Sentencing children

Edit: The sentencing decision referred to below is no longer good law, due to the Court of Appeal's decision in CNK v The Queen [2011] VSCA 228.At 15,For the reasons we have given, the language of the statute conveys a clear legislative intention to exclude general deterrence. Whilst that intention is not made explicit, it …

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Childrens' Court rulings now on AustLII

I'm not sure when this happened but there is now a Childrens' Court of Victoria icon at AustLII. The cases are both criminal prosecutions and child protection applications, with identifying features suitably anonymonised.Judge Grant and Magistrate Power (previously mentioned here) are the two most frequent contributors, but other magistrates' decisions are presented as well.Some cases …

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Childrens’ Court rulings now on AustLII

I'm not sure when this happened but there is now a Childrens' Court of Victoria icon at AustLII. The cases are both criminal prosecutions and child protection applications, with identifying features suitably anonymonised.Judge Grant and Magistrate Power (previously mentioned here) are the two most frequent contributors, but other magistrates' decisions are presented as well.Some cases …

Continue reading Childrens’ Court rulings now on AustLII

Fit to plead?

Advocates who regularly appear in summary courts know well the questions associated with mental impairment and fitness to plead arguments.Late last year the Supreme Court decided in C L (a minor) v Lee & ors [2010] VSC 517 that the Children's Court couldn't determine if an accused person was fit to be tried and so …

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Possession related to trafficking

Edit: It's generally considered mitigatory when possession of drugs is not for the purposes of trafficking (though, strictly speaking, this ought properly to be considered the absence of aggravation). There's no firm rule as to how much of a drug of dependence is too much to be considered intended for personal use. In Hanks v …

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