NSW domestic violence court cases hit with months of delays

Thousands of domestic violence victims in NSW are waiting longer for justice, with local courts falling months behind on cases following repeated disruptions to court operations in recent years.

A young Sydney woman allegedly beaten by her ex spent days in hospital after he broke the left side of her face – but almost a year on she’s stuck reliving the nightmare – as the state’s local courts fall behind following years of Covid disruptions.

The woman – who can’t be named for legal reasons – was allegedly attacked by her then-partner earlier this year, and required several surgeries to fix her badly beaten face.

The case against the man is still ongoing 11 months later – with his trial not set to proceed until next year.

The delay has left her – and thousands of other women – in legal limbo, as new criminal court data released by the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research shows that domestic violence court cases have been particularly affected by disruptions to court operations.

“You can’t move on, you’re stuck worrying about the next day in court or what they might do next,” the woman in her 20s said.

A Sydney woman was viciously attacked by her then-partner earlier this year, and required several surgeries to fix her badly beaten face.

“Each court appearance I just feel really down in the dumps and it brings up a lot of things that you might have tried to ignore for a bit – then it’s just all back on the surface.

“It’s a constant cycle of that happening. It’s sort of like not being able to just close a door, you are forced to keep it ajar, and you can’t just close it.”

Last year, a typical contested domestic violence matter took 271 days to finalise in the Local Court – more than 100 days longer than in 2018, which was 160 days.

“The Local Court is the engine room of the criminal justice system so longer wait times have broad reaching implications for a large number of victims and defendants,” BOCSAR executive director Jackie Fitzgerald said.

“Court delay has many undesirable consequences. Both victims and defendants can be in a state of limbo waiting for resolution and the prospect of conviction can diminish over time as witnesses and victims disengage from the process.”

Tara Hunter from sexual and domestic violence advocacy group Full Stop said the delay not only stopped victims from healing and moving on, it kept them in a loose state of contact with their abuser.

“They are forced to have indirect contact with the perpetrator, whether it’s preparing for court, giving evidence, they are kept in their orbit,” she said.

Tara Hunter, Full Stop Australia Counselling Services Director. Picture: supplied

“That leads to psychological impacts in terms of the ongoing fear, anxiety and their overall wellbeing.”

The advocacy group is calling for dedicated domestic violence courts in NSW, to not only keep up with the huge load of cases, but to treat victims with the care and sensitivity they need.

“We want to see these cases prioritised and given the resources and expertise they need,” she said.

The young woman has bravely shared confronting pictures of her injuries, after her ex allegedly broke her eye socket, shattered her cheekbone and broke her jaw.

The alleged attack by her ex-partner broke the woman’s jaw, shattered her cheek and broke her eye socket. .

She said the man had never been abusive toward her before January of this year, when he allegedly snapped following a small argument.

Police were called and he was arrested and charged for the alleged abuse.

Almost a year on, the the woman said she felt a duty in speaking about her experiences, as new stats reveal that rate of domestic violence in NSW has risen over the past five years.

“I know that it can be really shameful for a lot of women to speak out after something like that,” she said.

“And I just thought, no, I’m not going to feel shame for what someone else did.

“I want to try and help other women and empower them to leave a violent relationship or report any abuse to the police.”

New statistics from BOCSAR revealed domestic assaults in NSW have risen 13 per cent in the past five years – however, assaults in regional and rural NSW were significantly higher.

Since 2018, domestic assaults have risen by 19 per cent in regional areas – up from 12,800 in 2018 to 15,200 this year.

Ms Hunter said evidence showed that along with Covid lockdowns and cost of living pressures – natural disasters like bushfires and flooding had led to an increase in domestic violence in regional areas in recent years.

“There was definitely an increase in presentations and an increase in first time events of physical violence,” she said.

“Disasters and lockdowns meant victims were not always kept safe and they were ending up in the same space as the perpetrators.”