Denied bail ... Keli Lane, pictured outside court in 2010. Photo: Nick Moir
Convicted child killer Keli Lane has failed in her bid to be released on bail ahead of her appeal in the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal.
The 37-year-old, serving a maximum of 18 years' jail over the September 1996 murder of two-day-old Tegan, hung her head as Supreme Court Judge Cliffton Hoeben handed down his decision.
"Rather than have people poses false hope...I'm going to refuse bail today," Justice Hoeben said.
Lane's conviction in 2010 caused great controversy, as Tegan's body was never found, and therefore no cause of death ever determined.
After retiring, Lane's trial and sentencing judge, Justice Anthony Whealy, revealed to Fairfax Media that he did not personally believe the Crown had proved its case against Lane, and he was unconvinced of her guilt.
Lane's legal team, lead by prominent Sydney QC, Winston Terracini, argued in the Supreme Court on Thursday that her trial was unfairly prejudiced from the start, because the jury should have been instructed that manslaughter and infanticide were alternate charges to consider.
They also argued that, in his closing address to the jury, Crown Prosecutor, Mark Tedeschi had reversed the onus of proof by posing a series of questions which he said the defence had not answered.
"We say that on both these points the appellant has strong prospects of success," Mr Teracinni told Justice Clifton Hoeben on Thursday.
Justice Hoeben acknowledged that this "might be the case" but that these were "not questions I can answer at this preliminary stage".
"I refuse bail, and will hand down my reasons tomorrow.," he said.
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