Explanatory note
This explanatory note relates to this Bill as introduced into Parliament.

Overview of Bill

The object of this Bill is to amend the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 as
follows:

(a) to extend the circumstances in which a court may receive a victim impact
statement,

(b) to allow a victim to read out his or her victim impact statement to the court by
means of closed-circuit television arrangements or other special arrangements
in appropriate cases,

(c) to provide that photographs, drawings and other images may be included in a
victim impact statement,

(d) to make it clear that a victim impact statement may be prepared on behalf of a
child by a parent or other person having parental responsibility for the child,

(e) to make other minor and consequential changes to that Act.

Outline of provisions

Clause 1 sets out the name (also called the short title) of the proposed Act.

Clause 2 provides for the commencement of the proposed Act on a day or days to be
appointed by proclamation.

Clause 3 is a formal provision that gives effect to the amendments to the Crimes
(Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (the principal Act) set out in Schedule 1.

Clause 4 provides for the repeal of the proposed Act after all the amendments made
by the proposed Act have commenced. Once the amendments have commenced the
proposed Act will be spent and section 30 of the Interpretation Act 1987 provides
that the repeal of an amending Act does not affect the amendments made by that Act.

Schedule 1 Amendments
Extension of circumstances in which victim impact statement may be
given
At present, the principal Act provides that a court may receive and consider a victim
impact statement in proceedings for certain serious offences involving death, the
infliction of actual physical bodily harm, sexual assault or an act of actual or
threatened violence.

The amendments extend the availability of victim impact statements to any case
involving a prescribed sexual offence (within the meaning of the Criminal Procedure
Act 1986). This includes not only the offence ordinarily referred to as sexual assault,
but other sexual offences such as indecent assault, persistent sexual abuse of a child,
sexual servitude, child prostitution and pornography and also kidnapping and child
abduction offences. See Schedule 1 [2], [5] and [7]. Schedule 1 [4] and [6] make
consequential amendments.

The amendments will also ensure that a witness to such an offence who suffers
personal harm as a direct result of the offence will be treated as a victim of the
offence for the purposes of the provisions. See Schedule 1 [3].

Reading of victim impact statements to court
At present, certain persons can give evidence in criminal proceedings by means of
closed-circuit television or other special arrangements. These arrangements are
available to a complainant in a sexual assault case and to children and intellectually
impaired persons.

The amendments will enable a victim to whom those arrangements for giving
evidence are available to read a victim impact statement to the court in accordance
with those same arrangements. See Schedule 1 [11].

Content of victim impact statements
The amendments make it clear that a victim impact statement may include
photographs, drawings and other images (for example, photographs of the victim
before the offence occurred), subject to any requirements imposed by the regulations.

See Schedule 1 [8].

Victim impact statements for children
At present, the principal Act provides that if a primary victim of an offence is
incapable of providing information for a victim impact statement, the victim impact
statement can be prepared by a member of the victim’s immediate family or other
representative of the victim. The amendments make it clear that this applies to
children, by providing that any victim who is incapable of preparing a statement (by
reason of age, impairment or otherwise) may have a statement prepared on his or her
behalf. In addition, the amendments make it clear that a person having parental
responsibility for a victim (who may not necessarily be a member of the victim’s
immediate family) may also prepare a statement on behalf of a victim. See
Schedule 1 [9]. Schedule 1 [10] makes a consequential amendment.

It continues to be the case that a court cannot receive a victim impact statement unless
satisfied that the victim to whom the statement relates does not object to the
statement being given to the court.

Other amendments
At present, the principal Act allows a victim of an offence who has suffered personal
harm to provide a victim impact statement. The amendment updates the definition of
personal harm, in a manner consistent with the Victims Rights Act 1996, so that it
includes psychological or psychiatric harm (instead of mental illness or nervous
shock). See Schedule 1 [1].

Schedule 1 [12] enables the making of savings and transitional regulations as a
consequence of the proposed Act.

Schedule 1 [13] provides that the amendments apply to victim impact statements
lodged after the commencement of the amendments.

Note: If this Bill is not modified, these Explanatory Notes would reflect the Bill as passed in the House. If the Bill has been amended by Committee, these Explanatory Notes may not necessarily reflect the Bill as passed.

 

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