Greg Lynn Denied Bail as Retrial Looms in High Country Camper Murder Case
Alleged high country killer Greg Lynn has been denied bail by Victoria's Supreme Court while awaiting a retrial over the death of a camper. The 59-year-old appeared before the court on Thursday to apply for bail while appealing the verdict and 32-year sentence handed down after a jury found him guilty of murdering 73-year-old Carol Clay in June 2024.
Appeal Grounds and Legal Proceedings
Lynn had his conviction set aside and was granted a retrial in December, but will now remain behind bars in court custody throughout the proceedings. The court upheld two grounds of appeal presented by Lynn's legal team in December, which argued the prosecution's conduct during the closing address of the trial caused Lynn to have suffered a substantial miscarriage of justice.
The first ground of appeal found the prosecution made a number of submissions challenging the credibility of the evidence given by Lynn and one other witness without ever putting those matters to them. This occurred over repeated objections by defence counsel and despite warnings from the trial judge, the court said. In doing so, counsel breached a rule of fairness.
The second ground of appeal found prosecuting counsel had unfairly attacked the reliability and credibility of its own firearms and toolmark expert witness without giving him a chance to respond.
Background of the Case
The court heard Carol Clay and her lover, 74-year-old Russell Hill, were camping in the same remote site as Lynn in Victoria's high country when they both went missing in March 2020. Lynn gave evidence to the Supreme Court jury that he was struggling over his shotgun with Hill when the firearm accidentally discharged, shooting Clay in the head.
Hill died after a struggle with Lynn over a knife, and Lynn was found not guilty of his murder. He admitted he returned seven months later, after the COVID-19 lockdown lifted, to burn their remains into more than 2000 bone fragments.
