Victims support harsher sentencing, but it’s not all they want

It wasn’t long ago that Premier David Crisafulli, then LNP opposition leader, promised to resign after one term if the number of Queensland crime victims had not declined under his leadership.

“I’m not giving myself any wriggle room. It’s victim numbers,” he told Nine reporter Tim Arvier during the first leaders’ debate in October.

“It’s not the number of unique offences ... it’s victim numbers. How many people have had their life torn apart. And there will be fewer victims.”

During the first leaders’ debate on October 3, then opposition leader David Crisafulli pledged to resign as premier if he could not get crime victim rates down.Credit: Dan Peled / Brisbane Times

It was wound back a few weeks later when Crisafulli adjusted the claim to encompass population growth. “As a population expands, it’s commensurate. You want less victims as a ratio of your population,” he said.

There is no doubting the collective desire to see fewer victims of violent crime. It was an aim of the Labor government too. In September 2023, former Premier Steven Miles established the state’s first Victims’ Commissioner to improve victims’ rights and engagement with the judicial system.

It had a broader view of victims than those currently in the spotlight, but shared many of the challenges that have been highlighted this week as the LNP government rushes legislative changes to youth crime laws through parliament.

The Making Queensland Safer Bill has drawn sharp criticism from experts and advocates, including the United Nations, with concerns it violates human rights and international principles relating to the treatment of children.

The dissent, heard this week through parliamentary inquiries, is compelling because it’s backed by evidence and best practice. That’s not to suggest submissions from victims didn’t attract empathy, but emotion doesn’t always outweigh logic.

On Tuesday, Crisafulli responded to criticism by repeating his commitment to put victims “front and centre” and underlined the importance of “a system that provides consequences for actions”.

There are many victims of violent youth crime who agree with the sentiment and support greater punitive measures. But the simplicity of the LNP’s argument – adult time for an adult crime – overlooks a broader sense of justice they want to see delivered.

Take Queensland Homicide Victims’ Support Group. They formed in 1995 because, as chief executive Brett Thompson explained, “there was no support in Queensland [for victims of crime], no direction for families and very few rights including financial support to support recovery”.

In preparing their submission, QHVSG surveyed members to gather a range of perspectives relating to murder and manslaughter sentencing. The majority of respondents felt sentencing was not appropriate, or did not meet community expectations, for both adults and children regarding instances of homicide.

“In a court of law, these people have been legally proven to have gone out to kill someone with intention,” Thompson said.

“Those are the people we are focusing on.”

When we spoke on Tuesday, Thompson reiterated that there were areas of the bill the organisation supported, and others that raised concerns, and underscored the need for “clear and robust, long-term, evidence-based rehabilitation for offenders and their families.”

He also expressed regret that the survey didn’t include questions about sentencing attitudes towards 10 to 13-year-olds.

Representatives from VictimConnect said the underlying message they hear from clients “is the need to feel safe”.

“They also tell us that they wanted faster police response, faster judicial systems and access to counselling and financial support quicker and for longer,” said service delivery manager Gemma Sammon.

Client services director Rhea Mohenoa said they support a “minority” of victims impacted by youth crime, with over 60 per cent engaged due to “domestic and family violent crime”.

“Childhood experience of domestic and family violence can exacerbate a child or young person’s actions and behaviours, some that have negative impacts on our communities.

“This tells us that focusing on domestic and family violence, family support interventions and general support for children and young people earlier will also address youth offending and likely have a more positive and greater impact than punitive measures,” Mohenoa said.

Overwhelmingly, their clients want “victim-centric criminal justice processes” that give individuals the ability to move forward in their recovery journey as quickly as possible.

Former criminologist and Voice for Victims member Natalie Merlehan was involved in the 2021 Alexandra Hills incident that claimed the lives of Matt Field, Kate Leadbetter and their unborn son Miles.

Lee Lovell, husband of victim Emma Lovell, has repeatedly called for changes to the justice system. Credit: Cloe Read

Though Merlehan supported much of the LNP’s proposal, the key areas she felt should “underpin the functioning justice system, youth justice included”, extended beyond punitive measures.

“These focuses should be the recognition of victims with current and ongoing support from both government and NGOs; community safety as an underpinning principle and focus; and significant intervention and rehabilitation opportunities for offenders, their families and support networks.”

Do victims want to see mass incarceration and longer prison sentences? Or do they want adequate support during and after the judicial process, and a system that prevents crime from occurring in the first place?

Thompson made an interesting point. He said there will always be victims who believe that people should be punished according to the offence – “a life for a life”. Others take a more “altruistic” view and engage proceedings with the aim to understand how the crime was committed in the first place.

“The sad fact of the matter is, no matter what the sentence is, the actual problem doesn’t go away, which is, of course the loss of the loved one,” he said.

There should be consequences for violent crime, but there is a reason why children are seen as children, not adults, according to law. Queensland Human Rights Commissioner Scott McDougall put it simply: “There are better ways. We know children have an immense capacity to change”.