Criminals to walk free from custody thanks to COVID court backlog

The majority of new criminal cases won’t be heard until 2023, with Covid-induced delays set to plague the justice system for years.

A backlog of criminal cases is slowing down the justice system. Picture: Penny Stephens/NCA NewsWire.

Dangerous criminals are set to walk free from custody due to massive court backlogs sparked by COVID-19 restrictions amid a looming crisis in Victoria’s criminal justice system.

The Sunday Herald Sun can reveal delays to the justice system are set to linger for years, with most new criminal cases unlikely to be heard before 2023.

It can also be revealed some senior judicial figures have even been reluctant to return to a full time court role, sparking concerns about the courts’ capacity to clear the backlog.

Senior legal figures say only a significant cash injection from the state government would ease the concerning delays.

Top criminal barrister Paul Holdenson warned that unless courts are reopened at full capacity soon, serious violent offenders could be bailed.

“Justice delayed, justice denied,” he said.

“There are people being granted bail who would ordinarily be refused bail. Delay has always been a relevant matter in deciding whether or not to grant bail.

“This is going to take years and years to catch up on.”

Other senior barristers are also speaking up about court woes, saying everyone is doing their best to adapt to the situation and the use of technology but there is no catching up at this stage.

“It’s only going to get worse,” one barrister said.

“There are more people now queuing at the County Court without people going out the other side. Even if you have someone with a tenuous but arguable defence, that (delay) will go a long way to getting you bail.

“The likelihood of them committing another crime while on bail is higher.”

Jury trials were paused for much of 2020, but resumed in December in a limited capacity with the Andrews Government introducing a new system last year that allows for a defendant to opt for a judge-only trial to fast-track results.

“We have effectively put the jury system in Victoria in park,” one barrister told the Sunday Herald Sun.

Courts are now discussing other options such as a period of judge-only trials or creating special spaces for juries so as to avoid the current situation where social distancing rules take up double the amount of court rooms to standard practice.

One senior legal source said the state government needed to urgently boost court funding.

“There’s only three ways out of this mess. Cash, cash and cash,” she said.

“For the courts to run at full capacity within the government’s COVID safe guidelines they effectively need to double the real estate.

“I know courts don’t grow on trees. But we need the government to come to the table and start offering up office space or money for renovations.

“There is work being done, but it’s just not fast enough.”

One barrister said that overseas one radical method saw juries beamed cases at the local cinema, which was secured and used as a justice centre.

A government spokesperson said a recently announced $80 million package would help a court recovery and improve the justice system in the long term.

“We want our courts to operate safely and effectively – resolving more cases outside a courtroom will reduce the pressure on our justice system and improve safety for victims,” she said.