The prosecutor who failed to apply for Lindt Café gunman Man Haron Monis’ bail refusal had no formal bail training, but read up on new laws online, the Sydney siege inquest has heard.
The prosecutor who failed to apply for Lindt Café gunman Man Haron Monis’ bail refusal had no formal bail training, but read up on new laws online, the Sydney siege inquest has heard.
The unnamed lawyer was handed Monis’ case last August when he joined the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, appearing for the prosecution for the first time in Penrith Local Court when Monis was charged with 37 sexual assault offences in October.
According to The Daily Telegraph, there is evidence to suggest that the lawyer went against the advice of police officers who wanted to oppose Monis’ bail because he was already on trial for three sexual assault charge and the charge accessory to his wife’s murder. He had decided that Monis did not present an unacceptable risk under the new bail laws, which came into operation on May 20 last year.
The lawyer has been questioned in court today by Jeremy Gormly SC. He told the court that he had never seen an email instructing prosecutors to discuss possible bail concessions with managers, sent out five days before the new bail laws were in place.
The lawyer continues to give evidence.
