Corrections Victoria, in consultation with the courts, should develop and implement a protocol identifying the appropriate circumstances in which an offender would be directed by Corrections Victoria to attend a judicial monitoring hearing. Information to be provided at judicial monitoring hearings The Victorian Auditor-General’s report on Corrections Victoria’s management of offenders on CCOs raises a number of issues relating to the communication between Victoria Police and Corrections Victoria. This includes, for example, instances in which Victoria Police has failed to communicate information about offenders on CCOs to Corrections Victoria, leading to Corrections Victoria having an incomplete (and possibly inaccurate) appreciation of the offender’s risk level. Although Victoria Police and Corrections Victoria have a memorandum of understanding about sharing information for law enforcement and case management purposes, there are operational problems that restrict data sharing between the two agencies (see [2.24]–[2.26]). In some cases, important information about contact with offenders on CCOs is not communicated to Corrections Victoria staff members and therefore may not be brought to the court’s attention when the offender returns to court for a judicial monitoring hearing. It is important that, where possible, sufficient information is placed before the court, so that judicial officers conducting judicial monitoring hearings are not reliant on offenders self-reporting their compliance with CCO conditions or their progress on the CCO. The Council’s recommendation does not specify how such information should be obtained by Corrections Victoria, nor whether there should be particular amendments to Corrections Victoria’s protocols regarding contact with victim survivors or information sharing with service providers of programs such as MBCPs. The Council believes that Corrections Victoria is best placed to determine the most appropriate approaches to, and protocols for, obtaining relevant information to be provided to the court for a judicial monitoring hearing.
Corrections Victoria, in consultation with the courts, should develop and implement a protocol identifying the appropriate circumstances in which an offender would be directed by Corrections Victoria to attend a judicial monitoring hearing. Information to be provided at judicial monitoring hearings The Victorian Auditor-General’s report on Corrections Victoria’s management of offenders on CCOs raises a number of issues relating to the communication between Victoria Police and Corrections Victoria. This includes, for example, instances in which Victoria Police has failed to communicate information about offenders on CCOs to Corrections Victoria, leading to Corrections Victoria having an incomplete (and possibly inaccurate) appreciation of the offender’s risk level. Although Victoria Police and Corrections Victoria have a memorandum of understanding about sharing information for law enforcement and case management purposes, there are operational problems that restrict data sharing between the two agencies (see [2.24]–[2.26]). In some cases, important information about contact with offenders on CCOs is not communicated to Corrections Victoria staff members and therefore may not be brought to the court’s attention when the offender returns to court for a judicial monitoring hearing. It is important that, where possible, sufficient information is placed before the court, so that judicial officers conducting judicial monitoring hearings are not reliant on offenders self-reporting their compliance with CCO conditions or their progress on the CCO. The Council’s recommendation does not specify how such information should be obtained by Corrections Victoria, nor whether there should be particular amendments to Corrections Victoria’s protocols regarding contact with victim survivors or information sharing with service providers of programs such as MBCPs. The Council believes that Corrections Victoria is best placed to determine the most appropriate approaches to, and protocols for, obtaining relevant information to be provided to the court for a judicial monitoring hearing.
Swift_Certain_Fair_Approaches_Sentencing_Family_Violence_Offenders_Report.docx