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BAIL ACT 1982 - SECT 54

BAIL ACT 1982 - SECT 54

54 .         Bailed accused may be taken before judicial officer to show cause against variation or revocation of bail

        (1a)         In this section —

        relevant officer means —

            (a)         if the court before which the accused is required to appear is the District Court, the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeal — the prosecutor; or

            (b)         in any other case — the prosecutor or a police officer.

        (1)         Where an accused has been released on bail the relevant officer may cause the accused to appear before an appropriate judicial officer to show cause why the accused’s bail should not be varied or revoked if the relevant officer —

            (a)         has reasonable grounds to believe, or is notified in writing by a surety for the accused that the surety has reasonable grounds to believe, that the accused —

                  (i)         is not likely to comply with any requirement of his bail undertaking mentioned in section 28(2)(a) or (b); or

                  (ii)         is, or has been, or is likely to be in breach of any condition of his bail undertaking mentioned in section 28(2)(c); or

                  (iii)         is, or has been, in breach of a home detention condition mentioned in section 28(2)(d);

            (b)         has reasonable grounds to believe that —

                  (i)         any surety for the accused’s appearance is no longer suitable under section 39 to be a surety, or is dead; or

                  (ii)         for any reason any security required under Part D of Schedule 1 is no longer sufficient; or

                  (iii)         in a case where the accused has been granted bail for the purposes of an appeal, the accused has discontinued the appeal or has not prosecuted it with all due diligence; or

                  (iv)         new facts have been discovered, new circumstances have arisen or the circumstances have changed since bail was granted (including that the accused is, or has become, a person linked to terrorism).

        (2)         For the purposes of causing an accused to appear before an appropriate judicial officer as provided in subsection (1) —

            (a)         a police officer may arrest the accused without warrant and bring the accused before an appropriate judicial officer; or

            (b)         the relevant officer may apply to an appropriate judicial officer for a summons or warrant on any ground specified in subsection (1).

        (2a)         A police officer shall not exercise the power conferred by subsection (2)(a) unless the police officer is the relevant officer or is requested in writing to do so by the relevant officer.

        (3)         An application under subsection (2)(b) must be made, and proceedings on it are to be conducted —

            (a)         in a court of summary jurisdiction — in accordance with regulations made under the Criminal Procedure Act 2004 ;

            (b)         in the Supreme Court or the District Court — in accordance with rules of court made under the Criminal Procedure Act 2004 .

        (4)         An accused arrested under this section shall be taken as soon as is practicable before an appropriate judicial officer unless he is arrested less than 24 hours before the time at which he is due to appear in accordance with his bail undertaking, in which case he shall be held in custody and brought before an appropriate judicial officer at that time.

        (5)         If —

            (a)         the court before which the accused is required to appear is the District Court, the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeal; and

            (b)         a police officer is satisfied that because of the urgency of the case it is not practicable for the prosecutor to exercise the power conferred by subsection (1),

                the police officer may exercise that power.

        (6)         If a police officer, acting under subsection (5), exercises the power conferred by subsection (1), the police officer is to be regarded as the relevant officer for the purposes of this section.

        [Section 54 amended: No. 33 of 1989 s. 18; No. 61 of 1990 s. 12; No. 45 of 1993 s. 12; No. 59 of 2004 s. 141; No. 84 of 2004 s. 9, 11 and 82; No. 6 of 2008 s. 33(1)-(4); No. 15 of 2019 s. 10.]