11 The factors that make him an unacceptable risk have to be weighed against the fact that he is a man presumed to be innocent, who has currently spent two years on remand and will spend a minimum of at least two years eight months on remand prior to his case being heard. Not only that, the period of time that he has spent on remand has been in onerous conditions as referred to during the last bail application. The affidavit of Michael Francis Carroll, Exhibit 1 on the application, confirms the conditions under which he is detained. Whilst I accept that the conditions may well be necessary for the safe management of prisoners within that unit, it does not make the conditions less onerous.
12 The issue becomes one really of risk management - can the Court impose conditions sufficient to ensure his attendance at court and ensure that he does not commit further offences, or must he remain incarcerated to ensure those matters?
13 In balancing the risk I have examined the applicant's prior criminal history which demonstrates that he is predominately a thief, with three appearances in 1997 for dishonesty offences, one in 1994 and one in 1993 both again for dishonesty. He has no offences for violence or trafficking in drugs. Although there is the indication contained in the material that he was involved in some small scale trafficking around the time of this offence. He also has one charge of failure to appear in 1997.
14 Equally I have examined his ties to the jurisdiction, which are really his mother and the fact that he has resided with her almost all of his life. He has a son, but he has, as I have expressed previously, limited contact with that child, and virtually no responsibility in respect of him. He has no visitors in prison apart from legal representatives, as his mother will not travel to the prison as she finds it too difficult and distressing. There is a surety available to him in a substantial sum.
15 It is my view that in the case of this applicant who joined the conspiracy in the latter stages of it, who had until that time no association with one of his co-offenders or any other members of that so called group, apart from his friendship with another co-accused who it must be noted is far more involved in this matter on the material currently before me, the Court is now in a position that it must find ways to manage the risk. To do otherwise would, in light of this particular applicant's circumstances, be an abandonment of the principles that underlie the Bail Act and this community's view of what is an unacceptable period of incarceration without trial.
16 Accordingly despite the reservations that I have previously expressed and the serious nature of the charges that the applicant is facing, for the reasons that I have expressed I propose to grant bail subject to strict conditions.