Calls to review public decency offences after Richard Pusey’s shock sentence
The County Court Chief Judge has responded to criticism of Richard Pusey's jail term saying sentencing is a difficult and challenging balancing act.
Police & Courts
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The state’s top judge has weighed in on the debate around Richard Pusey’s sentence, saying: “Justice would not be served if retribution were to prevail over the balanced application of the law.”
Chief judge Peter Kidd issued a statement on Friday after seeing overwhelming “commentary and misunderstandings” about the court’s role in sentencing since the Eastern Freeway Porsche speedster was jailed this week for 10 months.
He said sentencing judges were met with a “challenging and difficult exercise”, balancing the impact on the crime on victims with other factors including the perpetrator’s mental health and criminal history.
“It is not uncommon that some of these factors may conflict with the wishes or interests of those affected by the crime,” Judge Kidd said.
“Denunciation of wrongful conduct in the sentencing process is important, but sentencing is – and must be – a dispassionate exercise, carried out objectively.
“It is a fundamental principle of the rule of law that a person is only sentenced on the basis of the offences for which they have been found guilty, or for which they have pleaded guilty.”
He said Pusey had never been charged over the deaths of the four police officers.
Judge Kidd urged Victorians to read the full sentencing remarks, warning it can be distressing, to get a clear idea on the judge’s reasoning and how they applied the law to Pusey’s case.
He said the court must sentence based on the law “as it currently stands”.
“Any law reform is a matter for parliament,” he said.
The comments came as the state’s Attorney-General has been called on to refer Richard Pusey’s case to the Victorian Law Reform Commission to review public decency offences and ensure community expectations are being met.
Droves of people have spoken out since Pusey was jailed for 10 months — two months of which was for his filming of the aftermath of the Eastern Freeway crash in which four police officers were killed.
Former Victorian chief magistrate Nick Papas QC said it was “a unique and complex case” that had attracted a lot of public outcry.
“The community has been so upset by what happened,” Mr Papas said. “I would suggest because of the groundswell of community reaction in this case, the Attorney-General should refer it to the Law Reform Commission to see if it needs specific legal reform.
“The central focus of a review and consultation process would be to establish community expectations.
“It could also look at people’s duty to assist and where to draw a line between crass behaviour and language and criminal conduct.
“If you bare a bum out a bus, that’s offensive behaviour and you can be charged. But Pusey’s conduct was way above that.”
The commission could take submissions from the public on whether there should be change to public decency laws and how, he said.
Opposition legal affairs spokesman Edward O’Donohue backed a review.
“I support a referral to the Law Reform Commission for it to examine the current penalties for public decency offences, including whether there should be different, more severe penalties for the most heinous public decency crimes,” he said.
Pusey, 42, pleaded guilty to an outraging public decency charge, with his sentence on Wednesday marking the first conviction in Victoria from the offence since 1963.
The charge related to his commentary while filming the fatal injuries of Leading Senior Constable Lynette Taylor, Senior Constable Kevin King, Constable Josh Prestney and Constable Glen Humphris.
His repugnant commentary included: “That’s f. king justice”; “Oh, he’s smashed. Look at that”; “All I wanted to do was go home and have my sushi”; and “There you go. Amazing”.
Even when other bystanders asked him for help as they tended to the officers, he refused or said “they’re dead”.
A day after the sentence, Constable Humphris’ partner Todd Robinson called for prosecutors to appeal.
“I feel a bit let down by the justice system — it would have been a perfect time to send a message,” he said.
Constable Prestney’s mother Belinda Prestney said harsher penalties were needed.
“He zoomed in on Josh’s face, he zoomed in on Josh’s name tag, he zoomed in on Josh’s injuries, so there’s something very wrong about a system that doesn’t punish that,” she said.
“We thought that our four loved ones deserved more, and we think that the Victorian public deserve more.”
Mr Papas said the outraging public decency charge was “very unprecedented”.
He said he believed Judge Trevor Wraight’s sentence was “consistent” with the law.
A function of the Victorian Law Reform Commission is to examine, report and make recommendations to the Attorney-General on matters of “general community concern”.
Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes said it was inappropriate to comment on sentencing decisions of courts.
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