Post-stabbing bail reforms ‘won’t keep community safe’
Laine Clark |
A beloved store owner’s fatal stabbing has sparked calls for more to be done to prevent another tragedy in a crime-hit territory.
Tough bail reforms are set to be ushered in by the Northern Territory government after 71-year-old Darwin store owner Linford Feick was stabbed to death.
However, the NT opposition has called for the territory’s justice system to be strengthened further, saying violent offenders “must face the consequences of their actions much sooner”.
The NT parliament will urgently reconvene on Wednesday to pass bail reform legislation after a teenager was charged with murder over the fatal stabbing.
Police said the 18-year-old – identified by media outlets as Phillip Randel Maurice Parry – had been on bail for “serious matters” at the time.
NT Opposition Leader Selena Uibo said the government’s tough bail reforms would be supported but believed more had to be done.
“These changes alone will not keep our community safe,” she said in a statement.
“More must be done to prevent crime in the first place and our justice system needs to be better resourced to deal with matters swiftly.”
Changes required included expanding court and legal aid services’ capacity to ensure matters were heard as quickly as possible, Ms Uibo said.
“It is currently taking over 400 days on average for a criminal matter to be finalised in the Supreme Court – this is too long,” she said.
“There are now more people in prison on remand – waiting for their court hearing – than there are convicted criminals serving sentences.
“This is placing enormous strain on our courts and legal system.”
The NT’s prison population has reportedly risen by more than 500 people since the Country Liberal Party won the 2024 election with a tough-on-crime agenda.
New bail reforms will be modelled on Victorian and NSW laws, under which a judge must be satisfied an offender is not going to pose a risk to the community if granted bail.
Mr Feick allegedly confronted a thief and was stabbed at the Nightcliff Friendly Grocer on April 23.
It comes after Darwin bottle shop worker Declan Laverty was fatally stabbed by a man on bail in 2023, which also ushered in law changes.
“No Territory family should ever have to endure the loss of a loved one through senseless violence, as the Feick family is now facing,” Ms Uibo said.
AAP
