Tag Archives: family violence

Submissions to family violence royal commission reveal a fragmented system

On Monday, the public hearings for Victoria’s Royal Commission into Family Violence began. The public hearings follow the completion of community consultations and the close of written submissions in late May. Nearly 1000 Victorians – advocates, experts and policy stakeholders – provided submissions to the commission. They called for change in the justice, health, social […]

Addressing male violence at night requires a cultural shift

  The recent killing of 21-year-old Melbourne University student Joshua Hardy is another tragic story of unprovoked, alcohol-fuelled male violence in our community. It is an issue that has animated significant debate in politics and the media in recent years and has motivated the introduction of a range of criminal justice and licensing reforms nationally. […]

Justice prevails in lethal violence reforms

This article was first published on The Age website on 27 June 2014. Victorian Attorney-General Robert Clark has called time of death for the offence of defensive homicide. The government’s bill, which was introduced in Parliament on Wednesday, represents a significant step forward in ensuring just responses to lethal violence in the Victorian criminal justice […]

Victorian homicide law reforms ensure just responses to violence

This article was first published on The Conversation on 26 June 2014. Victorian attorney-general Robert Clark today introduced a bill into parliament that repeals the offence of defensive homicide. The bill signifies a significant step forward in ensuring just responses to lethal violence in the state’s criminal court system. While reforming homicide law has been a long […]

Abolishing defensive homicide will benefit female victims and offenders

This article was first published at The Conversation on 4th October 2013 The Victorian Department of Justice has released its long-awaited review into the operation of the controversial offence of defensive homicide. The Consultation Paper proposes the offence’s abolition on the basis that it is "inherently complex", "has no clear benefit" for women who kill […]

Taking a stand against family violence must occur in the courts

Last month the Victorian Premier Denis Napthine, Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Ken Lay, Lord Mayor Robert Doyle and AFL chief Andrew Demetriou came together to encourage the Victorian community to ‘take a stand’ against family violence. Part of a family violence campaign, the ‘Take a Stand’ initiative focuses on reducing family violence through increased awareness […]