A man charged with inflicting "terrifying and degrading sexual violence" on his partner has been granted bail by South Australia's highest-ranking judge because of the "undesirable" long wait for a trial.
In his decision to grant bail, Supreme Court Chief Justice Chris Kourakis urged the state government to "review and consider the resources" it allocates to "the proper administration of justice".
He has also noted that each court has a responsibility to "optimise their listing practices" and judges should recognise the urgency in getting cases to trial.
"It is plainly undesirable to leave charges of major indictable offences unresolved over a two-year period," Chief Justice Kourakis said.
The man — who cannot be named to protect his alleged victim — is charged with raping and choking his partner inside a shed at their South Australian home in November 2021.
"[The alleged victim] was subjected to violent, terrifying and degrading sexual violence over a protracted period of time," Chief Justice Kourakis said.
"A statement taken from their eight-year-old son provides some supporting evidence in that he speaks of occasions when he heard screams and yelling coming from the shed.
"He has seen his mother's face puffed up, with black eyes and an abrasion to her forehead."
But the court heard another witness saw the alleged victim attack the accused and that she made a comment about how she had "got [him] locked up".
The man was arrested in January 2023 and was refused bail three days later.
He later took his fight for freedom to the Supreme Court.
By law, the man had the presumption of bail against him and had to prove to the court that "special circumstances" existed to override that presumption.
The court heard he would not get a District Court trial date until early 2025.
Chief Justice Kourakis found that the current delays in getting the case to trial amounted to "special circumstances" and ordered his release from custody under strict conditions.
He added that the delay was a "weighty consideration" given there was some prospect the charges may not continue, or he could be acquitted.
However, the Chief Justice did acknowledge that his decision to grant the man bail would cause the alleged victim "fear and anxiety".
"To ameliorate those risks, I have set particularly stringent conditions on bail," he said.
"Nonetheless, I recognise that, given the length of time before the charges are finally resolved, there is undoubtedly a risk that one or more of the strict bail conditions I have imposed might be breached."
Chief Justice Kourakis said there was a "range of reasons" why cases were facing such long delays in the District Court, including a backlog after the COVID-19 pandemic.
"In recent years, even before those restrictions, criminal trials have increased in length and complexity in part because of the increasing prevalence of forensic evidence," he said.
"It takes time for forensic investigations to be completed, alternate experts are often sought out by the defence.
"Even if a defence expert is not called, the presentation of forensic evidence, and the examination and cross-examination of the prosecution experts, can be time-consuming."
He said long delays could diminish the quality of evidence during the trial, cause victims a great deal of stress and put the life of an accused on hold.
