InBrief

New South Wales Police will roll out a new state-wide system of Criminal Infringement Notices (CINs) from 1 November 2007. The police media release describes the�Criminal Infringement Notice�as "an alternative legal process to the arrest and processing of suspects and involves an “on-the-spot” fine for a range of minor criminal offences. It has been trialled in 12 Local Area Commands since 2002." Learn more about the CINs>

The president of the Bar Association, Michael Slattery QC, appeared on ABC Radio Newcastle�this morning to voice concerns about the proposal. He said, "It has some problems.�First, it obviously involves reduced court intervention in minor crime...Coming before a magistrate can be extremely beneficial [if]�the offender may be suffering a mental illness that needs treatment, or that needs some sort of attention".��

"Secondly, they are transferring an idea that comes from negligent driving offences, which do not involve any intentional dishonesty on the part of the offender [and which]�can be dealt with by infringement notices.� But what they're going to do here is to bring outside the court system, intentional dishonesty, or intentional anti-social behaviour.�

"Now that's something that I think the community might be rightly concerned about...The court system fills a very important function as an independent arbiter of that sort of conduct, either to record a conviction, issue a penalty, or looking at the circumstances to issue a bond, or whatever the result is, and this will now be left up to the discretion of a police officer, which is essentially unreviewable.�

"The beauty of the court system is the magistrate can look at every case, consider the circumstances, and give a fine that reflects the penalty, and reflects the circumstances.� Here, that can't be done.�

"They're trying to budget to save money by, in effect, withdrawing people from the justice system.� Now really, what they should be thinking about is funding the justice system further, including the police, the director of public prosecutions and the legal aid system, not taking this kind of short-cut."�

24 October 2007