Provocation
The Crimes (Homicide) Act 2005 (Victoria) abolished the partial defence of provocation for homicides committed after 22 November 2005. Defendants charged with a murder committed after that date lose the right to raise the partial defence of provocation, which previously would have reduced a conviction of murder to manslaughter. Judges will have to consider the relevance of any provocative conduct on the part of the deceased in determining an appropriate sentence for the crime of murder, which is a more serious offence.
The Council has published a research paper that examines how provocation has featured in sentencing decisions for non-fatal offences in Victoria, and also looked to interstate and international authorities to extract sentencing principles. The paper suggests an approach to considering provocation in sentencing which seeks to avoid the problems and flaws of the pre-existing law.