Bail laws tested when alleged stabber makes freedom bid

A freedom bid by a woman accused of randomly stabbing a worker walking along a city street will test a state's newly ramped-up bail laws.

Lauren Darul is set to make a fresh run for bail after she was charged with recklessly and intentionally causing injury for allegedly stabbing Wan Lai as she was on her way to work in central Melbourne.

CCTV footage shows Ms Lai walking on a footpath at 7.40am on October 2 when Darul allegedly runs up from behind and stabs her in the upper body in an apparent random attack.

The 32-year-old alleged offender, wearing all black, then runs off while Ms Lai crouches over as a bystander comes up to help.

Darul has also been charged with committing an offence while on bail.

The 36-year-old victim was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and has been discharged.

Darul appeared in Melbourne Magistrates Court earlier in October and was remanded in custody.

She is listed for a bail application in court on Tuesday.

The attack has added to a raft of high-profile crimes in Victoria, which has recorded a near-16 per cent jump in criminal offences in the 12 months to June 30, according to crime statistics.

The premier condemned the alleged attack as "absolutely sickening", sending her support to Ms Lai and her family.

"No one who commits brazen, violent acts like this should be on the streets," Jacinta Allan said in a statement.

Government minister Gabrielle Williams said she understood the community's fear, anger and frustration following the alleged attack.

But she maintained Victoria had implemented the toughest bail laws in the country, which were already starting to "wash through" the system.

Changes include bail being denied to anyone accused of committing a serious offence if they are already on bail for a similar offence, and those facing serious gun, knife and arson offences, non-aggravated home invasion and carjacking charges face tougher hurdles to get bail.

It would reintroduce the offence of committing a serious crime while on bail and breaching bail conditions can be used as a reason to refuse bail as a summary offence.

"We know that in this particular occasion, the accused is now on remand, and that will be a reflection, no doubt, of the changes that we put in place," Ms Williams told reporters on Friday.

"We're already seeing, very early on following their implementation, a very rapid increase in the remand rate across both adults and children."

Melbourne Lord Mayor Nick Reece said the council was introducing more CCTV cameras and new community safety officers.

"By any international comparison, Melbourne is a very safe city, but we have seen a rise in the crime rate that is undeniable," he told ABC Radio.

Opposition Leader Brad Battin on Friday stood on the site where Ms Lai was allegedly attacked two weeks earlier, spruiking his desired implementation of Queensland's Jack's Law policy.

He said the policy, which would allow police to randomly search people using metal-detecting wands, would have made "a big difference".

"When someone's just walking to work in the morning and is stabbed in the chest, that's a clear message to Victorians that (the government) has lost control of crime here," Mr Battin said.