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 veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc: 
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 Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4479824 - 08/01/05 01:02 AM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Ellison rejects Corby lawyer's criticism
August 1, 2005 - theage.com.au
Criticisms of the Australian government by convicted drug trafficker Schapelle Corby's Indonesian lawyer were unfair and misleading, Justice Minister Chris Ellison said.
Senator Ellison said he had not received any reply to important questions he had put to Corby's lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea, including whether the Indonesian courts would allow video-link evidence from any Australian witnesses.
"We do understand that there is a person in custody that is willing to give evidence but only by video-link and that is why it is so important," he said.
With the Corby trial due to reopen in Bali this week, Mr Hutapea said neither government ministers, nor representatives from the Australian embassy in Jakarta, had rung him to offer assistance.
He said he was fed up with the government's entire handling of the 28-year-old Gold Coast woman's case.
"Your government makes me sick, makes me crazy, and I don't understand how come a government like this exists," he told Southern Cross radio.
However, Senator Ellison rejected the criticisms, saying the government has always been prepared to offer whatever assistance possible within the law.
"I fail to understand how what I have been doing would cause Mr Hutapea any concern," he told reporters in Perth.
Senator Ellison said he had promptly answered all Mr Hutapea's letters, had provided witness statements, and made arrangements to facilitate video-link conferencing.
"I really don't know how much more we can do and I think that for Mr Hutapea to criticise the Australian government is really unfair and quite misleading," he said.
Senator Ellison will travel to Jakarta on Tuesday to meet his Indonesian counterpart but his offer to also meet with Mr Hutapea has been rejected.
"I understand that publicly he has rejected that and my office is still endeavouring to make contact with his office to see if he wants to talk to me on the telephone," Senator Ellison said.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4485257 - 08/02/05 11:27 AM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Schapelle's hopes for another adjournment
August 3, 2005 - dailytelegraph.news.com.au
SCHAPELLE Corby's last hope of calling the witnesses who her lawyers believe can set her free now lies with the judges and whether they will grant yet another adjournment.
When her drug smuggling trial resumes today the team has only two witnesses - a Qantas check-in officer and an officer from the oversize luggage counter at Brisbane airport.
They are expected to say there was nothing suspicious about Corby or her baggage on the day she checked in for her flight to Bali, with her lawyers hopeful that this can go toward showing reasonable doubt.
Their presence was secured yesterday after a two-hour meeting in Bali between the witnesses, Qantas officials from Sydney, the Corby legal team and her family.
But the fate of the other witnesses is now uncertain, with relations between the lawyers and the Federal Government testy and the court appearing reluctant for any further delays.
Lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea claimed yesterday he had never received a letter from Justice Minister Chris Ellison offering to meet in Jakarta. He pointed out that such a meeting was impossible because he is in Bali, inviting Senator Ellison to meet him in Bali last night.
"OK, if I go to Jakarta can he send someone to replace me to attend the hearing?" Mr Hutapea asked.
Brandishing a huge folder of his numerous missives to the Federal Government, Mr Hutapea continued his attack, urging Government ministers to remember that Corby was an Australian citizen.
"Remember again, remember, that Corby is your citizen and Government is paid a huge salary by citizens by way of tax so therefore they have the obligation to help," Mr Hutapea said.
"This is all my letters to your Government so if they said we haven't done much, that's bulls . . . . This is all my letters because all we want is the witness," he said.
Corby's mother Rosleigh Rose visited her daughter at Kerobokan Jail for 45 minutes and said the 28-year-old was faring better yesterday than she had on the eve of any other court appearance.
"I don't know why. Probably just more confidence, more positive and better lawyers," Ms Rose said.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4488289 - 08/03/05 12:06 AM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Judges shut down Corby trial
August 3, 2005 - heraldsun.news.com.au
SCHAPELLE Corby has dealt another shattering blow, with three Balinese judges shutting down her reopened drugs trial and refusing to grant her Indonesian lawyers more time to find new witnesses.
Another judge ruled out the possibility of Australian witnesses linked to drug trafficking giving evidence by video link.
The judge insisted witnesses must testify in Bali in person, even though that might mean they could be prosecuted under Indonesian law.
Corby broke down in tears in the packed Denpasar District Court after the rulings were handed down.
