Bourke Street massacre: Victoria’s justice system fails again
WHEN word came through that a killer on wheels had ripped the heart out of Melbourne, you just knew that our rotten, crumbling, increasingly deadly “justice” system, had failed again, writes Derryn Hinch.
Opinion
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I WAS across the ditch on a brief holiday in New Zealand when word came through that a killer on wheels had ripped the heart out of my beloved Melbourne.
It prompted this gut-felt tweet which turned out to be horribly prescient:
I’m overseas – reading horrific news. My heart aches for Melbourne. If this man was on bail all hell will, and should, break loose.
— Derryn Hinch (@HumanHeadline) January 20, 2017
We know the accused killer was on bail and what made it even worse was the instant angry knowledge that it would be true. You just knew it.
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You just knew — even as far removed physically as I was — that our rotten, crumbling, increasingly deadly “justice” system, had failed the community again.
Failed the way that it did when Adrian Bayley was free to prowl the streets to rape and murder Jill Meagher. Failed the way it let Sean Price out to stab a defenceless, innocent, Masa Vukotic 47 times.
How many rallies on the steps of Parliament House, how many justice walks do we have to trudge on, before we are heard?
What did 30,000 people marching in Brunswick over the Meagher murder achieve?
After each brutal betrayal, I could write most premiers’ speeches by cut and pasting their old ones.
The hand-wringing, the long faces on the TV news, the appropriate condolences to victims’ families, and the promises (the ultimately shallow promises) that things will be different. That your anguished voices are being heard.
Why should you believe it this time? It would normally be fair comment that it would be wrong to get political at a time of such numbing pain and tragedy.
Especially when you founded and have your name associated with a political movement called the Justice Party.
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It was why I stayed off Facebook and only sent two tweets in five days. The second one was about the other hidden scandal involving police pursuits.
That tweet:
I’m told pursuing police had 7 chances to ram the Bourke Street killer and were denied permission.
— Derryn Hinch (@HumanHeadline) January 20, 2017
That is a separate issue for the Coroner but it must have added to the grief of those victims’ families.
I said not usually appropriate to get political but we have to. Only our political leaders can repair this. The bail system must be tightened.
Does it surprise any, increasingly cynical and disillusioned, Victorian that this is the only state, I’m told, where sergeants and officers in charge only have the power to bail offenders and not remand them in custody. Why is this so?
This means that every week hundreds of police spend hours sitting in court virtually babysitting offenders, waiting for their turn to apply to have the offender remanded.
When it is after hours (which it usually is) a bail justice is called in. These people are volunteers, which was the case in this situation.
When police oppose bail they do so for a reason. They take that position from experience.
Their warnings of further risks to the community or the risk of flight should carry more weight with some, I believe, dangerously lightweight, bail justices.
Frankly, I’ve seen some people in that exalted position that I wouldn’t appoint dog-catcher.
Surely, at least, the bail justice who bailed Dimitrious Gargasoulos, should be stood down (or volunteer to stand down) until the inquests.
Premier Andrews on 3AW Monday said that would not happen.
Premier Andrews is now talking about a night court. This would see police in the evening doing the same: babysitting crims rather than out catching criminals.
What about rural Victoria, will there be night courts there too?
I believe the Premier should act immediately and give the experts, the police sergeant/head cop the power to remand, as is the case in every other state.
Stop having police babysitting offenders.
Dan can do that now: recall parliament and fix it. It would be a start because I don’t believe a seasoned police sergeant would have bailed
Gargasoulos. A lot of lives may have been saved and our city would not be going through one of its worst times ever.
Derryn Hinch is a Senator for Victoria and the founder of Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party
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