How legal delays, chaos may change our court system
As Victoria’s criminal justice system hits crisis point, with delays set to linger for years, jury sizes may be cut and sentences slashed to ease the backlog.
Police & Courts
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Pop-up courts, trimming juries and giving bigger sentence discounts for early pleas are among the ideas being floated to slash dangerous legal system delays.
A proposal to build new courts has also been raised, as has a plan to send County Court judges to the suburbs to fast-track cases.
As revealed by the Sunday Herald Sun last week, criminals could walk free due to huge court backlogs sparked by COVID-19 restrictions amid a looming crisis in Victoria’s criminal justice system.
Delays to the justice system could last years, as most new criminal cases are unlikely to be heard before 2023.
Senior court sources say concerned judicial figures have been personally lobbying the government for increased funding amid fears over the delay crisis.
Some legal figures have warned about early release of criminals whose cases are delayed for too long and the dangers that could pose. Among the proposals is a plan to create a new circuit County Court in the southeastern suburbs.
Social distancing requirements mean two court rooms are now needed to run criminal trials in the court, so moving judges away from the city would help reduce delays.
One senior legal expert said cutting jury numbers may help reduce the space needed for trials but would lead to criticism about compromising the quality of justice.
Several options for reducing a mounting backlog of criminal cases were likely to be considered by the Andrews government, but some were unlikely to be considered.
Included in proposals that have been discussed include greater discounts for early guilty pleas, which are designed to stop criminals stringing out matters and flipping from not guilty to guilty pleas at the last minute.
Extra funding for courts is expected to be a fierce debate within government this year, amid fears that a backlog will lead to early release of dangerous criminals.
More money may be needed for planning and environmental matters as well, given that people looking to invest in Victoria would look elsewhere if they were going to be bogged down by legal delays.
Criminal Bar Association chair David Hallowes, SC, said an increase in funding was the key to solving the crisis.
“The structural impediments at the moment mean that courts can only do so much with the number of facilities available,” he said.
Mr Hallowes said more courts would help address some problems.
“One option is to convert places into temporary court rooms,” he said.
“There are some logistical issues but surely they can be overcome with enough ingenuity.
“Then it comes down to whether another court is built that is used (long-term).”
A state government spokeswoman said the pandemic had far-reaching effects across all sectors, and courts were no exception.
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