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.