Community Sentiment and Joint Enterprise Murder: Challenging the Mandatory Minimum Sentence

• In Event: The Law in Action: Sentencing Policies and Guidelines on the Ground

Abstract

In Australia, adults (and juveniles) convicted of murder are subject to a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment with a 20-year minimum non-parole period. This sentence is imposed on secondary offenders under doctrines of extended criminal liability, as well as the principal offender. Although a stated justification for mandatory sentences is public confidence, very little is known about public attitudes towards imposing a mandatory life sentence on offenders convicted of murder under extended criminal liability. Using a self-selected sample of the South Australian public and an online vignette survey approach, the study finds, first, that public knowledge of actual murder related statistics and current sentencing practices is poor. Second, findings indicate that desert-based (or proportional) punishments are often preferred for secondary offenders, rather than the mandatory minima.

Author

• Simone Jessica Deegan, Flinders University