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5. General principles of the Court
 
  Article 33-Change of venue  
33.1 Change of venue  
  A change of venue is when a court proceedings is planned to commence in one Court and location and is then moved, or when a court proceedings begins in one particular location and then moves to a new location.  
  There are several grounds for a change of venue.  
33.2 Uncooperative/disruptive defendant  
  Where a defendant is deliberately uncooperative, disruptive and seeking to threaten/intimidate and jeopardize the proceedings of the Court, the prosecutor may file for a change of venue from an open dock courtroom to the neared closed dock courtroom.  
  A closed dock courtroom means the defendant can still be brought to court, but isolated in both sound and visually offensive behaviour from the rest of the courtroom procedures without comprising their basic right to bear witness to their own court proceedings.  
33.3 Threatened witness/court case  
  Where a court case begins in an open public courtroom and then members of the Court, court officials and/or witnesses or jury members receive credible threats, the prosecution can move for the proceedings to be moved to a secure courtroom where proceedings are closed to the public and secure accommodation/security protection is available to the court itself and members of the court.  
33.4 Major disaster/destruction to existing court  
  Where a major disaster or sustained damage is inflicted upon the existing courtroom, the prosecution may apply for all court proceedings to move to another location with a functioning court.  
33.5 Unfair and deliberately biased location  
  A defendant and/or their legal team may apply once (only) for a change of venue if they can substantiate a claim of unfair and deliberate bias against their client in the present community in which the trial is said to take place.  
  Deliberate bias includes an openly defiant media committing contempt of court, sustained examples of angry mob behaviour out the front of the court or remand centre against the accused and/or community wide proof that is both in contempt of court and shows strong bias.  
  Unless such evidence of open defiance of the law is evident, no application of change of venue by a defendant is permitted to be accepted.  
     
     
 
 

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