Men accused of serious domestic violence offences will either be denied bail or be forced to wear electronic monitoring devices in a set of long awaited bail reform measures which will be announced by the Minns government today.
The series of changes will make it harder for individuals accused of serious domestic violence offences to be discharged back into the community. Offences can include sexual assault, strangulation, kidnapping or coercive control.
Introduced into state parliament today, the NSW government will make it mandatory for those accused of serious domestic violence offences who are released on bail to wear electronic monitoring devices on their ankles.
The reforms comes amid a spate of women dying at the hands of their intimate partners, including the death of Forbes childcare worker Molly Ticehurst in April.
Her former partner, 29-year-old Daniel Billings, was on bail for a separate offence before he contravened an apprehended violence order (AVO) and murdered Ticehurst, police allege.
Earlier this month, friends and family of Ticehurst called for bail law reforms in NSW named in her honour — “Molly’s Law” which would ensure police know the location of people on bail for domestic, family and sexual violence charges at all times to better protect alleged victims of these crimes.
Domestic violence offences will now be subject to what is known as the “show cause” test, which requires an alleged offender to show why they should be released into the community.
“Show cause” offences were introduced in 2013 by the former Coalition government which states that for certain offences, a bail authority must refuse bail unless the accused person shows cause why his or her detention is not justified.
Currently, the test applies to offences carrying a sentence of life imprisonment or other serious offences such as sexual intercourse with a child.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said the expansion of the “show cause” test will make it “more difficult for alleged domestic violence offenders to get bail”.
“These are long overdue, targeted and will help keep women and children safer,” Minns said.
The tougher bail test will also apply to coercive control offences, which will become a criminal offence in NSW from July 1.
The government’s proposed reforms will include changes permitting bail decisions on serious domestic violence offences to be delayed (a stopgap, which ensures offenders remain on remand ) while prosecutors appeal the offender’s release until the decision is handed down.
Prosecuting perpetrators who use tracking and surveillance devices to control victims will also be easier under the proposed reforms.
Regulations around weekend bail courts will also be changed to prevent registrars from granting bail, ensuring that only magistrates will be able to oversee bail hearings.
When considering bail, magistrates and judges will be asked to consider “red flag” behaviours such as animal cruelty, stalking and verbal or physical abuse, as well as additional measures such as the safety concerns of victims and their family members.
NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley said the proposed changes sent a clear message “that the safety of victims is the paramount consideration of the justice system.”
“We will continue to consult legal and sector stakeholders to strengthen the law, to better support the safety of women and children,” he said.
The package was signed off by the NSW Cabinet on Monday afternoon and will be introduced into parliament before consultation with the crossbench.
The changes come after a week after the NSW government pledged $230 million to tackle domestic, family and sexual violence through a range of reforms including specialist staff funding, a primary prevention scheme and a program supporting women and their children to remain safe in their homes after leaving a violent relationship.
Today, Minister for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Jodie Harrison said the reforms “complements the $230 million package the NSW Government announced last week to improve NSW domestic violence prevention and support.”
“We consulted with stakeholders as we developed this package to strengthen bail laws,” she said.