Victim Impact Statements Bill
Mr Speaker I too rise to speak on the Statutes Amendment (Victim Impact Statements) Bill 2024.
This Bill makes amendments to the Sentencing Act 2017 and the Victims of Crime Act 2001as a means of responding to the concerns raised by the Commissioner for Victims’ Rights about the experiences of victims during the sentencing process.
The Bill has been designed mindful of the feedback given on both the draft Bill and a discussion paper and has received broad support from stakeholders.
Victim Impact Statements give the victim of a crime the opportunity to tell the court how a crime has impacted them. The victim can speak to the injury, both physical and psychological, the loss or damage they have suffered as a result of the crime perpetrated against them.
A Victim Impact Statement can help the court understand how a crime has affected the victim and may be considered by the judge or magistrate as they determine the penalty to be given to the offender.
In my work as a mediator, I frequently witnessed the restorative value of finally just being heard. Not being heard leaves a burning frustration that not only has a perpetrator had the complete disregard, or at the very least careless indifference, for a person’s humanity to inflict a crime against them in the first place, but they also then have no interest in taking responsibility for their actions and hearing how they have affected the victim, further dehumanising them.
The Victim Impact Statement forces the perpetrator to listen, or at the very least, hear how their actions have, at a human level, impacted the victim.
Even if a crime is accidental, the consequences can be no less damaging, traumatic, or permanent and the Victim Impact Statement no less important as well, giving the victim the opportunity to place on the record, the injury they have suffered as a result. The outcome is the same – the victim is heard.
This Bill provides that where a victim has not had a reasonable opportunity to provide a victim impact statement or has requested more time, the court must, on application by the prosecutor, adjourn sentencing proceedings to give the victim a reasonable opportunity to prepare their statement.
Currently, a decision as to whether to adjourn sentencing proceedings is a discretionary matter for the court with no specific factors for consideration.
It was raised by the former Commissioner for Victims’ Rights that some matters can proceed to sentencing earlier than expected risking the victim missing out on preparing Victim Impact Statement, particularly in the Magistrates Court (which hears the highest volume of criminal matters).
This change is modelled on the ACT practice.
Secondly, the Bil makes clear the court must not refuse to receive a VIS on the grounds that it contains irrelevant or inflammatory material.
Currently, courts have discretion as to whether to accept a VIS meaning there is a risk the court could refuse to accept a Statement.
While editing of VIS does not appear to be a common practice, this amendment is intended to minimise the chance that editing may occur by prosecutors due to perceived issues of admissibility. The statement will be given in the victim’s words, even where the statement includes gratuitously insulting or abusive language or information that is irrelevant to sentencing. However, any such material cannot be taken into consideration for sentencing purposes.
Finally, the Bill amends the Victims of Crime Act 2001 to give victims an express right to be informed about their entitlement to provide a VIS, and about the manner in which the court may use the statement, including the circumstances in which certain material may be disregarded or not read aloud to the court.
This change focusses on keeping the victim informed about how a VIS may be used.
The Hon. Connie Bonaros MLC lodged an amendment in the other place that would provide the Court with discretion to permit the family of a person killed or suffering total incapacity to provide a VIS where that death/incapacity occurred as a result of conduct occurring in connection with the charged offence. The Government supported that amendment.
Currently, the entitlement to provide a VIS only extends to those who have actually suffered injury, loss or damage resulting from the particular offending before the court.
The government amendment is the result of a change recommended by the Commissioner for Victim’s Rights in relation to current limitation periods for certain statutory claims under the Victims of Crime Act 2001.
Currently, the timeframe limitation for an application made by the victim of the offence is 3 years after the commission of the offence. An application arising from the death of a victim must be made within 12 months after the date of death.
The amendment would extend the timeframe limitation for both an application of a victim, or for an application arising from the death of a victim, to 5 years. However, it is important to note that claims arising from child abuse and certain other forms of abuse are not subject to any limitation period.
As this change does not relate to Victim Impact Statements, the name of the Bill consequently needs to be changed to ‘Statutes Amendment (Victims of Crime) Bill 2024’
On a personal note, I would like to add that the primary person who committed crimes against me is no longer alive and so I will never have the opportunity to see them charged or to deliver a VIS. But I think because of this I have a very strong sense of the restorative effect of having the opportunity to face your perpetrator and be heard.
I want to thank the Attorney General for his ceaseless advocacy for victims of crime, for justice and for creating a safer community.
I also want to acknowledge the importance of the contributions made by stakeholders and the former Commissioner for Victims’ Rights.
This is yet another example of the deliberative, collaborative and thorough way in which this Malinauskas Labor Government operates, something I know the members of my community of Dunstan value.
I am pleased to support this Bill and commend it to the House.