In making this complaint it is recognised that the event which caused the death of the person driving the car that was hit by the accused person is a significantly and deeply tragic event. It is because of the understandable public outrage that follows such an event that the pretrial publicity rule forbidding publication of an accused’s criminal history exists.
Read MoreWe begin by acknowledging that a physical assault or threat of such in relation to an individual does not give rise to any issue of freedom of speech, as we will come back to in relation to proposed section 80.2 BB. Threats are not in any proper sense part of the communication of information or opinion which is protected by freedom of speech.
Read More“These laws have clearly been rushed and should be withdrawn until there is further and more substantial consultation” says President Michael Cope
Read MoreNotwithstanding our submission that doxing offences in the form contained in the Bill should not be introduced, we submit that; if it were to be introduced, doxxing should be an offence only to the extent it can be equated to harassment or stalking as the unacceptable behavior and consequences are similar.
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“Mr Crisafulli should tell Queenslanders what he is going to do to remedy the serious failure to rehabilitate young offenders in Queensland juvenile jails and what he is going to do to address the multiple problems in juvenile justice as outlined in Mr Worrall’s Report”, Mr O’Gorman said.
Read MoreAny set of rights is pretty useless if you do not have an environment in which you can enjoy them. To that end, we do support the inclusion in the Act of a right to a healthy environment
Read MoreThe proposal that ‘associates’ can have a Firearm Protection Order made against them simply because the associate ‘knows’ a recognised offender is objectionable because of the width of the provision and the effect that an FPO can have on that associate’s ability to hold rural employment.
Read MoreThere are new and draconian powers of warrantless stop and search once a person is the subject of a Firearms Protection Order
Read MoreWe are particularly troubled by the objectives apparently underpinning the legislation, including exclusion of entire nations from migration to Australia, further criminalisation and exposure to imprisonment and detention of people seeking safety in Australia, and circumvention of the impact of a prospective High Court decision regarding unlawful administrative detention.
Read MoreMost persistent offenders acquire a criminal record, so one option is to increase the rate at which we imprison recidivist juvenile offenders. Even the most optimistic research to date suggests that incapacitation is not a very cost-effective way of reducing juvenile crime. The money we spend incarcerating juvenile offenders would, in many circumstances, be better spent treating or trying to rehabilitate them. There is good evidence that treatment for drug dependence is an effective way of reducing re-offending. There is also good evidence, despite earlier suggestions to the contrary, that it is possible to rehabilitate re-offenders using methods such as conferencing, cognitive behavioural therapy or training in basic life skills.
Read MoreIf the Parole Board is being described as broken for victims’ families it is even more broken for prisoners who have done all required rehabilitation programs but who languish in jail often for many months after their parole eligibility dates because of prisoners being unable to obtain parole accommodation.
Read MoreThe rule against double jeopardy is not a rule designed to protect the guilty but to protect the innocent.
Read MoreQCCL President Michael Cope said today, “The rule against double jeopardy is not a rule designed to protect the guilty but to protect the innocent.”
Read MoreThe presumption of innocence dictates that the State has no greater obligation to protect its citizens from a person who has been released from custody than it has to protect its citizens from any other member of the public.
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