Corby case: Defense weighs options
By Grant Holloway, CNN Sydney
SYDNEY, Australia (CNN) -- Australian Schapelle Corby is considering her appeal options Monday after being sentenced on Friday to 20 years jail on drug charges by an Indonesian court.
Corby's defense team is waiting to see the full transcript of the judgment before deciding which course to take.
One risk of appealing the decision to Indonesia's High Court is that an adverse finding could result in Corby's sentence being increased to life imprisonment, or even the death penalty.
The trial of 27-year-old beautician Corby has attracted unprecedented media coverage in Australia, with several television networks carrying live coverage of the trial verdict.
Recent polls show the vast majority of Australians believe Corby to be innocent of the charges, accepting her explanation that marijuana found when she arrived on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali last October was placed in one of her unlocked bags by Australian baggage handlers involved in the drugs trade.
The Australian government has offered Corby the assistance of two senior lawyers should she decide to appeal the verdict.
Another possibility for Corby is to appeal to Indonesia's Constitutional Court.
Brisbane barrister Julian Wagner has proposed that comments made by the chief judge in the Corby case ahead of his decision showed "blatant bias on behalf of the court".
Suggestions by Chief Judge Linton Sirait that Corby had to "prove herself not guilty" went against Indonesian constitutional law, Wagner said.
Corby lawyer Robin Tampoe told Australian Associated Press that the defense team was "considering" the Constitutional Court option.
Complicating the issue are reports that Corby's prosecutors are also considering appealing the decision, on the grounds that a 20-year prison term and $10,700 (10 million rupiah) fine is too lenient.
Corby has been held in a Bali jail since her arrest at an airport in Denpasar last October.
Her verdict and sentence have generated outrage in Australia and triggered threats against Indonesian diplomatic missions in Australia and Indonesia.
Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer repeated calls on Monday for Australians to stop "berating and denigrating" Indonesia.
Supporters of Corby should understand "she's being held in Indonesia and if they want her back in Australia ultimately any decision about her future will be in the hands of the Indonesians," he told Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio Monday.
"So continuing to berate and denigrate Indonesia isn't going to help anyone."
Downer said if the appeals process failed for Corby then she faced two options. One was to return to Australia to serve her time there, assuming the successful conclusion of a prisoner-exchange treaty with Indonesia that is to be negotiated.
The second would be to appeal to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for a presidential pardon.
Throughout her imprisonment and trial, Corby has maintained her innocence and insisted that the drugs found in one of her unlocked bags were planted by baggage handlers in Australia.
During the trial, Corby's team was buoyed by news that the Australian Federal Police and Qantas Airways were investigating the role of baggage handlers in a cocaine smuggling operation.
The scene in the courtroom turned chaotic Friday when the guilty verdict was read.
Corby appeared confused after the verdict and sentence were read, but after conferring with her interpreter, reality sank in and she glared at prosecutors.
She turned toward her mother, Rosleigh Rose, and said, "Mum, it's OK," before breaking down in tears.
Corby's sister, Mercedes, screamed shrilly at the judges: "It's not all right! How dare you!"
As she was being led away, Schapelle broke free from guards and hugged her mother. "Schapelle, you will come home. Our government will bring you home," her mother vowed after guards separated them.
One of Schapelle's attorneys told a reporter, "I don't think she can survive [in prison]."
Defense witnesses disregarded
In rendering the verdict Judge Sirait said Corby had "convincingly carried out a crime" by unlawfully importing the drug.
"The actions of the accused were a danger to the community," he said. "This was a transnational crime that could damage the minds of young people."
The panel of three judges dismissed every defense witness, including testimony from Australia prisoner John Ford, who backed Corby's claim that she was an unwitting "drug mule."
The judges found Corby's defense team unable to prove if there was another person responsible for the drugs.
But her defense team raised concerns about the failure of police to fingerprint the plastic bag containing the drugs or to videotape the search. In addition, a request to have the marijuana tested to reveal its source was denied.
Prime Minister John Howard said Friday he understood why Australians felt so deeply about the Corby case.
"The fact that we are a nation whose young travel so much, it is an issue that has touched this country very directly," he said.
Many callers to radio talk shows in Australia said they regretted making donations to Indonesian tsunami victims, The Associated Press reported.
Others called for Australians to boycott the popular holiday destination of Bali and Indonesian products.
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Associated Press contributed to this report.
