Convicted murderer and rapist Adrian Bayley – the man responsible for the horrific death of Melbourne woman Jill Meagher – has had his minimum jail term reduced.
The 43-year-old won an appeal against one of three rape convictions subsequent to his crime against Meagher in 2012, with the Victorian Court of Appeal conceding the admissibility of evidence.
The victim of the sexual assault, committed by Bayley in 2000, gave a statement to police after identifying Bayley as her attacker on a Facebook missing persons page for Meagher in 2012.
The Court ruled that her identification evidence should have been inadmissible at trial, and there wasn’t enough additional evidence to allow a properly instructed jury to convict Bayley without prejudice.
The acquittal means his overall non-parole term has been reduced by three years; he’ll now be eligible for parole in 2055, at the age of 83.
His appeals against a second rape conviction and the sentence for a third were dismissed, thank fuck.
The law is the law – but this is a reminder it doesn’t always make sense.
Source: The Age.
Photo: Facebook.
