Lawyers against Victorian Mandatory Sentencing

The Law Institute of Victoria (LIV) has condemned the Victorian Government’s proposed mandatory sentencing legislations as a gateway to greater crime rates and would turn gaols into “schools for crime.” Law societies across Australia, including the Law Council of Australia, have urged the Victorian Government to abandon its plans to introduce minimum statutory sentences for certain offences.

LIV president have denounced the laws for being “…so broad they would trap many people, particularly young people, into a life of crime. Sentencing youths to mandatory two-year terms is likely to lead to greater crime rates in the long run as youth justice centres and prisons become schools for crime.” It is the duty of well qualified, and experienced independent judicial officers to impose the most appropriate sentence, taking into account individual circumstances of the case.

Furthermore, the Law Council of Australia has argued that “Mandatory sentencing reduces the incentive for offenders to plead guilty and can lead to an increased case load for the courts.”

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