Principles of Criminal Justice

• The criminal justice system operates under the principles of fairness, equality, and access

Principles of Justice

• Fairness involves fair processes, impartial hearings, adequate opportunities to be heard, clear procedures, and freedom from bias
• Equality ensures everyone is treated the same, regardless of personal characteristics, with equal opportunities to present their case, free from discrimination, and with equal application of the law
• Access ensures all people can understand their legal rights, utilize legal institutions, and obtain information about cases and processes

Key Concepts of the Victorian Criminal Justice System

• Summary offences are minor crimes, like drink driving, heard in the Magistrates’ Court under the Summary Offences Act 1966 (VIC)
• Indictable offences are serious crimes, such as homicide, heard in the County or Supreme Court before a judge and jury under the Crimes Act 1958 (VIC)
• Indictable offences can be heard summarily if the court and accused agree
• Burden of proof rests on the party initiating court action to prove their case
• Standard of proof in criminal cases is beyond reasonable doubt, requiring the prosecution to prove guilt without any reasonable doubt
• The presumption of innocence is a key principle where an accused person is presumed not guilty unless proven otherwise

Rights of an Accused

• The Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (VIC) protects human rights
• The right to be tried without unreasonable delay ensures cases are heard in a timely manner, considering the complexity of the case
• The right to a fair hearing requires a competent, independent, and impartial court, with transparent trial processes
• The right to trial by jury allows community participation in legal processes, applying the law according to community standards

Rights of Victims

• Victim's Charter Act 2006 (VIC) recognizes the impact of crime on victims, providing guidelines for support and information
• Vulnerable witnesses, such as young, elderly, or cognitively impaired individuals, can give evidence using alternative arrangements
• Alternative arrangements for vulnerable witnesses include support persons, screens, closed courts, or closed circuit television
• Victims have the right to be informed about the progress of investigations, charges, hearing dates, outcomes, sentences, and appeals
• Victims can be informed of the likely release date of the accused through the victims register, maintained by the state for victims of violent crimes

Victoria Legal Aid (VLA)

• Victoria Legal Aid (VLA) is a government agency providing free legal advice and low-cost or no-cost legal representation
• Free legal information is available to everyone through VLA's website, resources, and phone services
• Free legal advice is available to those who cannot afford a lawyer, are homeless, children, unable to communicate in English, Indigenous Australians, or people with a disability
• Free duty lawyer services are available for people satisfying the income test, available in court on a hearing day, excluding indictable offences
• Grants of legal assistance may be provided to those who satisfy the means test, including legal advice, dispute resolution, document preparation, and court representation
• The income test determines duty lawyer eligibility based on limited income
• The means test determines eligibility for legal assistance or interpretation based on income, assets, and expenses

Community Legal Centres (CLCs)

• Generalist CLCs provide a broad range of legal services to a specific geographical area
• Specialist CLCs focuses on a specific group of people or area of law
• CLCs consider the legal matter, other available assistance, chance of success, ability to manage alone, and capacity to assist
• CLCs provide basic legal information online and offline, initial legal advice, duty lawyer assistance for urgent matters, and legal casework for ongoing legal services

Purposes of Committal Proceedings

• Committal proceedings occur in the Magistrates’ Court for indictable offences where the accused pleads not guilty
• Committal proceedings explore evidence and charges
• Committal proceedings determine if a case can be heard summarily
• Committal proceedings determine whether the accused pleads guilty or not guilty
• Committal proceedings ensure a fair trial
• Committal proceedings inform the accused of the prosecution’s case
• Weak cases are dismissed during committal proceedings
• Committal proceedings allow the accused to prepare a defense
• Committal proceedings test the strength of the prosecution’s case

Plea Negotiations

• Plea negotiations are pre-trial discussions between the prosecution and the accused to resolve the case by agreeing on an outcome
• Plea negotiations resolve the case by ensuring a guilty plea to a charge that adequately reflects the crime committed
• Plea negotiations achieve a prompt resolution without the costs, time, stress, and trauma of a trial
• Appropriateness factors include the accused’s willingness to cooperate, strength of the case, willingness to plead guilty, time and expense of trial, and the views of the victim
• Strengths of plea negotiations include prompt case determination, saving court time and resources, and sparing victims and families from trauma
• Weaknesses of plea negotiations include the community or victims feeling the accused was ‘let off’, and potential advantages or disadvantages if negotiations fail

