Bail is the right granted to a person charged with an offence to be released from custody, on the condition that they undertake to return to the court at some specified time. That person must also abide by any other conditions the court may impose.
A person granted bail remains under the authority of the court.
In some cases, on top of personal obligations, the person charged might be released to another person or people. This person or people, become security for the charged person by guaranteeing their future court appearance.
The accused is granted bail by either the police or the court.
The main points taken into account by the relevant authority when considering bail are:
Bail is generally not considered for serious offences such as murder.
Bail conditions may include:
If bail conditions are breached, it should be reported to police as soon as possible, with information about the bail undertaking and details of the breach committed.
If police are satisfied there has been a breach of bail conditions, the matter can be taken to the court, which can issue a warrant to arrest the accused person for breach of bail conditions and then keep them in custody.
A victim can make a submission to oppose bail.
Even if a victim misses the initial bail hearing, there is an opportunity to petition the court to vary the conditions. The Investigating Officer is the best person to advise victims on this.
Last updated: 18-Feb-2013
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