The introduction of a ‘No Body, No Parole’ law into New South Wales legislation has divided opinion and produced criticism from the NSW Law Society’s Criminal Law Committee. The Crimes (Administration of Sentences) Amendment (No Body, No Parole) Bill 2022 passed NSW Parliament in October 2022, in the final days of Parliament before the next state election.
The intent of the law is to promote co-operation by inmates convicted of a homicide offence, to make it more likely that they disclose the location of their victim’s body if it has not yet been found. Under the new law, the Commissioner of NSW Police would provide a written report as to the level of co-operation provided by the offender, which the State Parole Authority would need to take into account before the Authority makes a final decision as to whether the offender should be eligible for parole. Being eligible for parole allows inmates to potentially finish their sentence early provided they have been of good behaviour.
Government Ministers were firm on the tough nature of the new laws, with Minister for Police Paul Toole stating that “if offenders fail to take steps to provide details on the whereabouts of a victim’s remains, they will not be eligible for parole.” Minister for Corrections Geoff Lee highlighted the intention of providing friends and family of the victim “… the closure that they deserve.”
Criticism of the changes
However, the Criminal Law Committee of the New South Wales Law Society was clear in its opposition to the bill. In a letter penned to Minister Lee, the CEO of the Committee stated that the bill “creates an absurd situation whereby an innocent person would have their parole prejudiced for lack of the necessary knowledge, and a properly convicted person, who cooperated, would be advantaged.” The injustice that these laws would inflict upon people wrongly found guilty of murder is clearly an overwhelming point against the changing of the parole system.
The submission by the Criminal Law Committee also highlighted the rushed introduction of the bill to Parliament, which occurred following the high profile murder trial of Chris Dawson, who has so far maintained his innocence and therefore not provided Police with the location of his wife Lynette’s body. While other Australian jurisdictions such as Queensland and Victoria already have similar ‘no body, no parole’ rules in place, the Committee notes that as of yet there has been no disclosure of a victim’s remains following the introduction of those laws.
The Criminal Law Committee did propose some possible amendments to the bill during the time it was before the Parliament, such as having the decision be made by a Supreme Court Justice with access to all evidence rather than the State Parole Authority merely relying on the written report of a Police Commissioner. However, the bill passed Parliament without further amendment and attempts to alter the law could face setbacks pending the 2023 NSW State Election.
