NSW says expansion aims to deter reoffences, improve justice outcomes for Aboriginal people
The NSW government has announced the expansion of alternative sentencing options for Aboriginal offenders on the South Coast, with circle sentencing courts now operating at Moruya, Narooma, and Batemans Bay.
“The NSW Government is proud to support the expansion of Circle Sentencing on the South Coast,” said Attorney General Michael Daley in a media release from the NSW Department of Communities and Justice.
Ordinarily, a magistrate alone sentences a defendant. However, circle sentencing involves a group consisting of the magistrate plus elders or other local Aboriginal community representatives. This group considers victim impacts, possibilities for deterring further offences, and other factors when deciding on a sentence. With circle sentencing, the police prosecutor should be involved, while the victim can participate by choice. The circle sentencing court has the power to sentence as a traditional court does as long as a defendant complies with the required criteria and is deemed suitable.
A defendant pleading guilty to a criminal offence or found guilty of such offence in a local court can apply for circle sentencing.
The department said that the expansion seeks to assist in deterring reoffending, improving justice outcomes, and promoting community safety.
“Aboriginal people who participate in Circle Sentencing are less likely to end up in jail or reoffend,” Daley said in the media release, adding that the process “gives Aboriginal communities a say in the sentencing process while delivering long-term savings for the criminal justice system.”
A 2020 study by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research revealed that Aboriginal individuals taking part in circle sentencing were 9.6% less likely to reoffend compared with defendants receiving traditional non-custodial sentences.
Circle sentencing started in Nowra in 2002 and presently operates across 22 high-priority areas. In Moruya and Narooma, five defendants have been involved with circle sentencing. Meanwhile, at Batemans Bay, four defendants have taken part in circle sentencing.
