Sentencing Matters

Teens across Queensland who share explicit images using smartphones, social networks and game consoles may be committing an offence. This could not only lead to cyberbullying but also a criminal record. Over the last decade more than 1500 young people under 17 years of age have been cautioned or conferenced by Queensland Police for child exploitation material offences — the majority for sexting. Our seminar discussed the issue of teen sexting from all sides: victims, perpetrators and the criminal justice system kicking off with the real-life story of a 15-year-old boy unwittingly caught up in sexting. Our panel of experts provide insight into this type of incident, how it can be prevented and how, if left unaddressed, it can quickly escalate and hold significant consequences for young people. Panel members: — Helen Watkins, Queensland Sentencing Advisory Council — Wayne Steinhardt, Queensland Police Service — Rob Priddey, Cybersafety Team, Department of Education — Prof Mark Kebbell, Griffith Criminology Institute

Sentencing for criminal offences arising from the death of a child — Final report

Listen to the latest edition of our podcast Sentencing Matters, where we talk to Deputy President of the Queensland Parole Board Julie Sharp about the broad range of backgrounds and experience represented and how the Parole Board makes decisions. The conversation focuses on the range of factors considered when determining a person’s suitability for parole and that community safety is the top priority for the Parole Board.

In the second of our special youth justice mini-series, Detective Chief Superintendent Cheryl Scanlon revisits the story from our sentencing seminar What happened with Jake? focusing on the importance of early intervention when dealing with young offenders.Cheryl has more than 30 years’ experience with the Queensland Police Service in youth justice and child protection and is currently Executive Director, Operations Support, Crime and Corruption Commission.The podcast looks at the rise of teen sexting and the importance of making sure policies and practices keep up with a changing society. She discusses how, through broadening the toolbox, police are able to take a different approach and resolve issues through education and diversion.Cheryl also talks about difficulties of young people in residential care facilities and how recent collaboration across government has improved how they deal with children missing from out-of-home care, minor offending and police call-outs — which can lead to young people facing the courts.

Canadian Senator Kim Pate has spent the last 35 years as an advocate for the marginalised and institutionalised — particularly Indigenous women and girls.Senator Pate talks to us about how she was surprised to discover significant differences in the treatment of women in the Canadian criminal justice system compared to men.A strong opponent of mandatory minimum sentencing, Senator Pate explains how it can exacerbate inequality rather than protect against it — and how women living in poverty are the ones more likely to suffer the consequences.She argues poverty has a direct relationship to a woman’s chances of ending up behind bars for longer periods.She also explains the story behind Canada’s Gladue reports, which are used in the sentencing of Indigenous people.

In this episode, we talk to the former Governor of Tasmania Professor Kate Warner AC about her renowned studies into public perceptions of sentencing.Although judges are often branded ‘soft on crime’ in today’s media, the research shows when presented with the facts of a case, members of the public are actually likely to be more lenient.Professor Warner explains how the research was carried out, the questions that were asked of jurors and how the study has progressed from Tasmania to Victoria and now to a national study looking at sexual and violence offences.She reveals the results of the surveys and discusses the merit of sentencing remark summaries being published by Australian courts to help educate the public about the sentencing process.

Following up on our youth justice sentencing seminar What happened with Jake? we talk to Cheryl Leavy, Deputy Commissioner, Queensland Family and Child Commission (QFCC).Cheryl talks about how protecting children is everybody’s responsibility — and everybody’s business.She speaks about the importance of picking up on warning signs and intervening early, which can have a huge impact on the life trajectory of a young person who is struggling. Early steps can prevent a young person getting involved in the youth justice system for minor offending, which all too often leads to contact with the adult criminal justice system.Cheryl also discusses the QFCC’s work to improve responses to children in residential care, particularly reducing police call-outs which can lead to them being charged and ending up in court.

In this episode, we talk to Sonya Ryan, founder of the Carly Ryan Foundation. In 2007, Sonya’s 15-year-old daughter Carly was killed at the hands of a child sex offender, 47-year-old Garry Newman, who she met online, despite her best efforts to keep the teen safe on the internet.Through Carly’s story, the podcast gives insight into those who misrepresent their age to engage with and exploit young people on the internet.Sonya outlines the work of the Carly Ryan Foundation to keep young people safe from online groomers and prevent them engaging in sexting and image based abuse — which are in fact child exploitation material offences.Sonya also talks about Carly’s Law, which makes it a crime to plan to harm a child under 16 (especially those who misrepresent their age online) punishable by a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. She also speaks about how the vulnerability of a child should be taken into account during the sentencing process.