The son of a man charged over a triple homicide in North Queensland has been awarded more than $22,000 in costs after the prosecution dropped the charge against him.
Derek Gordon Young – the son of Darryl Valroy Young – had his mobile phone seized as part of the police investigation into a triple fatality shooting at Bogie last August.
Daryl Young is accused of shooting and killing three people from the same family and seriously injuring another following a property dispute.
Mr Young's son Derek was believed to have been at his father's property on the morning of the incident.
Police had retained the 36-year-old's mobile phone under the Police Powers and Responsibilities Act, but he did not provide the personal identification number to authorise access to the device.
In October 2022, Derek was charged with contravening an order to give information needed to access a device.
He applied last year to have the phone returned, but in a new development the charges have been dropped and Queensland Police have been ordered to pay him $22,457.
'Doomed to fail'
Derek's lawyer Marcus Hahn told the Mackay Magistrates Court that prosecutors were informed in November that the case had no chance of success.
Yesterday prosecutors offered no evidence to the charge and it was dismissed.
Mr Hahn told the court there had been a "substantial" amount of work done on the case and costs needed to reflect that.
"The matter is very complex — there has been disclosure of a full brief of evidence, which relates to a triple homicide … this evidence has had to be considered," he said.
"It's very large, it's been considered to determine whether the application [to return the phone] was true and correct.
"We put prosecutions on notice on 21st November last year that their case had no prospect of success and we invited the prosecution to discontinue it at the time, but they didn't.
"We've continued to tell prosecutions that their case was doomed to fail, but they haven't discontinued it until today."
Under normal practice, costs of up to $1,500 per day can be awarded for hearings, but higher amounts can be given if the matters are complex or difficult.
Magistrate Ron Muirhead said he was convinced that there was complexity in the matter and noted that the amount was agreed to by prosecutors.
They have been given two months to pay Derek Young.