She was distraught as she was taken back to her cell at Kerobokan prison.
Corby's defence team must now lodge a new appeal and ask for a time extension from the Bali High Court, to keep alive her hopes of freedom.
The High Court last month ordered her trial to be reopened for promised new defence witnesses to testify.
With no witnesses lined up, the court is far from certain to grant another extension.
"The hearing will be closed, but it is not impossible it can be reopened," Denpasar District Court Chief Judge Linton Sirait said.
"It depends on the higher court."
The Gold Coast woman, 28, was sentenced to 20 years in jail on May 27 for trying to smuggle 4.1kg of marijuana into Bali last year.
Mr Sirait, who reopened Corby's trial on the High Court orders, said he would not allow more time for the defence team to produce either the people it claimed owned the drugs or those who allegedly stashed them in her bag before she arrived at Bali airport last October.
Separately, High Court chief judge I Gusti Made Lingga wrote to Messrs Sirait and Hutapea, saying defence plans to produce videolink testimony for key Australian witnesses would be unacceptable, and all testimony must be made in court in person.
Mr Lingga singled out possible evidence from former Victorian jail inmate Ronnie Vigenser, who has been accused of, but denies, being the owner of the drugs.
"Vigenser must be heard directly because aside from being a witness he could be charged for his actions in smuggling the marijuana into Indonesia," Mr Lingga wrote.
The defence had also hoped to produce videolink testimony from another Victorian inmate, identified only as Paul, who has implicated Vigenser in a statement to Australian Federal Police.
Adding to the complications of today's aborted hearing, defence lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea accused the prosecution of losing more than 500g of the 4.1kg drug stash.
As judges and lawyers from both sides crowded round, the defence team produced a set of bathroom scales that appeared to show the bag of drugs had dropped in weight to 3.6kg.
"Is it possible ... evidence disappeared just like that?" Mr Hutapea asked the court, accusing police again of vital failings in their investigation.
Mr Sirait ordered the drugs be officially examined again by police specialists.
Another of Corby's lawyers, Erwin Siregar, said confusion over the weight would only strengthen the defence's planned new High Court appeal.
"This is about the credibility of the process," he said.
Earlier, two Qantas staff told the court they had checked in Corby's baggage at Brisbane airport and had noticed nothing unusual.
But both admitted they could not remember the bag and were relying on computerised records.
"I'm not a security officer, only a check-in agent," Brisbane airline staffer Howard John Parr, 44, said.
Another Qantas staffer, Ricky Leigh Clark, 27, said he had accepted Corby's bag in oversized luggage and did not notice any smell of marijuana.
If there had been such a smell, the luggage would have been rejected, Mr Clark said.
Faced with the major setbacks, Mr Hutapea criticised Australian Justice Minister Chris Ellison's handling of the case.
Canberra had not done enough to clear the way for new witnesses to testify in Australia under the umbrella of immunity, he said.
Mr Hutapea hopes to meet Senator Ellison soon in Jakarta, where the minister is on an official visit.
But he admitted such a meeting might be "already too late".
The Australian Government seemingly did not want Corby to go free, Mr Hutapea told reporters.
"Your country, your people, always think you are the best human beings on the Earth, but in fact your bloody airport (is) sending all marijuana to my own country," he said.
"So don't say anymore that Australians are the most human law-abiders, in fact your front yard is very dirty."
Senator Ellison was worried by reports that a distressed Corby believed the Government was not doing enough to help her.
He indicated he might try to inform Corby directly about the Government's actions.
"I don't know whether she's being told all that's going on," he told Macquarie Radio.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4497896 - 08/04/05 11:03 PM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Corby's legal team seeking 'miracle'
August 5, 2005 - thecouriermail.news.com.au
SCHAPELLE Corby's Bali lawyer yesterday admitted it would be a miracle if the High Court allowed her trial to be re-opened yet again.
Erwin Siregar admitted a trial had never been re-opened twice on appeal in Indonesia.
Mr Siregar was speaking after a 40-minute meeting with the Denpasar High Court chief and vice-chief judges in which he lodged a new application for another hearing. But Mr Siregar said he remained 60 per cent optimistic the legal team could pull it off.