Sentence Indications

• Sentence indications are a statement by a judge to an accused about the likely sentence if they plead guilty
• Sentence indications provide clarity about the likely sentence, promoting early guilty pleas
• Sentence indications alleviate fears or stress about receiving a sentence
• Sentence indications save time, costs, and resources
• Sentence indications bring closure for victims and families
• Appropriateness factors include whether an indication has already been given, whether the accused has applied, the strength of evidence, type of offences, and the number of victims and witnesses
• Strengths of sentence indications include minimising trauma for victims and witnesses, early case determination, and saving court resources
• Weaknesses of sentence indications include the requirement of prosecutor consent and avoiding the need to prove charges beyond reasonable doubt

Reasons for the Victorian Court Hierarchy

• Original jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear a case for the first time
• Appellate jurisdiction is the power of a court to hear a case on appeal
• Specialization of courts allows courts to develop expertise in specific areas
• The Supreme Court (Court of Appeal) specializes in criminal appeals in indictable offenses
• The Supreme Court (Trial Division) specializes in the most serious indictable offenses
• The County Court specializes in particular types of indictable offenses
• The Magistrates’ Court specializes in summary offenses and committal proceedings
• The Children’s Court specializes in cases where young people have been charged with a crime
• The Coroners Court specializes in investigating deaths and fires with suspicious circumstances
• Appeals provide fairness by allowing mistakes from the original decision to be rectified

Responsibilities of Key Personnel

• The judge must act impartially without favoritism, managing the trial, deciding on evidence admissibility, attending to jury matters, giving directions, and handing down sentences
• The jury decides the facts, deliberates, delivers a unanimous verdict, remains objective, listens to evidence, and understands judge directions
• Responsibilities of the party include giving an opening address, assisting the judge in jury matters, presenting the party’s case, giving a closing address, and making submissions about sentencing
• Legal practitioners must be prepared, comply with their duty to the court, act ethically, and act in the best interests of their client

Purposes of Sanctions

• The Sentencing Act promotes consistency and fair procedures in sanctions
• Rehabilitation reforms offenders to prevent future offences by addressing underlying reasons
• Punishment penalizes offenders and shows society that criminal behavior is not tolerated
• Deterrence discourages the offender and others from committing similar offences
• Specific deterrence discourages a particular offender from committing the same offence again
• Denunciation demonstrates the community’s disapproval of the offender’s actions
• Protection safeguards the community from the offender, preventing further offenses

Sanctions

• Fines require the offender to pay money to the state, outlined in levels 1-12 in The Sentencing Act
• A court must consider the financial circumstances of an offender
• Sentencing purposes of fines are to punish the offender, act as a specific deterrence, and act as a general deterrence
• Ability of fines to achieve purposes depends on the wealth of the offender, and whether the fine is sufficient to act as a general deterrent
• Community Corrections Orders (CCO) are non-custodial sentences served in the community with mandatory and special conditions
• Mandatory conditions include not committing another offence, notifying address changes, not leaving Victoria without permission, and reporting to a community corrections centre
• Special conditions are specific to the offender, such as curfew, area exclusion, or alcohol exclusion
• Sentencing purposes of CCOs are to punish and rehabilitate the offender through mandatory and special conditions
• Ability of CCOs to achieve purposes depends on offender compliance, community protection, and appropriate conditions
• Imprisonment removes the offender from society for a stated period
• Parole is the supervised and conditional release of a prisoner after serving the minimum term
• Prison sentences range from levels 1-9
• Concurrent sentences run at the same time
• Cumulative sentences are served straight after each other
• Aggregate sentences apply to more than one offence

Sentencing Factors

• Aggravating factors can lead to a more severe sentence
• Mitigating factors can lead to a less severe sentence
• A victim impact statement details injuries, losses, or damages suffered by the victim as a result of the offence