Field trip 2- Sentencing Advisory Council

I found our visit to the Sentencing Advisory Council (SAC) very interesting in regard   to the research they conduct as well as in terms of career opportunities.

I think the role of the SAC is very important for investigating trends and possible reforms to sentencing practices in Victoria. One aspect I found surprising was the size of the Council; it was much smaller than I was expecting, with seven board members and seven employees. Considering that sentencing is a crucial element of the criminal justice system and one that is often controversial within the public sphere, as well as the importance of the reports they produce, I would have expected more people to be involved, although they do contract extra people. Even though it is a small team, I believe that the work they do for the Attorney-General and the government is important if we wish to move towards a fairer criminal justice system. Although the current government is taking a ‘tough on crime’ approach to policy, the SAC may still have some degree of influence in guiding the judicial determination of sentences.

Donald's role as a policy officer is an area that I would be interested in possibly pursuing. Although in such a small organisation their work load would be quite demanding, it would be rewarding to think that your work may have an impact upon government policy, and may even work to improve and increase the fairness of the criminal justice system. 

Federation of Community Legal Centres

One aspect of our visit to the Federation of Community Legal Centres that I found particularly interesting was when Michelle was explaining the current issues in Victoria in regard to parole. As discussed in the reading, inquiries have been made into instances of homicide committed by offenders released from prison on parole (McDonnell and Farrell 2012, p. 242). I learned that there are two types of parole breach: technical and criminal. A technical breach of parole may include the failure to attend a meeting with the parole officer, which can be due to many circumstances such as being unable to travel to the location, along with cases of not living at a prescribed address. Criminal breaches of parole involve the breaking of the law whilst on parole.

Suggestions have been made to define a breach of parole as a criminal offence in itself. This would have serious consequences for people who commit a technical breach, as they will have to return to prison for one month, which will have a negative impact upon their rehabilitation and integration back into the community. Technical breaches of parole such as the ones outlined above do not pose a threat to the community, and therefore returning the offender to prison is not the right solution. Alternatives could include extending their parole period, meaning they will be under supervision for a longer period of time, or adding community services to their parole conditions.

Making parole breaches a separate criminal offence is not an effective way of monitoring and enforcing the conditions of parole, and will not increase the safety of the community from offenders reaching the end of their prison sentence.