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Sentence Indication and Sentence Discounts

The Attorney-General asked the Council to advise on the merits of formalising a sentence indication scheme in Victorian Courts, and to investigate explicit sentence discounts. Specifically, the Council has been asked to consider whether a sentence indication scheme should be adopted in Victoria; and if so, the form of such a scheme, including the role of specified sentence discounts.

Under a sentence indication scheme, the judge (or magistrate) would be given an agreed summary of the facts, and any other relevant material, before a trial commences. The judicial officer would then give a broad indication of the type of sentence that the offender would be likely to receive if he or she were to plead guilty.

Sentence indication schemes are often seen as a means of encouraging early pleas of guilty, thereby reducing trauma for victims of crime, especially victims of sexual assault.

A sentence discount is a specified reduction of the sentence an offender would otherwise receive because of a guilty plea.

The Attorney-General has sought advice on the potential advantages and disadvantages of such a scheme to the courts, to victims of crime and to the community in general. In formulating its advice, the Council will be consulting broadly to obtain the views of the community, including victims of crime, on this issue.

A discussion paper was released on 20 February 2007. The Final Report was released Wednesday 19 September 2007.