Bail Saves Lives: Say No to Bad Bail Laws

Bail Saves Lives. Say No to Bad Bail Laws.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people deserve to be safe. But the Victorian Government's disastrous bail laws are driving incarceration rates up, and conditions in prisons are getting worse.

Base levels of care not being met for people who are currently incarcerated. Remand centres are overpopulated and prisons are experiencing unprecedented lockdowns due to staffing shortages - this is directly linked to the government's bad decision.

It is fundamentally irresponsible for the Victorian Government to go ahead with the second set of proposed bail amendments. The risk to human life ...

Bail Saves Lives. Say No to Bad Bail Laws.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people deserve to be safe. But the Victorian Government's disastrous bail laws are driving incarceration rates up, and conditions in prisons are getting worse.

Base levels of care not being met for people who are currently incarcerated. Remand centres are overpopulated and prisons are experiencing unprecedented lockdowns due to staffing shortages - this is directly linked to the government's bad decision.

It is fundamentally irresponsible for the Victorian Government to go ahead with the second set of proposed bail amendments. The risk to human life is too high.

We are urging the Victorian Government to not proceed with the second set of proposed bail amendments being introduced to Parliament in the final week of July.

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Say NO to bad bail laws

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Email the following Members of Parliament and urge them not to proceed with the second round of bail amendments:

Premier Jacinta Allan
Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny
Deputy Premier Ben Carroll
Opposition Leader Brad Battin
Shadow Attorney-General Michael O'Brien

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Dear Premier Allan, the Hon. Sonya Kilkenny, the Hon. Ben Carroll, Mr Brad Battin, and the Hon. Michael O'Brien,

I am writing to call for the government to not proceed with introducing the second suite of the proposed bail amendments (Tranche two amendments).

The legal and corrections sectors are inundated and overwhelmed with the number of people detained before any conviction as a result of the bail amendments that were introduced earlier this year (Tranche one amendments).

The data is already clear that there has been a dramatic increase in the number of Aboriginal people being held on remand, with over 60% of the youth justice prison population and 40% of the adult prison population being unsentenced.

I am deeply concerned that while government is celebrating the numbers of people being locked up as evidence of their commitment to community safety, Aboriginal people, including children, are being trapped in a vicious cycle of disadvantage that does nothing to keep communities safe. Many people are being locked away in police holding cells for upwards of three weeks while waiting to be transferred or have their matters returned to court.

Prolonged detention of people who are untried or unsentenced violates international human rights and rights protected under Victoria’s Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities. The Government has repeatedly said there will be no unintended consequences from these bail reforms - but we’re already seeing damaging consequences. If these impacts are by design, then I write to communicate my grave concerns about the impacts we are already seeing, and my deep fears about the impacts that are to come if the government proceeds with Tranche two amendments.

The proposed High Harm test will drive up remand rates in Victoria even further. Since comparable provisions were introduced in NSW, the Aboriginal Legal Service in NSW has seen over 90% of Aboriginal children being denied bail and locked in harmful youth prisons. The proposed Two Strike test reintroduces a previously scrapped uplift mechanism described by the Coroner’s Court as an “unmitigated disaster” after the tragic death of Veronica Nelson, who died alone in a cold prison cell for minor charges she should never have been locked up for.

In my view, it is irresponsible to proceed with further amendments to the Bail Act whilst the system is under so much pressure. The government holds a duty of care to people in prisons and to correctional staff. The Victorian government does not need another coronial inquest to outline what the fault lines are in the corrections space. If you proceed, it is only a matter of time until we have another preventable Aboriginal death in custody. That is a devastating loss for any family and community. It is also a damning indictment on a government seeking to be re-elected.

I say no to more bad bail laws, and I urge you and your Government to do the same.

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