The Australian Government agreed to support Corby's legal team in its efforts to have her drug trial re-opened for a second time. The decision followed a tense, fence-mending meeting between Justice Minister Chris Ellison and Corby's lawyers yesterday in Jakarta.
That meeting also revealed Corby's high-profile lead lawyer, Hotman Paris Hutapea, was considering quitting the case if the High Court appeal failed and the case moved to the peak Supreme Court in Jakarta.
"At the High Court yes. At the Supreme Court, let's see," Mr Hutapea said. "I am not sure. I have other commitments. I have already spent too much time here."
Senator Ellison said he had asked Mr Hutapea to tone down his criticism of the Australian Government.
He said his office would write to the Bali High Court to support Mr Hutapea in an application to have the case re-opened to hear video link testimony from witnesses in Australia.
"We will be saying that the Australian Government can facilitate that video link conferencing and that we will render assistance for that to take place," Mr Ellison told journalists.
In court yesterday, Mr Siregar also delivered a three-page letter setting out the reasons why another hearing of Corby's case was necessary and a list of witnesses they hoped to call.
Some familiar names are on the list of 12 potential witnesses along with five new ones - staff monitoring X-ray machines at Sydney airport the day Corby flew to Bali last October.
Corby's lawyers also want to call former jail inmate William Miller. He has claimed he was to collect the 4.1kg of marijuana - the bag Corby was convicted over - from Sydney airport.
Miller's claims have been rubbished by his own lawyer.
The Bali judges have also been told that a Victorian prisoner, known only as Paul, has now agreed to testify by teleconference and has dropped his earlier demands that he wear a mask so as not to be identified.
Paul claims that the heard a fellow Melbourne inmate called Ronnie Vigenser say the drugs found in Corby's bag belonged to him. Paul alleges Vigenser had complained that Corby cost him 4kg of "smoke". Vigenser has denied the claim.
Corby's lawyers also argued teleconference evidence could be permitted and was not banned under Indonesian law. They pointed out there was precedent with teleconference testimony taken during trials of the Bali bombers.
Mr Siregar said he hoped the High Court would make its decision within a few days.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4514619 - 08/09/05 01:02 PM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Corby lawyers ask court for help
August 9, 2005 - seven.com.au
Lawyers for convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby have asked Indonesia's highest court to push for a new reopening of her drugs trial.
Corby's lead lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea wrote to the Supreme Court in Jakarta, asking its chairman Judge Bagir Manan to provide "guidance" to the lower Bali High Court.
The High Court last week refused permission for the defence team to have a second trial re-opening to allow witnesses in Australia to give evidence by video link on who was behind a 4.1kg drug stash found inside Corby's unlocked baggage at Bali airport last year.
Since then, the Australian government has written to the court to support the defence request for another hearing.
In the letter to the Supreme Court, Hutapea said another three weeks to allow a teleconference to take place was nothing compared to the 20-year jail term Corby had been given in Bali.
"Can you imagine if there are witnesses who may provide testimony or to free Ms Schapelle Leigh Corby but those witnesses are not given opportunities to testify?" he said.
"Our country and our court will be extremely criticised."
Following widespread protests in Australia over Corby's sentence, Hutapea said the defence team had already managed to demonstrate to the Australian public that "our country and our court are not as bad as they think".
"We draw your attention that our court received a lot of protests and criticism on Corby's trial, but for the last one-and-a-half months we are able to reverse their view," he wrote.
Hutapea wrote that now the Australian public was worried about "police and baggage handlers in Australian airports who are in conspiracy with drug traffickers."
The letter was backed with newspaper clippings taken from Australian papers.
Hutapea told Judge Bagir that his approval of a teleconference would improve the "good impression" of Indonesian courts in the international community.
Letters from Australian justice minister Chris Ellison and from Corby's defence team requesting another trial hearing have not yet been handed over to the Bali High Court by the Denpasar District Court, which presided over Corby's trial.
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dblaney
Human Being
Registered: 10/03/04
Posts: 7,894
Loc: Here & Now
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4515205 - 08/09/05 04:10 PM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Wow...Corby's team is certainly persistent.
I hope the Indonesian government relents.
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"What is in us that turns a deaf ear to the cries of human suffering?"
