The Tribune

By LYNAIRE MUNNINGS

Tribune Staff Reporter

lmunnings@tribunemedia.net

AFTER defence lawyers critiqued the Davis administration’s planned amendments to the Bail Act, Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said some of their criticism was “misdirected” and “misconceived”.

“I have seen the chatter and heard some of the comments that the proposed amendments are infringing on the discretion of the court. I don’t share that view,” he said during a police press conference yesterday.

Mr Davis tabled an amendment in the House of Assembly last week that would ensure bail is automatically revoked for people who violate their bail conditions.

Magistrates can currently punish people who violate their bail conditions by fining them, as they often do, even when those people are accused of serious crimes such as murder. The amendment would remove this option and force magistrates to remand the accused.

Some defence laws said the amendment would merely delay bail grants because it won’t stop accused people from applying to the Supreme Court, where the judges can use their discretion to release them.

Mr Davis said the amendment was considered because of concerns about the impact of giving people with serious crimes bail, adding that statistics over the past two years prove bail to be a “death sentence” for those accused of serious offences.

He said he would further address the matter during his contribution to the House of Assembly today.

“It is not about fettering the discretion of the court,” he said, “it’s about a person on bail being placed on bail on conditions, that person breaching their bail, and the consequence of that breach is that the bail would be revoked.”

“Once the bail is revoked, they are remanded to the prison, which does not preclude them from applying again for bail, when the court’s discretion would be engaged, not before.”

The debate about bail always intensifies during high murder periods such as the current one; 19 people have been murdered thus far.