❓ Hon. Simon Ehrenfeld questions the Attorney General regarding a review of the Bail Act following a manslaughter charge related to an alleged coward punch, where the accused had prior unrelated charges and was on bail. The Attorney General has not requested a review, citing judicial discretion.
AnsweredQoN 126Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
Community safety
126. Hon Simon Ehrenfeld to the parliamentary
secretary representing the Attorney General:
I refer to the death
from an alleged coward punch reported progressively in the media since December
2025 where the alleged assailant was charged with a coward punch attack that
was subsequently upgraded to manslaughter and who has also been charged with a
previous unrelated alleged coward punch attack for which he was not under bail
conditions at the time of the alleged subsequent attack.
In view of the
alleged assailant having been granted bail, has the Attorney General requested
a review of the Bail Act for cases where bail is granted in the face of
multiple unrelated offences and, if not, why not?
126. Hon Simon Ehrenfeld to the parliamentary
secretary representing the Attorney General:
I refer to the death
from an alleged coward punch reported progressively in the media since December
2025 where the alleged assailant was charged with a coward punch attack that
was subsequently upgraded to manslaughter and who has also been charged with a
previous unrelated alleged coward punch attack for which he was not under bail
conditions at the time of the alleged subsequent attack.
In view of the
alleged assailant having been granted bail, has the Attorney General requested
a review of the Bail Act for cases where bail is granted in the face of
multiple unrelated offences and, if not, why not?
AnswerView source ↗
No. In determining
whether bail will be granted, members of the judiciary exercise their judicial
judgement on a case-by-case basis and weigh up a range of considerations, with
community safety at the forefront of their decisions.
whether bail will be granted, members of the judiciary exercise their judicial
judgement on a case-by-case basis and weigh up a range of considerations, with
community safety at the forefront of their decisions.
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