"Belief is a beautiful armor
But makes for the heaviest sword"
- John Mayer
Making the noise "penicillin" is no substitute for actually taking penicillin.
"This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing government, they can exercise their constitutional right of amending it, or their revolutionary right to dismember or overthrow it." -Abraham Lincoln
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4536448 - 08/14/05 11:25 PM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Corby team seeks video
August 15, 2005 - heraldsun.news.com.au
LAWYERS for Schapelle Corby will contact Qantas in a belated bid to get security footage from Brisbane airport from the month she left on her ill-fated journey to Bali.
One of her lawyers, Erwin Siregar, said yesterday he had no knowledge of Qantas sending a letter advising the images were even available.
Revelation of the footage comes as Corby's legal team remains hopeful the Bali High Court will this week accede to its request to reopen her hearing a second time.
It was revealed yesterday that Qantas had hired an audit firm to recover any images from the CCTV computer that would show the Brisbane domestic terminal at the time Corby and her group checked in.
While the images could not be narrowed down to October 8, the day Corby checked in, Qantas has told a federal aviation inquiry that it wrote to Corby's legal team in December last year offering to discuss the issue.
Qantas said the lawyers did not respond to the offer which was made before her drug smuggling trial even started.
The letter was sent to Vasu Rasiah, the non-lawyer case co-ordinator, on December 24.
Mr Rasiah, who has since been sacked from Corby's team, could not be contacted yesterday.
Qantas said Corby's team also failed to accept an offer to tour baggage handling areas of Brisbane and Sydney airports.
Mr Siregar, who was not engaged by Corby until January, said he had never been told by the original legal team that Qantas had even made the offer.
"If there is news like that, of course we will make a follow-up," he said yesterday.
Qantas has received about 1300 reports of theft from checked bags in the past three years.
That is an average of 36 thefts a month or a rate of 9.6 bags per million.
The figures are in a Qantas submission to a parliamentary inquiry into aviation security.
Federal Parliament's joint committee of public accounts and audit is studying claims that baggage handlers planted drugs in Corby's luggage.
The Qantas submission said there were 1293 reports of pilfering from checked bags across the airline group from July 2002 to June this year.
Melbourne was among nine domestic and international airports that accounted for over 80 per cent of incidents.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4555877 - 08/19/05 02:35 PM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Corby's jail term may be halved
August 20, 2005 - theadvertiser.news.com.au
SCHAPELLE Corby was last night hoping that her 20-year prison sentence in Bali for drug smuggling would be cut in half.
The Australian Embassy in Indonesia was working to confirm reports that Jakarta was poised to offer Corby a 10-year reduction in her sentence.
The claims of an unexpected show of clemency for Corby came after Indonesia decided to slash the already lenient sentence of the man behind the Bali bombings, radical Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir.
The 28-year-old Corby has maintained her innocence since being arrested for smuggling 4.1kg of cannabis into Bali on October 8 last year.
Corby's sister Mercedes said one of the possibilities open to the High Court was to change her charge to the lesser offence of drug possession, which carries a maximum 10 year sentence. Foreign Affairs Minister Alexander Downer said the embassy in Jakarta was trying to confirm the reports but there had been no official word from the Indonesian Government.
Mr Downer called on Corby's supporters to remain calm until any plans to reduce her sentence became clear.
Judge Linton Sirait, who presided over the Corby trial, said late yesterday he had not been told of any decision.
The chief judge of Bali's High Court, Judge Made Lingga, said no decision had been reached and his court did not plan further hearings.
Schapelle Corby's family and lawyers also dismissed the sentence rumours, saying they could affect attempts to win her total freedom. Bali-based lawyer Erwin Siregar, who is part of Corby's appeal effort, described the speculation as "bohong" - Indonesian for a lie.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4565691 - 08/22/05 01:21 AM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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No truth in sentence rumours
August 22, 2005 - news.com.au
SCHAPELLE Corby's 20-year prison sentence for drug smuggling is not about to be reduced.
The Bali High Court's Chief Judge, Made Lingga, yesterday denied suggestions that a decision had been reached on Corby's appeal.
Corby's Bali-based lawyer, Erwin Siregar, described the speculation as "bohong", which is Indonesian for "a lie".
"There is still no decision from the High Court," he said.
