Justice reinvestment builds stronger, safer communities, focusing on getting to the underlying causes of crime and stopping crime from occurring in the first place. I look forward to seeing the positive impact that the justice reinvestment approach will have on these two regional communities.
By Keely McDonough -
An innovative program aimed at diverting Aboriginal people away from the criminal justice system will be expanded to two regional NSW communities, as part of a $9.8 million investment from the NSW Government.
Attorney General Mark Speakman announced on Monday 27 February that Nowra on the state’s South Coast and Kempsey on the Mid North Coast will be the new sites of the project expansion, that involves establishing community-led, multi-disciplinary teams to address the underlying causes of crime.
The first justice reinvestment approach in NSW was the Maranguka initiative in Bourke, launched as a pilot in 2012, focused on achieving positive change for vulnerable children and families.
This expansion is part of a $20 million funding boost announced by the Government last year, aimed at reducing the over-representation of Aboriginal people in the justice system. It also includes $5.8 million to expand the Youth Koori Court and $4.2 million to expand Circle Sentencing program from 12 to 20 high-priority Local Court locations.
“The justice reinvestment approach works to divert Aboriginal people away from the criminal justice system with evidence-based, preventative, diversionary and community development initiatives,” Speakman said during a visit to Nowra on Monday 27 February.
“Justice reinvestment builds stronger, safer communities, focusing on getting to the underlying causes of crime and stopping crime from occurring in the first place. I look forward to seeing the positive impact that the justice reinvestment approach will have on these two regional communities.”
In December, the Law Society of NSW launched its State Election Platform, writing to all major parties and crossbenchers in NSW, inviting them to respond to key issues in the lead up to the March 25 election.
Indigenous justice is one of five key areas outlined in the platform, calling for innovative solutions to address the underlying causes of offending and reduce the number of Indigenous children and young people in the care and protection system. In the platform, the Law Society welcomed the current Government’s plan to expand the Youth Koori Court to Dubbo and throughout NSW.
The Platform also calls for the implementation of coordinated therapeutic and legal support services for families to address the chronic issues that can create distress, such as trauma, poverty, housing instability, addictions and violence.
“Vulnerable families should have clear referral pathways to effective, culturally appropriate, and coordinated support services, particularly at critical points in time in a family’s lifecycle,” the Election Platform outlines.
NSW Shadow Attorney General Michael Daley has responded to the Platform, directly addressing these areas.
NSW Attorney General Mark Speakman
“Labor supports the successful trials of programs such as Justice Reinvestment, the Youth Koori Court, Walama List and Circle Sentencing. Capacity issues and disparities in regional availability urrenly limit the operation of these programs. Labor aims to expand these programs and work with community to develop creative, community-based initiatives that divert offenders away from the justice system where appropriate,” Daley said.
A recent BOSCAR report indicates that over the last decade, there has been a 55 per cent increase in the number of adult Indigenous offenders in custody. Daley said, “This is unacceptable. NSW Labor is committed to a whole-of-government approach to address the steep upward trend.”
“Labor also recognises that there has been notable reports into the failure of the child protection system… We are committed to shifting the model from a crisis-driven funding model, towards early intervention and prevention.”
Speakman also announced the commencement of eight new Circle Sentencing locations, including at Broken Hill, Wagga Wagga and Campbelltown. Wollongong, Batemans Bay and Penrith are aiming to take referrals in the first half of 2023, with Waverley and the Downing Centre following later in the year.
Circle Sentencing allows a local court magistrate to work with Aboriginal Elders, victims, respected members of the community and the offender’s family to determine the appropriate sentence.
A 2020 study by BOSCAR showed that, compared with those sentenced in traditional ways, Aboriginal offenders participating in circle sentencing are 51.7 per cent less likely to go to prison and almost 10 per cent less likely to re-offend within 12 months.
“Since the circle sentencing program began as a pilot in Nowra 21 years ago this month, more than 1,518 circle sentencing sittings have been held for Aboriginal offenders, helping them to address the causes of their behaviour and turn their lives around,” Speakman said.
