Youth Justice Bail is not a Political Tool

Police Minister Mark Ryan’s attack on Magistrates claiming they are not in “keeping with the spirit of the new Youth Justice Act” is a cynical, early law-and-order pre-election shot at the Judiciary who cannot defend themselves.

Civil Liberties Council Vice-President Terry O’Gorman said the Police Minister has apparently decided to join in the Queensland Opposition’s ‘attack the Judges’ strategy as opening shots are fired in the Queensland State Election due in October this year.

The Police Minister Mark Ryan said Magistrates have ‘gotten it wrong’ in a number of instances recently and gave the example of an 11 year old boy who was supposedly only denied bail on his eleventh offence.

“If Police consider that a particular grant of bail to this 11 year old was the wrong decision, why didn’t Prosecutors appeal”, Mr O’Gorman said.

Mr O’Gorman said it seems that the Police are only now going to start appealing bail decisions they disagree with as part of a so-called five point crackdown announced by the Police Minister yesterday in respect of the so-called 10 percent of youth offenders who Mr Ryan says are committing half the juvenile crimes in Queensland.

“If Police are too lazy to appeal bail decisions, don’t blame the Magistrates. Blame the Police and their Minister for failing to do what defence lawyers have to do every week, namely appeal to the higher Courts if you disagree with a lower Court decision. That’s what the higher Courts are there for,” Mr O’Gorman said.

Mr O’Gorman said that the Queensland Council for Civil Liberties is not going to sit idly by and see cheap and calculated political election inspired attacks on the Judiciary go unanswered especially when Judges and Magistrates are not allowed to defend themselves in the media.

“If Magistrates’ bail decisions concerning juvenile offenders are not in keeping with the ‘spirit of the Juvenile Justice Act’ as Mr Ryan claims, the Minister should insist that Children’s Court Prosecutors do their job and work up and file bail appeals just as the rest of us who are involved in the criminal courts have to do week in and week out”, Mr O’Gorman said.

Mr O’Gorman can be contacted during business hours on 07 3034 0000 or after hours on 0418 787182