Accused 12yo’s bail backflip
A girl accused of stealing a vehicle in an attempt to reach an equine therapy centre then stabbing her foster carer remains behind bars.
A 12-year-old girl accused of attempting to murder her foster carer by stabbing her in the chest has withdrawn her bail application.
The girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was not required to appear in Ipswich Children’s Court west of Brisbane on Tuesday for the ongoing hearing of her bail application.
On August 17 emergency services were called to the Augustine Heights suburb of Ipswich where a 55-year-old woman was found with a stab wound.
The girl, who lived with the alleged victim, was charged with attempted murder and unlawful use of a motor vehicle.
Magistrate Dennis Kinsella previously heard the girl allegedly took the vehicle with the aim of travelling to an equine therapy centre.
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The woman was taken to Princess Alexandra Hospital in a serious but stable condition.
The girl had applied for bail last week but Kinsella had adjourned his decision to wait for a mental health assessment.
The girl’s new representative, Legal Aid solicitor Kate Jamieson, said she would withdraw the bail application rather than keep it at a part-heard status.
“I was allocated in-house (to the case) at about 4pm yesterday. We’re not in a position to proceed with the bail application today,” Jamieson said on Tuesday.
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A police prosecutor previously told Kinsella she opposed bail as the girl posed an unacceptable risk of offending or endangering the community if released.
The girl’s previous defence solicitor, Lachlan Smith, told Kinsella his client had previously been diagnosed with ADHD and autism but had been attending school and treatment.
Jamieson on Tuesday asked prosecutors to provide her a brief of evidence in the case, and if the vehicle theft and attempted murder charges were related.
“There is a factual nexus in the sense that it seems to be the circumstances that led up to the allegation of attempted murder,” Kinsella said.
He ordered a brief of evidence be provided to the girl’s solicitor by September 30.
She was remanded in custody ahead of the case’s next court mention on October 7.
If convicted of attempted murder, the girl faces a potential maximum sentence of a life term under the Queensland government’s “adult crime, adult time” laws.
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