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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: February 7, 2023
Michael Stanton President of Liberty Victoria was a guest on the Law Report
A Victorian coroner has described the treatment of an Indigenous woman in prison as inhumane and her death preventable. Arrested on the suspicion of minor shoplifting charges, the woman was denied bail.
As the Victorian... Read more
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Press Release
Post date: January 30, 2023
In light of the damning findings of the Coroner in relation to the tragic death of Ms Veronica Nelson, now is the time to fix Victoria’s broken bail laws. The Coroner has found, in the clearest terms, that Victoria’s harsh bail laws breach the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 28, 2023
Despite a range of bodies calling for change, including a parliamentary inquiry, the Law Institute of Victoria, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and Liberty Victoria, the police union has opposed the watering down of the laws.
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 24, 2023
Legal groups have urged the Victorian government not to delay reforming the state's tough bail laws, in anticipation of the findings of a major coronial inquest being handed down next week.
Changes are also supported by Victoria Legal Aid, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, Liberty Victoria... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 24, 2023
Liberty Victoria president Michael Stanton described the current laws as “broken”.
“We are concerned that bail laws are increasingly being used as a means of preventive detention in some circumstances where prisoners, even if found to have committed the charged offences, would not receive lengthy... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 24, 2023
In a submission to the Yoorrook Justice Commission, human rights organisation Liberty Victoria noted that in 2020, the rate for Aboriginal adults in custody was about 1837 per 100,000 Victorian Aboriginal adults, while the general adult imprisonment rate for Victorian adults was 135.
Liberty... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 24, 2023
Liberty Victoria's Sam Norton said the state got the balance wrong on bail laws after Bourke Street, allowing for repeat offenders to be held on remand for low-level crimes such as shoplifting under the reverse onus test.
"Engaging in law reform in response to utterly appalling acts of an... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 24, 2023
Legal groups, MPs and the partner of Veronica Nelson are urging the Victorian government not to squander the opportunity to overhaul the state’s bail laws following a major coronial inquest into her death.
Changes are also supported by the Law Institute of Victoria, Victoria Legal Aid, Victorian... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: January 16, 2023
Vice president of Liberty Victoria, Michelle Bennett, said a lack of trained staff could be a “life or death” issue for prisoners, and that time in cells should be strictly limited.
“For prisoners, increased isolation limits their opportunities for rehabilitation and, accordingly, their ability to... Read more
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Liberty Victoria in the News
Post date: December 27, 2022
It is a sad indictment upon Executive government, that a costly charade is exactly what the AAT had become. The level of Executive interference with the constitution and operation of the tribunal had reached a such a level that it had almost destroyed the tribunal’s reputation for impartial and... Read more
