ACT must avoid 'knee-jerk' choices on bail and parole, Justice Reform Initiative tells govt

The Justice Reform Initiative said it understood the pressure to respond to recent tragic deaths on the territory's roads but noted there was no pattern of lenient sentencing for driving offences in the ACT and harsher sentences could result in a higher rate of re-offending.

"Although it is tempting to invoke the threat of harsher penalties when tragic events on the roads occur, we need to be very realistic about the likely impacts of these policies," the national advocacy group said.

"It is very clear that prison is ineffective when it comes to controlling crime or protecting the community ... Imprisonment often leads to more crime - not less."

The group, whose patrons include former ACT Supreme Court justice Ken Crispin KC, Acting Supreme Court Justice Richard Refshauge and Director of Public Prosecutions Shane Drumgold SC, said the government should target safer driving support with a focus on young men.

"It is easy to have populist appeal, especially with those agitating loudly, by making promises about 'getting tough on crime', tightening bail laws and bringing in harsher penalties," the group said.

"In fact, this response goes against the evidence of what works to address crime, which is to target the underlying drivers and the entrenched disadvantage within large parts of our society.

"This means properly resourcing the community to deliver supports that genuinely allow and support people to build their lives in the community instead of being 'managed' in justice system settings."

In a submission to the Legislative Assembly's justice and community safety standing committee inquiry into dangerous driving, the Justice Reform Initiative said it was strongly opposed to mandatory sentences for dangerous, negligent and culpable driving offences.

"We believe it is important to create laws and sentencing options that allow the judiciary to examine each case in detail and make appropriate sentences that suit the individual and all the circumstances of each specific case," the group said.

Justice Reform Initiative executive director Mindy Sotiri said the ACT government needed to implement measures to better support and educate drivers and reduce dangerous driving by addressing underlying causes.

"While the sudden loss of a loved one causes immense pain for family and friends, it can also spur a sense of collective outrage," Dr Sotiri said.

"This outrage drives a need to find answers to reasonable questions like how did this happen, and how can we 'fix' the system to make sure it doesn't happen again.

"Although we often turn to prison as a policy response when horrific things happen, we need to be very thoughtful about what it is we are trying to achieve and look at the evidence around what sort of an impact prison has on our community. The evidence shows that 'tough on crime' simply doesn't work - we need to be smart on crime."

The average length for prison sentences imposed in the ACT Supreme Court for 15 driving offences between 2012 and 2022 was 5.6 years. The prison terms ranged from one to 12 years.

The group has also called on the government to make the Road Ready course free and offer it to prisoners in the Alexander Maconochie Centre. The cost of getting a driver licence in the territory should also be reviewed and made cheaper.

The government should also review the mandatory licence disqualification scheme because offenders who are able to retain employment by continuing to drive would be less likely to reoffend, the group suggested.

"We are anecdotally aware of people breaching their court orders in order to engage in legitimate activities, such as employment," the submission said.

The group's submission noted while the ACT's 2022 road toll was already higher than every year since 2015, the territory had among the lowest road tolls in the country on a per capita basis this year. In 2021, the ACT had the lowest road toll on a per capita basis in Australia.

The Justice Reform Initiative said the government needed to reduce barriers for people to get a driver licence and target support to young men to become safer drivers.

MORE A.C.T. POLITICS NEWS:

The group said data from the ACT Sentencing Database showed 14 of 15 defendants in fatal driving matters were men in the cases between July 1, 2012 and August 31, 2022. Seven of the 15 defendants were aged between 18 and 25.

Males accounted for 86 per cent of 28 defendants in negligent driving causing grievous bodily harm matters, where 54 per cent of defendants were also 25 and under.

Other Justice Reform Initiative patrons include former Liberal chief ministers Kate Carnell and Gary Humphries, former Labor deputy chief minister and attorney-general Simon Corbell and ACT Human Rights Commission president Dr Helen Watchirs.

Former ACT chief police officer Rudi Lammers and former independent Assembly member Michael Moore are also patrons of the initiative.

The ACT government has come under sustained pressure to commission an independent review of the sentencing and bail systems for dangerous driving offences in the territory, but Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury has said the review is unnecessary and other work can be done to improve the system.

The petitions, launched by Tom McLuckie, whose 20-year-old son Matthew was killed in a crash earlier this year, were tabled in the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday.

We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on The Canberra Times website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. See our moderation policy here.