Government Limits Power of Courts to Impose Alternatives to Imprisonment
Section 5(1) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (‘the Act’) makes clear that a court “must not sentence an offender to imprisonment unless it is satisfied, having considered all possible alternatives, that no penalty other than imprisonment is appropriate.” This is the statutory...
Another NRL Star Accused of Sexual Assault
Just weeks after NRL star Jarryd Hayne was charged with aggravated sexual assault over an incident on Grand Final night, another NSW State of Origin player has found himself accused of the very same offence. 27-year old St George Dragons...
Tough New Laws Against Child Sexual Abuse
A range of tough new laws to combat child sexual abuse in NSW came into effect on 1 December, which complete one of the most comprehensive overhauls of the state’s criminal laws in history. The recently enacted laws follow a...
Priest Successfully Appeals Conviction for Covering-Up Child Sexual Abuse
Former Adelaide Archbishop Phillip Wilson has walked free after a judge upheld his appeal against conviction for concealing a serious indictable offence - being sexual assaults committed by fellow priest and convicted child sex offender, James Fletcher. The former Archbishop...
Sexting Amongst Consenting Teens is Now Legal
A range of new laws have been introduced in the wake of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Amongst them, are laws which repeal the criminalisation of teens of similar age who engage in consensual ‘sexting’. What...
Alleged Child Sex Offender Faces Life Imprisonment if Convicted
A Sydney man is facing a maximum penalty of life imprisonment if convicted of sexually assaulting a child under the age of 10 years. 54-year old Kogarah resident Anthony Peter Sampieri is charged with 11 offences relating to the alleged...
Teacher Pleads Guilty to Persistent Sexual Abuse of Student
We recently reported on the female school teacher in Armidale, New South Wales who avoided a prison sentence despite pleading guilty to 3 counts of aggravated sexual assault and 6 of sexual intercourse with child under her care while employed at the...
NSW Police Are Illegally Strip-Searching Aboriginal Kids
It’s recently come to light that not only is the NSW Police Force doubling down on its use of strip-searches, but officers are also carrying out this invasive practice upon Aboriginal children as young as 11 years old. Aboriginal Legal...
Guards Who Have Sex with Inmates Now Face Prison
The NSW government passed new laws last week making it a crime for prison guards to have sex with inmates. The move follows revelations mid-year regarding a number of female corrections officers who’d allegedly been engaging in sexual relations with...
NRL Star Accused of Aggravated Sexual Assault
Things have gone from bad to worse for former Parramatta Eels Rugby League star Jarryd Hayne. It has been reported that the two time Dally M medallist and former San Francisco 49ers player - against whom civil proceedings for sexual...