On Friday, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Australian officials were working to confirm speculation surrounding Corby's sentence.
But Corby's sister, Mercedes, said the family had not heard anything to suggest the High Court was close to a decision.
"I think this rumour is just a way for Downer to blow his own whistle, so the Government looks like it has been doing something to help when it hasn't," she said.
Meanwhile, a federal parliamentary committee has recommended changes to the way Australian police co-operate with their counterparts in countries with cruel, harsh or inhumane punishments, such as the death penalty.
The Senate Legal and Constitutional Committee has urged the Howard Government to ensure ministerial supervision of Australian Federal Police assistance to countries such as Indonesia, Thailand and the United States.
The recommendation was prompted by the case of the so-called Bali Nine, who face the death penalty after they were arrested in Indonesia in April for allegedly trafficking heroin.
The committee heard the AFP had assisted Indonesian authorities with the investigation at a police-to-police level - with no government involvement.
Law Council of Australia president John North told the committee the AFP should only assist international police forces if there is an agreement ruling out inhumane treatment or punishment.
"I understand that, had our Attorney-General and others been involved, the Bali Nine would not be open to charges that carry the death penalty," he said.
Under current legislation, the AFP can choose to provide assistance to other nations' police agencies until charges are laid.
Ministerial approval is required for any assistance after charges are laid or if "coercive" powers, such as a search warrants or seizures, are required.
Federal Justice Minister Senator Chris Ellison last night ruled out changes to the system.
"You can't cherry-pick your relationship," he said. "When you are fighting terrorism and organised crime, you need total cooperation of law enforcement."
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4574996 - 08/24/05 12:36 PM (6 years, 9 months ago) |
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Corby's trial may be reopened, lawyer hints
August 25, 2005 - theage.com.au
The celebrity Indonesian lawyer hired by convicted drug smuggler Schapelle Corby has hinted the Bali High Court may announce today that it has agreed to reopen Corby's trial for a second time to hear new evidence.
Hotman Paris Hutapea has asked the court to order a new hearing to allow witnesses in Australia to give evidence by video link on who placed 4.1 kg of marijuana was found in her luggage last year.
Corby has maintained the stash was planted by someone else.
"All I can say is that I work very hard," Hutapea said.
In a letter to the court on Tuesday, the flamboyant millionaire lawyer said Corby's 20-year sentence was harsh considering an Indonesian couple had recently been sentenced in Sumatra to only four years' jail for smuggling 5kg of marijuana from Aceh to Medan.
"The 20 years jail punishment for Ms Corby is very and too heavy compared to other hundred similar criminal cases in Indonesia," Hutapea wrote.
The court is expected to make an announcement tomorrow afternoon.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4653504 - 09/12/05 10:59 PM (6 years, 8 months ago) |
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Corby appeal hopes fade: lawyer
September 13, 2005 - theaustralian.news.com.au
CONVICTED drug smuggler Schapelle Corby's appeal hopes are in doubt after Indonesia's highest court refused to intervene and allow potential witnesses from Australia to testify via video link.
Corby's legal team said today the Supreme Court in Jakarta has refused their request to order a lower appellate court in Bali to reopen Corby's trial to hear video link evidence on who placed 4.1kg of marijuana in Corby's unlocked luggage last year.
The Supreme Court said it was up to the lower Bali High Court to decide itself whether to accept video link evidence.
Defence lawyer Haposan Sihombing said the Bali High Court was almost certain to reject the request in a ruling expected soon.
"By my analysis, it's impossible for the teleconference to be held," he said.
"Probably the case will be decided between now and September 20, and my feeling says most likely this week."
The defence team has asked the Bali High Court to reverse a 20-year jail term given to Corby by the Denpasar District Court at the end of her trial in May.
A later trial reopening heard evidence from Qantas ground staff but failed to sway the trial judges to reverse the guilty verdict.
The defence had hoped to use a video link to allow witnesses linked to the drug trade to testify from Australia rather than in person in Bali where they would run the risk of prosecution under Indonesian law.
There had been speculation that if the Bali High Court refused to overturn Corby's conviction, it might reduce her sentence.
Indonesia appeal rulings are not announced in open court but are released on paper.
If as expected the High Court does not free Corby, the defence team has promised a final appeal in Indonesia's Supreme Court in Jakarta.
