CRIMINAL DEFENCE LAWYERS

Archive for April, 2010

Introduction

For the vast majority of people, their first exposure to the New South Wales justice system occurs when they are charged with offences that are dealt with at the Local Court. This is because most offences committed each year are summary in nature, and as such are not serious enough to warrant appearances before the District Courts or the Supreme Court. Therefore, it is important that defendants understand the broad range of penalties that are available to Magistrates at the Local Courts, when they sentence someone on the basis of various sentencing principles. The sentencing options available to the Local Courts are either non-custodial or custodial in nature, with the former usually being given preference where possible. Read the rest of this entry »

There exist a wide variety of programs aimed at diverting offenders away from the Australian criminal justice system. This guide is intended to provide a basic outline of these diversionary programs, and list the various criteria that must be satisfied by defendants to be eligible for them. It should be noted that these programs can be generally divided into two rough categories: those programs referred to in the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW), and those that are not.

Intervention programs referred to in the Criminal Procedure Act

Section 345 of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW) (hereafter CPA), provides a framework for the recognition of intervention programs within the legal system, and to ensure they are fairly managed and administered to reduce the future likelihood of reoffending. Read the rest of this entry »