Text 146, 177 rader
Skriven 2005-05-30 23:03:46 av Peter May (3:690/462.0)
Ärende: News update - Corby may be innocent - Bali Indonesia
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* Copied (from: WORLDTLK) by Peter May using timEd 1.10.y2k+.


*Corby's lawyers likely to accept QCs' help*

Schapelle Corby's Australian lawyer, Robin Tampoe, says an offer of legal 
help from the Federal Government will probably be accepted.

Corby was sentenced yesterday to 20 years in prison and fined $13,875 for 
smuggling 4.1 kilograms of marijuana into Bali.

Both the defence and the prosecution are planning to appeal against the 
sentence.

The Australian Government has offered the free services of two QCs to help 
during the appeal process.

But Mr Tampoe says the offer has only been made through the media.

"This offer was never made to the Australian lawyers, it was never made to 
the Indonesian lawyers," Mr Tampoe told ABC Radio's AM program.

"It was something that Mr Ruddock said on radio in Australia and it's 
something that was said after the sensitive evidence had closed."

Mr Tampoe says the offer is "very poor form".

"It's the Government trying to sort of distance themselves or throw some 
dirt," he said.

He says the legal team will discuss the matter with the Indonesian Justice 
Minister.

"We'll pursue every, every conceivable avenue that we can," he said. 
"Anything we can possibly do to get Schapelle Corby home.

"We'll leave no stone unturned, we'll just keep pushing."

Gamble

A legal expert says Corby would be wise to seek additional legal 
representation.

Tim Lindsay from Melbourne University's Asian Law Centre says the defence's 
appeal is a gamble.

"This is a light sentence for Indonesia. On appeal it might actually go up," 
Professor Lindsay told ABC TV's The 7:30 Report.

But Professor Lindsay says Indonesia's courts have been known to reverse 
decisions.

"It will depend on a more experienced team with more credibility and more 
street cred and capacity in the court," he said.

"Indonesia has some outstanding lawyers.

"The legal team, for example, that represented [accused Jemaah Islamiah 
leader] Abu Bakar Bashir made enormous headway with technical issues relating 
to evidence, the admissibility of video evidence and the like.

"I think experienced trial lawyers who've dealt with these issues and who 
have credibility with the courts [and] are not seen as emotionally attached, 
could probably do more."

New evidence

Professor Lindsay says the success of the appeal will also depend on new 
evidence emerging.

"The problem that Corby's team's always had is that their argument is: I 
didn't do it, somebody else did it, don't know who. That's a difficult one to 
prove," he said.

"There have been difficulties with gathering evidence that is admissible in 
Indonesian law according to the criminal procedure code that could actually 
be submitted in that court.

"[New evidence] will require, ironically, not the tight appeal deadline that 
she has under Indonesian law but probably a lot more time for any inquiries 
or trials to be conducted in Australia.

"One of the ironies of this is she perhaps should be hoping for a long appeal 
process to see if anything comes out in Australia," he said.

Corby's lawyers have argued that her bags could have been tampered with en 
route from Sydney to Bali, and pointed to evidence from a sting in Australia 
that baggage handlers at Sydney airport were involved in a drug-smuggling 
ring.

"If trials or inquiries in Australia produce new evidence that directly links 
problems of baggage handler corruption to the bag on that day [that Corby 
passed through the airport], then I don't think there's any question that the 
appeal courts in Indonesia would look at that," Professor Lindsay said.

Professor Lindsay says Corby's team has seven days to lodge an appeal to 
Indonesia's High Court, which will then have 150 days to hear it.

If that appeal is unsuccessful, an appeal can be make to the Supreme Court 
within 170 days.

That court has its own internal review mechanism, which is not subject to a 
time limit, in which a different panel of judges reviews the original Supreme 
Court decision.

Professor Lindsay says beyond that, Corby could appeal for clemency to the 
Indonesian President.

"A clemency application could be made before that stage but it usually is not 
because it's implicit in the application for clemency that you admit your 
guilt and acknowledge that you have committed the crime," he said.

"That would therefore rule out your appeals."


*QCs believe Corby is innocent*

Lawyers recruited by the Federal Government to help represent Schapelle Corby 
say they have a growing feeling that the woman convicted of smuggling drugs 
into Bali is probably not guilty.

One of the QC's appointed by the Federal Government, Tom Percy says he has 
met with Corby's legal team in Bali.

Western Australia lawyer John Davies is a junior barrister to WA QC's Tom 
Percy and Mark Trowell, who accepted a request from the Federal Government to 
assist in Corby's appeal against a 20-year jail term for smuggling marijuana.

The WA lawyers had originally been approached to assist in the Corby defence 
back in March.

Speaking on ABC Radio, Mr Davies said the lawyers are concentrating on how 
they can assist Corby's appeal.

"From what I've seen of the way the case has gone and from what I know of the 
evidence at this stage, which is by no means comprehensive, I have a growing 
sick feeling in my stomach that we have somebody who's very probably not 
guilty sitting in Kerobokan Prison," he said.

Mr Percy, who is also doing some work in Bali for the nine Australians facing 
heroin charges, says he and Mr Trough will look at the copies of the judgment 
and other rulings and then advise on how they think the appeal will go.

"I have, as a result of a request from the family, met in Bali with their 
lawyers," he said.

"They've made a couple of things known to me about how they were unhappy with 
the way the trial ran, which could furnish possible grounds of appeal."

Mr Percy says a number of aspects of the case are being investigated and that 
he hopes fresh evidence will be presented for her appeal from Australians who 
might know what happened.

He says there is also a possibility evidence may emerge in a different form.

"The other circumstantial evidence about the baggage handlers ... and the 
whole history that's emerged about other evidence - unfortunately not a lot 
of it is in strictly admissional form at this stage but it may be something 
we're going to have to have a look at."

The 27-year-old's defence team has 14 days to lodge an appeal but Corby's 
Gold Coast solicitor Robin Tampoe says the move could backfire.

He says it is up to Corby to decide whether the appeal goes ahead.

"We'll spend some time together and weigh it all up but certainly Indonesians 
can't believe the result we've got," he said.

"They're saying it's a very, very low sentence for this quantity of drugs and 
that's why we have to proceed very carefully.

"We could go to court and they could say it was a manifestly low sentence and 
we could end up with life or we could end up with death, so we'll be speaking 
with Schapelle and we have to proceed very, very carefully."

--- timEd 1.10.y2k+
 * Origin:       The Junkbox BBS, Perth, Western Australia      (3:690/462)