But flamboyant lead lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea has hinted he may dump Corby's case before it moves to Jakarta, because it is costing him too much in lost earnings and political headaches amid rows with Australia's government.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
Loc:
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4693808 - 09/22/05 01:02 AM (6 years, 8 months ago) |
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Airport study backs Corby claims
September 22, 2005 - theage.com.au
Schapelle Corby's Indonesian lawyer has said an expert report that highlights poor security at Australian airports has strengthened her claims that she was an unwitting victim of drug gangs.
But he doubts it will enough in itself to get her released from a Bali prison.
The federal government said it would accept the report of a British transport expert and upgrade dysfunctional airport security with a $A200 million program.
Corby's lead lawyer, Hotman Paris Hutapea, said he hoped to present the report to the judges who are considering the Gold Coast woman's appeal against a 20-year jail term for smuggling 4.1kg of drugs into Indonesia last year.
The flamboyant counsel told AAP the report's findings dovetailed with Corby's case.
"This is exactly my defence which I used in Bali," he said.
During her trial hearings, Corby maintained that the stash must have been planted in her bag by an Australian-based gang looking to use her as an unwitting courier to shift the drugs between Brisbane and Sydney.
Hutapea said the report seemed to back those claims, but may not sway judges because they would require hard proof.
"I can present it to the judges, but I have used the same arguments many times before," he said.
"This may not be significant, because our laws require direct evidence."
Corby is expected to hear soon the result of an appeal to Bali's High Court.
If the court rejects her appeal or lowers the sentence to a lesser jail term, her lawyers have promised an appeal to Indonesia's peak Supreme Court in Jakarta.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4713230 - 09/26/05 07:50 AM (6 years, 8 months ago) |
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Corby judges seek more time
September 26, 2005 - news.com.au
CONVICTED drug smuggler Schapelle Corby may have to wait another month to learn if she can go free from a Bali jail after judges wrote to Indonesia's highest court to ask for more time to make up their minds.
The appellant court, which could theoretically increase Ms Corby's 20-year sentence, had been due to rule by Thursday whether it would agree to quash or cut Ms Corby's sentence.
But lead lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea said today the judges had written to the Supreme Court to request another 30 days.
The request is extraordinary because a time extension is usually granted only once and the High Court has already pushed out the detention period by a month.
But Mr Hutapea said deliberations had been delayed by a legal conference currently underway in Bali.
"I don't want to speculate too much, because we could be fighting for Corby's life," he said.
"I don't want to criticise the court."
Another of Ms Corby's lawyers, Erwin Siregar, earlier said he was confident the 27-year-old would receive good news and he expected a decision by tomorrow at the latest.
He also promised to launch an appeal to the Supreme Court in Jakarta if it failed.
"We expect a good result in the court, but we will have to wait and see," he said.
The Gold Coast woman was arrested on October 8 last year after customs officers at Bali's Ngurah Rai Airport found 4.1kg of marijuana in her unlocked luggage.
Ms Corby maintains the drugs were not hers and must have been planted in her baggage by an Australian drug gang using her as an unwitting drug courier.
Her lawyers had hoped to organise a video link from Australia to allow unidentified witnesses to present new evidence about who really owned the drugs.
But they were unable to convince Bali's High Court they could find fresh witnesses.
Senior judges said the decision was up to the lower court, where the videolink request has already been rejected.
Mr Hutapea last week said he hoped to present a new report into Australian airport security measures to appellate judges to help bolster the former beauty student's claims.
Mr Siregar said without another extension order or an appeal court ruling, Ms Corby would have to be freed from Kerobokan on Thursday when the current order expired.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4726923 - 09/28/05 05:48 PM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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Judges delay Corby appeal
September 27, 2005 - news.com.au
SCHAPELLE Corby's fate remains in the balance for up to one more month after the Denpasar High Court yesterday sought another 30-day extension to deal with her appeal.
The High Court's chief judge, Made Lingga, late yesterday sent a letter to his superiors in Jakarta seeking another 30 days in which to make a decision.
The court in Bali originally had until tomorrow to release its decision on her appeal against her drug smuggling conviction and 20-year sentence.
But the judges, unable to reach a decision within this timeframe, have now sought an extension which the Supreme Court in Jakarta has the power to grant.
