Hi, I have a dumb question if someone would like to clear this matter up for me i'd appreciate it. The question is:- does mandatory sentencing still continue to be for minor crimes in WA, if not then when did this policy expire? thx

Dear lucinda,

As far as I know Mandatory Sentencing Laws
still exist in WA (since 1996).

They were abolished I believe in the NT in
October 2001, having existed since 1997.

However I'm sure if you google,

Mandatory Sentencing - Western Australia

You'll be able to go through several websites
and find your answer.

Thanks foxy, I spent 3 hrs today actually from google doing that very same thing, even rang a no. off one of the web sites and spoke to the Indigenous affairs person in one of the depts in WA and they didn't know which amazed me. They gave me another web site that took me around the place, couldn't get a concrete answer, plenty of stats, I ended up downloading a pdf file of all the currents acts which I had trouble deciphering ha, anyway not to worry. I'm continuing my essay without the info, would like to know though, thanks for your reply, I think you're right in your answer. One website hinted about mandatory sentencing still being in play but the page was pretty old, from the start of the millenium, cheers. Lucinda

I did a search looking for the key words in conjunction with repeal and didn't find anything obvious suggesting that the laws have been repealed in WA. A selection of the most recent and relevant of what I've found are shown below:

From 2006 http://www.isrcl.org/Papers/2006/Warner.pdf

"In the intervening years there have no new legislative developments. The three-strikes provision for home burglary in s 401(4) of the Criminal Code remains in force. The heat seems to have gone out of the debate, perhaps because in practice it has little effect on adults and the courts have circumvented mandatory detention for juveniles by imposing Conditional Release Orders."

I've not read the whole paper but it appears the original laws which targetted car hoons were repealed but the three strikes laws are still in place but not used.

I also found a Canadian paper from 2008 at http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/pi/rs/rep-rap/2005/rr05_10/p7.html which gives summary info.

http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2006/s1775738.htm An AM program transcript of a 2006 interview "WA Attorney-General dismisses call to drop mandatory sentencing"

R0bert

Dear Lucinda,

I don't know if this is going to help
you. I googled:

Mandatory Sentencing is unjust

And a website came up dated Sept. 2008 run by
CheatHouse.com

Have a look at it.

Thanks everyone for your responses, I will check out the web sites that you've kindly offered, hopefully I can find another question for you all soon, take care, Lucinda