A notorious killer and rapist who has been in jail for more than 30 years has failed to convince the High Court he has grounds to appeal his continued detention.
Mark Richard Lawrence was to have been released from prison early last year after doing time for the 1983 manslaughter of a female psychiatric patient, and the 1999 rape of a fellow inmate.
However, he was ruled too dangerous to release.
He took the matter to the High Court of Australia in April, seeking leave to appeal the decision.
His lawyers argued there was reliable psychiatric evidence that should have supported his release, and that the court had erred in ruling him unsuitable to return to a life in the community.
However in a written judgment published this week, the High Court refused to grant him special leave and dismissed the case.
His continued detention will be reviewed again periodically in a lower court.
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