Mandatory jail for paramedic attacks not on, says Law Institute of Victoria
PREMIER Daniel Andrews’ plan to force judges to jail anyone convicted of assaulting emergency workers has come under fire from the state’s peak law body.
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VICTORIA’S peak law body has taken a swipe at Premier Daniel Andrews’ decision to force judges to jail anyone convicted of assaulting an emergency worker, which will come under the same offence category as murder or rape.
Law Institute of Victoria representatives are seeking an “urgent meeting’’ with the state Attorney-General Martin Pakula in an attempt to keep judicial discretion and oppose mandatory sentencing.
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The Andrews Government announced Monday that anyone convicted of assaulting police, paramedics, firefighters or emergency service workers under toughened laws would be jailed, disallowing any discretion of a community based order.
Mr Andrews came under pressure from police and ambulance union bosses Wayne Gatt and Steve McGhie last week, brokering a deal with the government at the weekend to close a “loophole’’ that allowed offenders to avoid incarceration.
It came after police and paramedics were outraged by a decision by a County Court judge to spare two women jail time on appeal despite being convicted of assaulting and injuring a paramedic.
Mr Andrews said yesterday enough was enough.
After a state cabinet meeting, he announced judges would be stripped of applying “special circumstances’’ discretion in these cases, which includes those who have a mental illness.
“Emergency workers put their life on the lives on the line every day to help keep us safe — it is unacceptable that they should be attacked or assaulted just for doing their job,’’ Mr Andrews said.
LIV president Belinda Wilson said that although everyone deserves the right to a safe workplace, it would oppose mandatory sentences.
“Victoria’s magistrates and judges must have discretion when it comes to sentencing and have the flexibility to deal with every case on an individual basis,’’ she said.
Ms Wilson has also criticised categorising any assault on an emergency worker as a category 1 offence.
“The LIV also seriously questions that assaults on emergency workers should be in the same category as murder and rape,’’ she said in a statement.
Attacks on emergency services workers will become category 1 offences, like murder, rape and large commercial drug trafficking, in which “jail means jail”.
It comes as another paramedic who was assaulted called for ambulance crews to be issued with stab-proof vests, helmets and safety gloves.
Paul Almond, 44, who was punched in the face and spat at by an aggressive patient on Thursday, said tougher sentencing was needed, but so was a new approach to try to stop the attacks.
Mr Almond said: “Our society has changed. People feel entitled, and when mixed with alcohol and drugs, they can be violent and dangerous.
“I personally would like to see more safety equipment such as crew helmets, stab vests — another layer of protection — and safety gloves to protect hands and fingers from being bent or injured when having to defend ourselves.”
Sentencing changes will include:
• making “recklessly causing injury” and “recklessly or intentionally causing serious injury” to an emergency services worker a category 1 offence that carries a jail term;
• removing alcohol consumption, drug use or “psychosocial immaturity” for offenders aged 18-20 as special reasons to avoid prison;
• listing examples of circumstances that do not amount to “substantial and compelling reasons” to dodge jail; and
• automatic appeal rights for the Director of Public Prosecutions when a court applies a special reason to exempt an offender from prison.
The Herald Sun understands the laws may also apply to staff in youth justice centres, meaning an 18-year-old who injures a worker there could get a mandatory sentence.
However, juveniles who attack police and paramedics may be treated in a different manner. This will be worked out in coming weeks.
Despite calls to abolish exemptions for mentally-ill offenders, the laws will allow the exemption in “very narrow and specific incidents” such as a psychotic episode.
Premier Andrews confirmed that offenders would also have the option to plead not guilty due to mental impairment.
But he said the sentencing changes showed emergency services workers that “we honour the work that they do every hour of every shift in every part of our state”.
“For anyone who wants to avoid going to jail, it is very simple — don’t attack and injure a paramedic or a police officer or a staff member in a youth justice centre or prison,” he said.
“If you do it, you will be going to jail.”
Asked whether the sentencing changes for injuring emergency services workers will be reviewed after a year, Premier @DanielAndrewsMP said he expects the public to be monitoring them “case by case almost†@theheraldsun pic.twitter.com/gDjritxQvE
— Monique Hore (@moniquehore) May 21, 2018
The Police Association’s Wayne Gatt and Ambulance Employee Union secretary Steve McGhie both welcomed the changes.
Mr Gatt said the new laws would take the “target” off the back of emergency services workers.
“At the moment what we’re seeing is excuses that really simply don’t cut it for the sorts of behaviour our members are experiencing on the street,” he said.
But Opposition Leader Matthew Guy said he doubted whether the proposed changes would have any effect.
He said the government needed to provide clear instructions to courts and clarify what it meant by “giving less weight to the life circumstances of offenders”.
“We are concerned that this change is no change at all,” Mr Guy said.
“If you let the courts interpret what is less weight, we all know what the courts will interpret that to be.
“The government needs to provide definition of what less weight and less emphasis on some of its supposed exceptional circumstances are.”
The government will introduce the proposed laws to Parliament next month.
Current mandatory sentencing laws allow judges to use special circumstances to exempt violent offenders who assault emergency service workers from jail terms.
A County Court Judge last week allowed Amanda Warren, 31, and Caris Underwood, 20, to walk free from court, on appeal, despite having attacked a paramedic.
It sparked widespread outrage, with the government ordering an immediate review of the laws and paramedics scribbling “it’s never OK to assault a paramedic” on dozens of ambulances.
The Ambulance Employees Union’s Steve McGhie said those ambulances would likely be scrubbed clean over the coming days as promised changes were announced.
He dismissed calls for paramedics to be armed with capsicum spray or other weapons to protect themselves.
“It would be a sad day if paramedics had to carry and arm themselves with things like OC spray,” he said.
“It has also been suggested that they carry tasers and stab-proof vests. If we are getting to that situation, it is a really dire situation.
“There are many other things to be done before we get to that.”
The Police Association’s Wayne Gatt said there was a growing disrespect for police among the community.
“We are also seeing that with paramedics, we are seeing that with firefighters, we are seeing that with workers in hospitals more broadly,” he said.
“We need to have a strong position that not only protects people in the community who are protecting others but says very clearly that it’s just not on, it’s never OK to assault an emergency services worker at work.”
“It’s fair to say that in this case (last week’s County Court decision) it doesn’t appear that the legislation that was introduced by the former government in 2014 operated in the way that it was intended to.
“I was, like many others, was quite surprised.”
Shadow Attorney-General John Pesutto said the Opposition would introduce a private members Bill to parliament.
He said it would remove exemptions for being drug or alcohol-affected and limit those for mental illness, although he would not spell out exactly how.
“Victorians are sick and tired of people hiding behind drug use to excuse violent behaviour,” Mr Pesutto said.
He added: “We are still working through the details around serious, rare and genuine cases of serious mental health.”
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