Sources within the justice system not authorised to speak publicly said the government was told there was no chance of any appeal succeeding. Barlow received a call from Daley on Tuesday night notifying her of that decision.
“It was better late than never. It was the first time I had heard from him … clearly he knew there was nothing he was going to be able to do at that late stage. I was surprised I actually got the call,” she told 2GB’s Ben Fordham.
Barlow and husband Laurence only found out her attacker was up for parole through unofficial whispers.Credit: Janie Barrett
Daley informed Barlow that an appeal could only proceed if the judge had made an error in interpreting the law when sentencing Holohan. The government found no such error, so an appeal could not proceed.
The State of NSW and the commissioner of Corrective Services had opposed Holohan’s release, while Barlow warned the state would become more dangerous for women with him walking the streets.
When he viciously beat Barlow, Holohan was on parole over savage attacks on two other women.
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The State Parole Authority (SPA) said no parole was risk-free, but it was safer to supervise Holohan outside prison than to release him unsupervised at the end of his sentence.
Community Corrections, a branch of the government that supervises offenders outside prison, supported Holohan’s release, saying he had become “institutionalised”.
Holohan’s parole sparked a review of the Victims Registry, which alerts people to the release of their attacker, but only if they opt in to the service.
The Barlows were never enrolled in the registry and claim they were never made aware of its existence. They found out about Holohan’s parole hearing just four days beforehand through unofficial channels.
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It forced them to rush to Sydney to deliver a cobbled-together statement to the authority.
Minns promised the government would now move to an opt-out system for victim notification after urging by the Barlows in the Herald.
The government later discovered no single agency was responsible for informing victims when their attackers were due for parole, a situation the government will also reform.
Holohan will be placed in temporary accommodation and can be supervised until the end of his sentence in 2029.
Holohan celebrated his first moments of freedom in 15 years with a fast food meal on the highway.
But he won’t live in total freedom. Corrective Services NSW on Wednesday ordered Holohan will have to wear an electronic ankle monitor while on parole.
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