Towards a fairer and more effective criminal justice system

The Victorian Parliament’s Legal and Social Affairs Committee has recommended a number of important changes that would contribute to a fairer and more effective criminal justice system.

The committee has made 100 recommendations in the final report of its Inquiry into Victoria’s Criminal Justice System.

'The committee rightly recognises the harmful impact of the criminal justice system on First Nations Victorians, particularly women and children, and that people experiencing social and economic disadvantage are disproportionately caught up in the system.'

Dan Nicholson, Executive Director of Criminal Law at Victoria Legal Aid.

We strongly endorse the recommendation that the age of criminal responsibility should be raised, and we support Victoria taking action to increase the age from 10 to 14 years even if a national agreement is not reached.

'Children need health and welfare responses, rather than harmful involvement in the criminal justice system. Peak bodies for doctors, psychologists and lawyers all agree that children under the age of 14 do not have the maturity to be held criminally responsible for their actions,’ said Mr Nicholson.

We support the committee’s careful recommendations for Victoria Police to expand the use and consistency of cautions in the community, and the recognition that Victoria’s bail laws need further reform.

'Our practice experience is that the 2018 bail reforms have had a disproportionate impact on more marginalised groups in society and have resulted in people ending up in prison for minor offending that ordinarily wouldn’t carry a custodial sentence,' said Mr Nicholson.

'The committee has also recognised that short sentences in prison are linked to higher rates of re-offending, and we welcome the recommendation to investigate the introduction of a presumption against short terms of imprisonment in favour of community-based alternatives.'

The report also recognises the need for victims to receive better support in the criminal justice system.

'We welcome the recommendation to pilot the provision of legal assistance to victims of sexual violence,' said Rowan McRae, Executive Director of Legal Practice, Civil Justice, Access and Equity.

'We support initiatives to provide holistic support to victims of sexual violence to assist with their legal needs, and note the importance of co-designing these services with victim survivors.'

Rowan McRae, Executive Director of Legal Practice, Civil Justice, Access and Equity.

We also welcome recommendations to:

• expand the availability of health justice partnerships and community-based early intervention programs
• expand and appropriately fund Aboriginal community controlled organisations to provide social, health, forensic and legal services
• implement a review process to reduce the number of women misidentified as the primary aggressor in family violence incidents
• review and investigate changes to sentencing laws to better tailor sentences for community safety
• increase access to problem-solving courts like Drug Court and Koori Court.

'The committee has made many important recommendations. We look forward to examining the full report in more detail and supporting the government to implement changes to the justice system for the benefit of all Victorians,' said Mr Nicholson.

More information

Read our submission to the Inquiry into Victoria's Criminal Justice System.