The Court of Appeal for Ontario has denied theatre impresario Garth Drabinsky’s bid for bail while he seeks leave to appeal his fraud conviction.
In March 2009, Drabinsky was convicted of two counts of fraud and he was sentenced to seven years imprisonment. Drabinsky appealed and was released on bail pending appeal. His appeal was heard in May of this year, and in September, the court dismissed the appeal of his conviction, but allowed the appeal of his sentence reducing his jail term to five years.
He is now seeking leave to appeal the case to the Supreme Court of Canada.
In its decision Friday, the court noted that Drabinsky has been on bail throughout his “prolonged march through the criminal justice system”, and that he has complied fully with his bail requirements. However, it ruled that he has not shown that his release is in the public interest.
“The pendulum must swing towards enforceability and away from bail pending further review after the correctness of the convictions entered at trial has been affirmed on appeal,” it says.
Moreover, it notes that there’s no reason to believe that the Supreme Court is likely to grant leave to appeal in this case. “While I assume the application is not frivolous, I think it is fair to say that leave is not likely to be granted,” it says.