No bail for accused teen
Stapleton, John. The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 27 Mar 2008: 3.
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Abstract
A 16-YEAR-OLD boy accused of murdering his father and stabbing his mother has been refused bail in the NSW Children’s Court.
“There is a concern held jointly by the prosecution and the defence that if some of the information that will necessarily be provided to me as part of theproceedings would be released to the public and the media, there is a concern the ultimate trial would be prejudiced,” he said.
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A 16-YEAR-OLD boy accused of murdering his father and stabbing his mother has been refused bail in the NSW Children’s Court.
The bail application took place in a closed court yesterday and magistrate Terrence Murphy issued a non-publication order on the details of the case.
Mr Murphy said both the prosecution and the defence had asked that the media be excluded from the court.
He said that considering the nature of the coverage so far, the age of the accused, the fact that the investigation was in its infancy and the nature of theinvestigation justified the order.
He also said the scientific nature of some of the evidence and the possibility that a number of young people would be named in the proceedings were other factors.
“There is a concern held jointly by the prosecution and the defence that if some of the information that will necessarily be provided to me as part of theproceedings would be released to the public and the media, there is a concern the ultimate trial would be prejudiced,” he said.
The case has been adjourned until June 5.
A case by lawyers representing several media organisations against the closed hearings is to be heard today. The boy’s mother remains in intensive care at Westmead Hospital in a critical but stable condition.