CRIMINAL LAW (EXTENDED SUPERVISION ORDERS) BILL

Second Reading
Ms COOK ( Fisher ) ( 17:03 :55 ): I rise today to speak in favour of the Criminal Law (Extended
Supervision Orders) Bill. These laws will allow for a new kind of order to be made which would be
placed on serious offenders who are about to come out of traditional mandated supervision only.
Coming out of this supervision may mean the end of an offender's full sentence or that they are
about to come out of parole supervision. The proposed laws are aimed at very serious offenders
where there is a high likelihood that they will reoffend and pose a risk to community safety.
The aim of the legislation is to provide a mechanism for ongoing supervision of high-risk offenders
who pose a threat to our community. These proposed laws are a part of a suite of legislation that
this government has introduced since being elected to make community safety central to our
justice system. It is a great honour to sit in a government that has pursued this new strategic
direction for the way justice is delivered in our state.
The proposed laws are aimed only at the criminals who exist in two categories: serious sexual
offenders which include offenders who have been convicted of rape, indecent assault, abduction,
unlawful sexual acts involving a minor and incest; and serious violent offenders, which refers to
offenders who have been convicted of a crime which has caused death or serious injury, or has put
people at risk of death or serious injury.
If throughout their time spent incarcerated or on parole offenders have avoided the opportunities
provided to rehabilitate themselves and the Attorney-General considers that they may reoffend,
the Attorney-General may then apply to the Supreme Court to have an extended supervision order
placed upon them, only once their time under supervision has been completed. The application by
the Attorney-General must be made within the last 12 months of the offender's supervision.
The central consideration that the Supreme Court must have when assessing an application is
community safety. The Supreme Court must also hear from a medical practitioner about the
likelihood that the offender will reoffend. This will take into consideration their psychological state,
as well as their ongoing commitment to rehabilitation during their time in prison or programs
during parole. The term of an extended supervision order can remain in force for a maximum of
five years, as determined by the Supreme Court. The penalty for violating a supervision order, on
my understanding, is a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.
So why do we need these laws? Last year the world saw the insightful yet gut wrenching campaign
on Twitter under the hashtag 'Why I stayed'. It provided the world insight into the lives and
decisions made by those who were victims of domestic violence. Some of the testimonials made by
women included:
He manipulated me and controlled me for so long he brainwashed me into thinking the beatings were
my fault.
I was determined to make it work, wanted kids to have their dad, convinced myself that what he did to
me wasn't affecting them.
Because he made me believe no one else would understand.

Only this weekend in our community we have seen a 27-year-old mother of two children lose her
life allegedly at the hands of a partner. This is a stark reminder of the real and present danger that
women are facing in our community. What can we do to assist these women who may have been
through so much, potentially over many years, prior to an incident resulting in the incarceration of
an intimate partner?
If applied in such cases, these laws will go some way in ensuring that women are more effectively
protected from abusive partners once they have been released. This kind of ongoing supervision
and protection of women will most certainly assist the survivor to feel safer as they move forward
with their lives. The perception of safety is vital to a victim's wellbeing. These kinds of laws are the
very least we can do to assist those who have been so badly affected by some of the most awful
circumstances.

Having been so deeply affected by violent crime against a family member, I have enormous
empathy for survivors. I have spent many long nights over the past seven years supporting young
people who have faced situations of violence and threats of violence following the loss of their
mate. I know the anxiety and crippling panic that ensues. I can only imagine what it must be like
to have experienced the physical and emotional trauma intimately, and to be faced with the
prospect of the offender's supervision ending without any assurance of behavioural change,
remorse or recompense. A terrifying and also very crippling prospect.
Of course, I want to see offenders in South Australia get the best possible assistance to help
rehabilitate themselves. I am absolutely committed to a system formed on the principles of
restorative practice. I am absolutely committed to work from within government to ensure that we
prioritise justice reinvestment. But recidivism is a problem that I would like to see wiped out
completely. Unfortunately, at the moment, 60 per cent of people in prison have been in prison for a
prior offence. Given these recidivism rates, these laws are integral in ensuring that we are doing
everything we can, firstly, to protect our community in the best way, whilst also trying to protect
the rights of those who have served their sentence. I commend the bill to the house.