Taylor gains bail after Probation assent
ARTHUR Taylor will be released from prison next week.
The highprofile inmate, who was recalled to jail in December after police laid serious drugs charges against him, cleared his first hurdle to freedom on Thursday when the Parole Board agreed to let him out.
It would have been meaningless, however, if his bail application — heard yesterday by Judge Emma Smith in the Dunedin District Court — had been unsuccessful.
She accepted a range of restrictive bail conditions was enough to mitigate any risk Taylor posed in the community.
The selfschooled jailhouse lawyer faces three counts of supplying gammabutyrolactone (GBL); three of offering to supply it; supplying methamphetamine; offering to supply methamphetamine; possession of methamphetamine for supply; two counts of conspiring to supply methamphetamine; and obtaining by deception — all of which allegedly took place between February and June when he was living in Wellington while on parole.
Taylor’s next court date is a judgealone trial in the Wellington District Court next month after he pleaded not guilty to possession of a small quantity of methamphetamine.
On the Dunedin charges, to which he has pleaded not guilty and elected trial by jury, he will be back in court in March.
The bail conditions imposed by Judge Smith mirrored those formulated by the Parole Board and will apply from when he is released on Wednesday:
▪ To live at a specified Dunedin residence.
▪ To abide by a 7pm7am curfew.
▪ To submit to GPS monitoring.
▪ Not to leave Dunedin unless it is approved by Probation.
▪ To use only one internetcapable device, which must be surrendered to Probation when requested.
▪ To provide any non-internetcapable cellphone to Probation when requested.