekdays starting on July 7.

All regional bail proceedings, as well as those from Newtown and Waverley courts, will be centralised through Parramatta Local Court from July 7.

The state’s remaining courts will be centralised at a later date.

Opposition police spokesman Paul Toole. Picture: NCA NewsWIRE / Monique Harmer

Opposition police spokesman Paul Toole said he had major concerns bail centralisation would result in more recidivist offenders in rural areas getting out.

“Everyone is fed up with these city-centric magistrates who continually let people off on bail, who then go out there and reoffend in our communities,” Mr Toole said.

“City magistrates don’t understand the communities, they don’t know what local supports are in place, they don’t know the families on the ground.”

Former regional NSW magistrate David Heilpern flagged significant potential challenges under a bail system run remotely via audiovisual link.

“Just appearing on a screen is not going to cut it in the same way as a local magistrate,” Mr Heilpern said.

“What’s wrong with the system where people go before their local court, in their local area? This is creating a whole different problem that doesn’t go to (the previous issue of weekend courts being presided over by registrars).”

Former magistrate David Heilpern said bail can be a “life or death” decision. Picture: Southern Cross University

Mr Heilpern stressed that assessing a defendant in the room was an essential facet of making wise bail decisions.

“It’s not an exaggeration to say that bail is a life or death decision – I’ve refused bail to people who have died in the next two hours, and I’ve granted bail to people who then committed horrendous offences,” Mr Heilpern said.

“You can make a whole different assessment if you have a defendant and their family in the room rather than on AVL, AVL is really not going to give anyone a fair assessment of someone’s reliability.

“You want the right people being locked up and the right people being left out – if you want to maximise your chance of being right, you don’t have the best chance on AVL or telephone.”

Opposition Leader Mark Speakman sais bail is not a “box-ticking exercise”. Photo: NewsWire/Gaye Gerard

Opposition Leader Mark Speakman said the centralisation was “quietly changing the rules without a word to the public”, saying bail was not a “box-ticking exercise”.

“We’re very concerned about centralising all first bail hearings to video-link with Parramatta,” Mr Speakman said.

“It’s a decision that can impact lives, families, and community safety.

“Magistrates via video in one central location are deprived of the ability to judge a person face-to-face and to understand local issues – it might look efficient on paper, but in the real world, it risks injustice on both sides.”

NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley. Picture: NewsWire / John Appleyard

But a spokesman for NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley dismissed concerns city magistrates would not have the same insight as regional magistrates.

“The centralised bail model will relieve workload pressure on regional and smaller metropolitan courts, and allow the overall caseload of the Local Court to be managed more effectively,” the spokesman said.

“It will also enable magistrates to develop special expertise in bail matters, and improve the quality and consistency of bail hearings.”

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