Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 13 July 2023
527. Deputy Noel Grealish asked the Minister for Justice if the Government will consider steps to further restrict the granting of bail to serial or repeat offenders; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34832/23]
View answerAs I am sure the Deputy appreciates, the restricting of a person’s liberty is a serious issue, given the Constitutional presumption that a person is deemed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
While the State’s bail laws do provide for the refusal of bail in certain circumstances, the presiding Judge is entirely independent in the exercise of their judicial functions and the decision to grant bail in a particular case is solely a matter for the Judge.
As previously conveyed to the Deputy, the Bail Act 1997 followed on foot of the 1996 referendum on a proposed amendment to the Constitution enabling a court to refuse bail for a person charged with a serious offence to prevent the risk of another serious offence being committed while on bail. Since then, the State’s bail laws were further strengthened, specifically by the Criminal Justice Act, 2007, the Criminal Justice Act, 2015, and the Criminal Justice Act, 2017.
In considering whether to refuse bail under the 1997 Act, the Court is required to have regard to persistent serious offending by an applicant, any convictions for offences that were committed while on bail and, in specific circumstances, the nature and likelihood of any danger to a person or to the community from granting bail.
The 2007 Act provides that when a person is admitted to bail, there is a mandatory condition that the accused not commit an offence while on bail. The commission of an offence while released on bail is an automatic breach of one of the conditions of bail and may result in the issue of a bench warrant for the accused’s arrest.
The 2017 Act provides for stricter bail terms for repeat serious offenders, including the use of curfews and strengthens Garda powers to deal with breaches of bail. If an individual fails to comply with any bail conditions, the Judge will issue a bench warrant and this gives An Garda Síochána power to arrest and bring the person before the Court to answer all charges relating to the bail.
In the event of a breach of High Court bail, the defendant must be brought before the Court as soon as practicable for a revocation hearing. A breach of bail may also result in an additional charge and an order against the defendant and/or their surety for the ‘forfeiture and estreatment’ of the bail money.
