CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses rape and sexual assault.
The consideration of good character references for accused rapists will now be restricted under major Queensland court reforms, as was recommended earlier this year by a Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council (QSAC) report into rape and sexual assault.
Good character references, written by friends and families of the accused, have traditionally been a consideration in a judge’s decision on the sentence.
Back in February, the QSAC report recommended the use of good character references — including evidence of the offender’s standing and contributions in the community — should be restricted in sentencing.
In its review of sentencing remarks of 131 rape cases from July 2022 to June 2023 in Queensland’s District Court, it found positive evidence was included in over 90 per cent of cases.
“No one wants to hear that a rapist is all-round great person, a trustworthy mate, or that they’re respected in the community – especially not their victim, bravely sitting in court,” Attorney-General Deb Frecklington said regarding the reform, per AAP.
She noted the law reform is very close to her heart, with one of the last criminal matters when she was a lawyer involving a former school principal who had been the citizen of the year in her local community.
A good character reference was taken into consideration during his sentencing.
“It is extremely distressing still for many of the victims,” Frecklington told parliament.
With the new bill introduced in Queensland, good character references can only be used as a mitigating factor if it is relevant to the offender’s prospects of rehabilitation or risk of offending.
Courts can also decide not to treat the character reference as a mitigating factor depending on the “nature and seriousness of the offence”.
“This will limit the use of problematic good character evidence,” Frecklington said.
Additionally, the bill includes recognition of victim harm as an “express purpose of sentencing”. This ensures courts don’t draw any inference about whether the victim was harmed from the fact that no victim impact statement was given.
Earlier this year, QSAC deputy chair Professor Elena Marchetti explained in a statement the recommendation to limit or disregard these references “will ensure a more rigorous assessment of ‘good character’ evidence in sexual offence cases” and ensure its relevance is “clearly established”.
“Hearing that the person who raped or sexual assaulted them is considered a ‘good person’ or a ‘valued member of the community’ can be deeply traumatic and retraumatising for victim survivors,” she said.
“Suggestions that the offence was ‘uncharacteristic’ or a ‘temporary lapse in judgement’ can further undermine their experience and hinder the offender’s genuine acceptance of responsibility for the profound harm they have caused.”
Other findings from the report included that a character reference was used in over 35 per cent of cases, most commonly provided by a family member. The ‘good character’ reference “appeared to be given a lot of weight” in over 28.2 per per cent of cases.
The most commonly mentioned type of ‘good character’ evidence was having good employment prospects, and this was considered mitigating in one-fifth of cases (21.3 per cent).
The introduction of the new laws in Queensland have been welcomed by the state opposition, who called it a win for sexual assault victim survivors.
“These new laws will empower victim-survivors and ensure that perpetrators are held accountable,” shadow Attorney General Meaghan Scanlon said.
While welcoming the change, the state’s Victims’ Commissioner, Beck O’Connor, claimed it does not go far enough.
The laws should be strengthened so courts do not give any consideration to good character references in any circumstances, she said.
“Victim-survivors continue to share their distress and trauma about the acceptance and reliance of character references, with little to no effort made by anyone to verify the content,” O’Connor said.
“Completely preventing the use of good character evidence is the best way to show victims they are being listened to, and their significant concerns have been addressed.”
A review of sentencing guidelines in NSW is underway. The use of good character references remains in other states and territories.
Good character references for child sex offenders were removed in Tasmania in 2016.
With input from AAP.
Lead image: AAP
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