brain injury services, accommodation services,
disability support and mental health care
legal representatives, Magistrates, court staff, support
services, family, friends, or the person themselves.
offenders have access to the Koori Liaison Officer
Program. In 2012, 48 Koori women used the CISP
program and the CREDIT Bail Support Program
across Victoria.
support program at the Magistrates' Court may be
under-utilised. Reasons for this reported by Koori
women included:
interviewed who had accessed CISP in the past,
all reported negative experiences. Some told us
they had no contact with a Koori worker despite
this being a stated feature of the program.
including Mildura and Swan Hill
"CISP and the CREDIT/Bail Support Program also have
access to a limited number of transitional housing
properties. Housing support services are currently
provided by Home Ground Services". Magistrates'
Court of Victoria, `Annual Report', above n 11, 59.
Magistrates' Court of Victoria, `CISP', above n 319.
"In June 2011, the CISP signed a Memorandum of
Understanding with SupportLink for the SupportLink
Early Intervention and Diversion Program. This initiative
provides a single referral gateway for Victoria Police,
diverting non-police matters to specialist agencies. It
allows operational police to refer accused to CISP as
soon as charges have been laid. Magistrates' Court of
Victoria, `Annual Report', above n 11, 59.
That is 25 per cent of the total number of assessed
accused who identified as Koori. It is not possible to
make a direct comparison of how many Koori women
who would be eligible for the Court Integrated Support
Program using publically available data, however the
Commission notes that 1,900 people accessed CISP in
the 2011-12 year, 212 clients identified as Aboriginal only
or Aboriginal/Torres Strait Islander (11 per cent). Ibid.
for these are common. In addition, if there are
access barriers to services including cultural
barriers or fear of identification by other
community members, Koori women may not get
the support they need.
specific CISP services, Koori women's utilisation
rates would be far greater.
also improve.
Sentencing of
Koori women
of adult offenders is
governed by the Sentencing
Act 1991 (Vic). The purposes
for which a court may impose a
sentence in Victoria are to:
punish the offender to an extent and
in a manner which is just in all of the
circumstances; or
deter the offender or other persons from
committing offences of the same or a
similar character; or
establish conditions within which it
is considered by the court that the
rehabilitation of the offender may be
facilitated; or
manifest the denunciation by the court of
the type of conduct in which the offender
engaged; or
protect the community from the
offender; or
a combination of two or more of those
purposes.
order the offender to complete a
Community Corrections Order.
See for example, key informant interview, Magistrates'
Court of Victoria, 3 March 2013; key informant interview,
Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, 15 November 2012.