- Reforms to force courts and the Prisoners Review Board (PRB) to impose Global Positioning Systems (GPS) monitoring conditions on perpetrators of family violence
- Mandatory follow-up applies as part of all community supervision orders imposed at bail, sentencing, probation and post-conviction
- A mandatory prison sentence is imposed on offenders who remove their surveillance equipment
The Cook government will introduce legislation forcing courts and the PRB to impose GPS monitoring conditions for family violence offenders subject to community supervision.
The decision to tighten monitoring requirements came after the government’s evaluation of the two-year Family and Domestic Violence (FDV) GPS Tracking Trial found that an average of 10 FDV offenders were placed on GPS monitoring each month.
Currently, the court or the PRB may impose GPS monitoring on any offender, whether in cases of family violence or otherwise, at its discretion, under certain special monitoring orders upon bail, sentencing, probation or post-conviction.
Under the reforms, mandatory monitoring will apply to perpetrators of family violence who have committed crimes while under a family violence injunction or a repeat family violence offender declaration. Supervision is required as part of any community supervision order imposed in relation to these offenders on bail, sentencing, probation and post-conviction.
Mandatory monitoring also applies to perpetrators of family violence who are released from prison on probation or after being released from prison, provided there is a family violence restraining order in place.
Crimes recorded include violent crimes, sexual crimes, threats and non-violent crimes that often occur in the context of family violence such as stalking.
The penalty for removing surveillance devices is increased to include a mandatory minimum prison sentence of six months to reflect the seriousness of this offense.
Comments attributed to Prime Minister Roger Cook:
“The expansion of the GPS monitoring system was a Labor election commitment and we have delivered on that commitment by launching a two-year trial and committing significant funding to its implementation.”
“As any responsible government should, we have waited for the evaluation of this process and carefully reviewed the preliminary results and considered what improvements we could make to them.”
“We have responded quickly by ensuring that even more offenders are subject to GPS monitoring, further strengthening this Government’s response to curbing domestic violence in our community.”
Comments attributed to Attorney General John Quigley:
“GPS monitoring is a valuable tool that we have introduced alongside other measures to combat family and domestic violence across the criminal justice system.
“We have introduced the criminal offenses of suffocation and strangulation, persistent violent crimes in the family, stricter penalties for crimes related to violence in the family where there is a threat of compensation or deprivation of liberty, and declarations for serious violent offenders in the family.
“These latest reforms reaffirm this government’s strong stance against family violence. They will ensure the law protects the most vulnerable in our community and that Western Australia continues to lead the campaign against family violence in this country.”
Comments from Police Minister Paul Papalia:
“It was a Labor government in 2003 that first introduced legislation allowing electronic monitoring of offenders on probation.
“In 2018, we launched the State Operations Command Center (SOCC), where police and corrections personnel are co-located to improve policing and real-time monitoring of offenders subject to GPS tracking.
“We expanded this even further in 2020 to enable GPS monitoring of offenders, including family perpetrators and domestic violence offenders, both on bail and at sentencing.”
“Adult Community Corrections and the WA Police Force at SOCC stand ready to monitor and respond to offenders subject to GPS tracking.
“Any breach of their movement restrictions will trigger an immediate alert, allowing police to respond quickly and appropriately.”
Comments from Minister for the Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence, Sabine Winton:
“The Cook Government takes family and domestic violence extremely seriously, which is why we have invested more than $200 million since taking office in 2017.
“Expanding GPS monitoring is another example of our commitment to breaking the cycle of violence and holding family and domestic abusers accountable.
“Today’s reforms are further evidence of our commitment to increasing the safety of victims and survivors of family and domestic violence.”
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