Stolen car, attempted murder: Same maximum sentence under new crime laws

Opposition Leader Steven Miles has slammed the Premier for rushing through its adult time adult crime laws despite expert warnings it could create “unintended consequences”.

Queensland Premier David Crisafulli during a press conference at the Cairns police station. Picture: Supplied

Opposition Leader Steven Miles has slammed the Premier for rushing through the adult time adult crime laws despite expert warnings that the short two-week consultation period would create “unintended consequences”.

It comes after Premier David Crisafulli this morning conceded a 13-year-old boy charged with attempted murder could not be tried under the tough youth crime laws passed in December.

Mr Miles said the Ipswich Coles stabbing had proved the Making Queensland Safer laws championed by the LNP during the state election had not stopped violent crimes from occuring.

“The experts said there would be unintended consequences by passing legislation that had not been properly and rigorously tested,” he said.

“But (Premier) David Crisafulli rushed these laws through regardless, promising crimes like this would stop once the laws were introduced before Christmas.

“The horrendous incident this week has shown that (Premier) David Crisafulli is running a government on slogans without substance.”

Mr Miles called on the Premier to “hold his ministers to account” after Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm yesterday refused to answer questions over why attempted murder had been excluded from the first tranche of the adult crime, adult time legislation.

Minister for Child Safety Amanda Camm and Treasurer David Janetzki speak to the media at Queensland Parliament, Brisbane, Tuesday, January 14, 2025 - Picture: Richard Walker

“He must hold Minister for Child Safety Amanda Camm to account for revealing she had not enquired into how the legislation would affect Queensland’s child safety system,” he said.

Mr Crisafulli says laws will likely be changed relating to the sale and showcasing of knives in Queensland’s retail stores after the stabbing of a supermarket worker.

Mr Crisafulli said the government would consider changes to the knife laws after the stabbing on Monday and decision from supermarket giant Coles to remove them.

“And I think any legislation always needs to be viewed in the prism of ‘how can it be improved’, and this is a classic example,” Mr Crisafulli said, speaking in Rockhampton on Wednesday.

“And I’m not going to stand here today to criticise the former government for that, because in the end, it was one of the few steps forward that happened in the youth crime space.

“So can it be improved? Absolutely. Should it be? Yes. But that’s how legislation works.

“And I want Queenslanders to know that the journey towards creating a safer Queensland ... it starts with early intervention and rehabilitation and a continual improvement of legislation.

“And this is an example of a potential hole in legislation when it comes to knives.

“And if there’s a loophole there, you bet we’re going to close it. And that’s what Queenslanders want and that’s what they deserve. And that’s what they’re going to get. “

Mr Crisafulli said if there were issues identified with the laws the government “must close those loopholes”.

Opposition Leader Steven Miles attacked Premier David Crisafulli for rushing through youth crime laws. Picture: Adam Head/File

“Clearly the legislation relating to knives isn’t where it should be, so let’s make it where it should be,” he said.

“Coles have taken that decision and I think most Queenslanders will look and that and say they understand why. My role is to make sure that we have legislation that ensures that there isn’t grey areas when it comes to retail, that there’s not grey areas when it comes to youth crime.

“Coles has taken a decision as a company and we certainly welcome that.

“What we have to do is look at the legislation and say that’s been in place for about a year, how can it be improved?”

Katter’s Australian Party MP Nick Dametto criticised the legislative, saying said the exclusion of heinous crimes such as rape from the legislation “doesn’t pass the pub test”.

“You’ve got a number of MPs in the LNP that are ex lawyers, how did they compile this list of crimes?” Mr Dametto said.

“Rape is one of the most heinous things that can happen to a person.

“Crimes that are life sentences, including attempted murder, that’s what you think of as an adult crime.

“It doesn’t pass the pub test.”

Katter Australia MP Party Nick Dametto. Picture: Glenn Campbell

The minor party will be pushing for all heinous crimes to be included in the adult crime adult time legislation when parliament returns on February 18.

“That’s what Queenslanders voted on,” Mr Dametto said.

“They proved in December they can push through anything in a short amount of time.

“If all else fails, we’ll introduce a private members bill, but the government has the opportunity to do the right thing here.”

Mr Crisafulli, speaking in Cairns earlier on Wednesday, dodged journalist’s questions over whether the failure to include a swathe of serious offences including attempted murder was an oversight by his government.

Serious offences that currently do not fall under the adult crime laws include rape, kidnapping, arson, choking and accessory after the fact to murder.

“It’s not just attempted murder,” Mr Crisafulli said.

“There are other charges that the expert panel needs to look at. There was that tight timeline between committee and passing it.”

The expert panel that will be tasked with advising on future amendments to the Making Queensland Safer Laws is yet to be established.

The youth charged with attempted murder following the Ipswich Coles stabbing will not face court again until February 25, but any future legislation amendments cannot be applied retrospectively.

Police at the Coles supermarket after an incident that left a worker with critical stab wounds. Picture: 7News

Mr Crisafulli said attempted murder would be included in the next tranche of youth crime laws, but admitted it would not be applicable to the teen.

“It wouldn’t be applicable to this person,” he said.

The youth crime expert panel will be established in coming weeks.

“They’ve got a really important role to make sure that the next wave of legislation has the community input that it deserves, that some of the more complex areas have an opportunity to see what that legislation looks like,” Mr Crisafulli said.

Attempted murder currently carries a maximum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment – the same jail time as stealing a car under the “adult crime adult time” legislation.

Mr Crisafulli was on Tuesday forced to defend the exclusion and rejected suggestions that Queenslanders were no safer under his leadership.

“Let’s see through the investigation … what happens with the charges in the days ahead,” he told the media.

“We implemented the changes that we took to the election and I said that that will be the first step. There will be more changes to the Youth Justice Act, many more,” Mr Crisafulli said.

Child Safety Minister Amanda Camm refused to confirm whether the boy was under state care or why attempted murder was excluded from the LNP’s new laws.

“I am not the minister responsible for those laws, and I have not been fully briefed on that case or in regards to those rules,” Ms Camm said.

David Crisafulli. Picture: Supplied

Critics, including former Queensland Law Society president Bill Potts, argued that the stabbing exposed flaws in the government’s policy.

“If adult crime, adult time, worked as a deterrent, then this offence would have never occurred,” he said.

“It demonstrates the paucity of logic and the paucity of effectiveness,” Mr Potts said.

The Courier-Mail asked Attorney-General Deb Frecklington, through her office, why attempted murder was not included in the government’s list of Adult Crime, Adult Time offences.

A government spokeswoman said that unravelling a “decade of weak laws is a process” and further offences would be added based on recommendations of an expert panel in the future.

“This horrifying and shocking incident continues to unfold – as investigations are under way, today the focus must be on the victim and her family,” she said.

“The Crisafulli government promised Queenslanders action to turn the tide on Labor’s Youth Crime Crisis and this is already under way, with the first tranche of the Making Queensland Safer laws, based on the offences outlined before the election,” she said.

Opposition Leader Steven Miles offered condolences to the victim and urged the government to support the Ipswich community.

Originally published as Stolen car, attempted murder: Same maximum sentence under new crime laws