Both Corby, 28, and the prosecution, have lodged appeals against the May verdict.
The prosecution argues the 20-year sentence is too lenient and instead asked that she be jailed for life for trying to bring 4.1kg of marijuana to the tourist island.
It seems likely the Supreme Court will accede to the Bali judges' request.
The court has already denied requests from Corby's lawyers to re-open her trial to hear further evidence from Australian witnesses who her legal team maintain could help have her spared a lengthy sentence.
The case has already been re-opened on two occasions, in July and August, but only a handful of witnesses was called.
If the Denpasar High Court turns down the former beauty student's appeal, she can lodge a further appeal with the Supreme Court, the equivalent of the High Court in Australia.
Meanwhile, prosecutors handling the cases of the so-called Bali Nine heroin gang are yet to hand the case files to the Denpasar Court and appear to be embroiled in discussions over the relevant legislation to use against them.
With their trials due to start within the next month, police and prosecutors have so far said all nine will face charges carrying the death penalty.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4734186 - 09/29/05 09:41 PM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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Prosecutors confident Corby will get life
September 29, 2005 - theage.com.au
Indonesian prosecutors are confident that a Bali appeals court will increase Schapelle Corby's 20-year jail term to life imprisonment.
In contrast, the Gold Coast woman is praying that the judges will overturn her conviction for drug smuggling and free her.
The defence and the prosecution have filed competing appeals and both expect the Bali High Court to bring down its decision soon.
If she is not released, her defence team expects the court will cut her sentence.
However, prosecutor Ida Bagus Wiswantanu said he would not be satisfied until Corby was serving a life term for importing 4.1kg of marijuana into Bali last year.
"We are confident the High Court will increase the sentence because drug crimes have wide implications on society," he said. "If it does not, we will appeal to the Supreme Court."
Corby is waiting for the court's ruling in a cell at Bali's Kerobokan Prison.
"Schapelle is becoming more anxious each day," sister Mercedes Corby told AAP.
"I get frustrated with all the delays, but when Schapelle heard about the latest one she said: 'Hopefully it means they're going to release me and the Australian government has more time to do something to help'.
"That's how she copes.
"I hope they do (release her), but I can't get my hopes up because we have to stay strong."
The Bali High Court, which could theoretically increase Corby's 20-year sentence, had been due to rule today on whether it would agree to quash or cut her sentence.
But judges wrote to the Supreme Court in Jakarta this week requesting another 30 days to make up their minds.
It was the second extension since Corby's lawyers and the prosecutors lodged appeals following Corby's sentencing in May.
Corby's flamboyant defence lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea said he now expected the court to announce its decision next week, although public offices and most businesses in Bali will be closed on Wednesday for an annual religious celebration.
Hutapea said 20 years was extraordinarily harsh for the crime.
He said he was confident Corby's sentence will at least be cut, particularly in light of a recent report critical of Australian airport security.
"I don't expect the judges will go above 20 years, I'm optimistic that at least they will reduce the sentence," Hutapea said.
Corby's family is also prepared to take the case all the way to Indonesia's highest court.
"If she's not going home, we will appeal again," Mercedes said.
"She didn't get a fair hearing (before Denpasar District Court).
"We just hope the High Court looks at everything that happened in the first trial and the way the police handled the investigation."
Corby, who currently shares a cell with a dozen other women, was arrested on October 8 last year after customs officers at Bali airport found a stash of marijuana in her unlocked luggage.
The 28-year-old Gold Coast woman maintains the drugs were not hers and must have been planted by an Australian drug gang using her as an unwitting drug courier.
Her lawyers had hoped to organise a videolink from Australia to allow new mystery witnesses to testify about who allegedly owned the drugs.
But they were unable to convince the High Court that they had found credible witnesses with fresh information.
Corby's supporters say the Australian government has done too little to help arrange testimony from a witness known only as Paul, who allegedly knew who owned the marijuana.
Hutapea said no new witnesses would be given the chance to testify if the case goes before the Supreme Court.
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4772057 - 10/08/05 03:51 AM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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First anniversary of Corby drug arrest
October 8, 2005 - theage.com.au
Schapelle Corby's supporters have likened the convicted drug smuggler to Nelson Mandela on Saturday, exactly one year after she was first put behind bars.
