Bail will be tougher to get for those accused of the worst crimes, under proposed changes announced yesterday by Justice Minister Simon Power.
A Bill to be introduced to Parliament next year would reverse the burden of proof for bail to be granted.
At present, the prosecution had to prove there would be a risk to public safety if an application was denied.
Under the new law, the defence team would have to prove the accused was not a risk to public safety or that they would not interfere with witnesses or evidence that could affect their trial.
The reversal would apply to those accused of murder or a serious class A drug offence.
It would also apply to some violence and sexual offences, including sexual conduct with a person under 16, kidnapping, aggravated burglary, and assault with intent to rob.
The proposal focuses on defendants with the highest risk of committing serious offences while on bail, rather than those with the highest rates of offending on bail, which might include non-serious or trivial offences.
The changes were canvassed in a public consultation document released on March 15.
It provided a series of preliminary proposals for the public to make submissions on. The public had two months to submit on the document and 49 submissions were received.
Other proposals include:
• Making it clear in legislation that bail will not be granted in return for information. Public safety and a fair trial must be the primary concern when deciding whether to grant bail. Bail should not be used as a bargaining chip in return for information from the criminal underworld.
• Allowing failure to answer police bail to be punishable by up to three months in prison, in addition to the existing fine of up to $1000.
• Reducing the number of situations where a defendant is "bailable as of right" because some can cause serious harm to others (such as abandoning children, injury by an unlawful act, and failing to provide the necessaries of life).
• Putting the electronically-monitored bail regime into legislation to ensure it is administered consistently and effectively.
The proposals also seek to strengthen bail for young defendants by:Making defendants aged 17 to 19 who have previously served a prison sentence subject to the standard (adult) tests for bail. Between 2004 and 2009 more than half of young defendants in this category offended while on bail.
Enabling the court to detain defendants aged under 17 who significantly or repetitively breached bail conditions.
Unless it was a particularly serious breach of bail conditions there was little police could do to immediately act on a breach.
"New Zealanders have a right to feel safe in their homes and their communities and these changes reinforce that," Mr Power said.
He said the changes are likely to increase costs for the justice sector by $4.5 million a year.
