More than 500 legal practitioners, community workers and academics have expressed grave concerns about the negative impacts of the New South Wales government’s plan to tighten bail laws in response to youth crime.
A separate letter from 60 of the country’s top legal and justice organisations has also been sent to the NSW Premier Chris Minns, calling for the new laws to be scrapped.
“This is a devastating betrayal of Aboriginal children and other vulnerable groups across NSW,” the letter reads.
“Throwing more children in jail will lead to horrific outcomes for communities, families and those children, compounding abuse and trauma.”
Announced last week, the proposed legislation would see a tightening of bail conditions for re-offenders aged 14 to 18 and a new “post and boast” social media offence for crime videos posted online.
Aboriginal Legal Service NSW ACT CEO Karly Warner told NITV the impacts would be devastating for First Nations young people in the state, who make up more than 50 per cent of youth incarcerated.
“Tightening bail laws that are going to impact on so many kids across New South Wales is nothing more than a political stunt,” the palawa woman said.
“Throwing our children in jail has never worked.
“This is going to be an unmitigated disaster for families, communities, and the children involved.”
More young people behind bars
Ms Warner says the proposed change will only make the problem worse and lead to more Indigenous children behind bars.
“They should be investing in pro-active, community led solutions that they have agreed to under Closing the Gap,” she said.
The Redfern Legal Centre CEO Camilla Pandolfini told NITV the new laws will not make community safer, despite that being the key driver of the change.
“They will only have a damaging affect on young children we are trying to divert from the criminal justice system,” Ms Pandolfini said.
“Evidence shows that place based positive solutions are what divert children from the criminal justice system.”
With the laws yet to be passed in parliament, Ms Pandolfini hopes the NSW government will pull the pug before they are enacted.
“We are calling desperately on the NSW government not to purse these laws,” she said.
Advocates point to years of research
Dr Mindy Sotiri has worked in criminal justice system as a practitioner, academic, and researcher for more than 20 years.
She says the proposal goes against decades of evidence that suggests stricter bail conditions do not work to reduce crime rates.
“Deterrence is not achieved by threatening further punishment,” Dr Sortit told NITV News.
“So the policy itself, which purports to be about community safety, actually flies in the face of what the evidence says will work when it comes to actually building safe communities, reducing crime, and … the drivers of why it is that children end up in contact with the justice system in the first place.”
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