On October 8 last year, Corby, 28, was arrested by Indonesian police at Denpasar Airport, where customs officers found 4.1kg of marijuana in her unlocked boogie-board bag.
She was jailed for 20 years in May this year, and is now awaiting the outcome of an appeal to the Bali High Court that could set her free, reduce her sentence or increase it to life imprisonment.
"She's said she's been there a year and she's done the year, and if she strengthens herself, she will make it through," Corby supporter Rachelle Hamilton said.
"She's strong, she's got a really strong and growing faith. She may be one of these very special people.
"Nelson Mandela was in jail for a long time and he ended up being a great leader and maybe she might have a destiny in her life of the same thing."
Supporters have made a book, called Footprints, containing words of encouragement written to her, she said.
It was written at a rally organised by Ms Hamilton for Ms Corby's birthday.
"We were able to send a book over to her last weekend with (her mother) Rosleigh.
"She will have it and we are happy about that.
"I am sure she will be encouraged by the beautiful words in this book. The letters of support she has received are really holding her up.
"I really believe that in the end there will be hope for Schapelle. She will not be forgotten by the people of Australia."
It has been reported that one of the three High Court judges hearing Corby's appeal believes she is innocent, but if the appeal fails, her lawyers plan to go to Indonesia's highest court, the Supreme Court.
Corby's sentence sparked widespread anger in Australia earlier this year, with supporters claiming the drugs were planted in her bag by corrupt baggage handlers.
The former Gold Coast beauty school student, who has repeatedly maintained her innocence, will be alone for her grim anniversary, as prison rule bans visitors on weekends.
Corby's mother, Rosleigh Rose, and sister Mercedes visited her in Denpasar's Kerobokan Jail on Friday to celebrate Mercedes' birthday.
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 IgnatiusJReilly
Up From Sloth
Registered: 08/28/05
Posts: 668
Loc: LA
Last seen: 1 year, 4 months
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4772334 - 10/08/05 08:25 AM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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Nelson Mandella? C'mon, she's a pot smuggler!
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"A Bad Day for Pants"
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veggie
Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 13,985
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4791818 - 10/12/05 07:25 AM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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Schapelle Corby's jail term cut
October 12, 2005 - BBC
A court in Indonesia has cut the sentence being served by Australian woman Shapelle Corby, her lawyers have said.
Corby, who was found guilty of smuggling marijuana into Bali in May, will now serve 15 years in jail instead of 20, attorney Hotman Paris said.
But Corby's sister Mercedes said she was furious with the appeal verdict. "She should be free," Mercedes said.
Corby's case has gripped Australians, with many believing she is innocent.
Mr Paris said he was considering whether to appeal the ruling.
"Her sentence has been reduced by five years to 15 years, but that is still inhuman," Mr Paris said.
"This is only marijuana, not heroin. If the prosecutor appeals this case, then I will also appeal. I also will talk about the verdict with Corby."
Corby's sister said her family was devastated by the appeal court's decision.
"She didn't do it. She should be free," Mercedes Corby said. "I was expecting the Australian government to do something. We're not happy in this sentence and we will appeal immediately."
Corby insists she is innocent, and claims that the 4.1 kg (9 lb) of marijuana found in her surfboard bag were planted.
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OneMoreRobot3021
punky jewster
Registered: 06/06/03
Posts: 60,572
Loc: new york city
Last seen: 12 hours, 45 minutes
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4791977 - 10/12/05 08:49 AM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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Big improvement...
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Acid doesn't give you truths; it builds machines that push the envelope of perception. Whatever revelations came to me then have dissolved like skywriting. All I really know is that those few years saddled me with a faith in the redemptive potential of the imagination which, however flat, stale and unprofitable the world seems to me now, I cannot for the life of me shake.
-Erik Davis
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IgnatiusJReilly
Up From Sloth
Registered: 08/28/05
Posts: 668
Loc: LA
Last seen: 1 year, 4 months
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Re: Schapelle Corby [Re: veggie]
#4792406 - 10/12/05 10:31 AM (6 years, 7 months ago) |
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Even if it were heroin, she wouldn't be deserving of that kind of punishment.
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"A Bad Day for Pants"
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