Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Ruth Money: Victims advocate on the introduction of time frame goals in the justice system

Transcript

Ruth Money: Victims advocate on the introduction of time frame goals in the justice system · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Because I've got this ongoing fascination with we're a bit
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: down in the dumps in this country at the moment
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: in terms of attitude, and there's a consumer confidence out.
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: We'll talk with Andrew about that time after six o'clock
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: this morning, but it does seem to me that and
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: there's a very interesting series of surveys out both here
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: and in Australia, the number of people who are looking
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: to leave their job for another one. So we're disgruntled,
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: we're unhappy, and so we want progression, we want more money,
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: and if we don't get more money here, we'll go
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: to Australia. But in Australia they've got the same sort
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: of problems. And then there's also this very interesting report
• 0:29
  Speaker 1: I'll have you later are the Henley Private Wealth Migration
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: Report Britain London. They are leaving in droves and they're
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: the wealthy. It's what we were talking about on the
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: programme yesterday with the change the real estate agents. If
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: you read the one roof report, the real estate agents
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: are saying, look, we should be bringing wealthy, successful, bright
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: people into the country and allow them to buy homes
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: because otherwise, where else are they going to go while
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: they're not in Britain anyway. Let me come back to
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: that later on this morning. Meantime, it's eleven away from six.
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: Chief District Court Judge has introduced time framed goals to
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: speed up cases. So will be divided into categories least
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: serious Category one where there's no risk of imprisonment. The
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: aim is to be through that court case in six months.
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: Court Cat two is under two years of jail nine months.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: Cat three over two years of jail fifteen months. How
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: real is any of this? Ruth Money is a victim's
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: advocate and is with us. Ruth, very good morning to you.
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: Good morning As a theory. Do you like it?
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: Yes? I love it?
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: Is it doable?
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: I think it's doable. Should the other players in the
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: system do their part? And there's no reason why they
• 1:32
  Speaker 2: want but yeah, that would need to happen the suits
• 1:36
  Speaker 2: of things that happen to get things to court, not
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: just the court itself.
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: Well, that's what I was going to ask, because you
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: know more than most. What are the infrastructural issues within
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: the court. We hear the buildings are rolled and they
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: don't work properly. The computer system is not particularly up
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: to scratch, you've got any number of legal aid or
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: lawyer's calling, appeal after appeal. I mean, do a lot
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: of things need to come together for this to work
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: or not.
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: I think one of the biggest things that would need
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: to come together is that police have to get the
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: disclosure of the file. So they need to do the investigation,
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: get all of the evidence, and then they supply that
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: to the defense lawyer who then advises their client whether
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: they're pleading to this or dealing on that, for example,
• 2:17
  Speaker 2: pleading guilty, not guilty, etc. And if that doesn't happen smoothly,
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: then there's obviously the crown can't do that, but or
• 2:24
  Speaker 2: the police can't prosecute thefor because they can't liaise with
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: the defense lawyer. Therefore the court kind of timings fall over.
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: And I see that time and time again where a
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: victim and I are waiting waiting and there are arguments
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: going on because something hasn't been disclosed.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: So that is that deliberate or is that just admin.
• 2:46
  Speaker 2: That is a resulting police issue and that they are
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: just under the pump and can't get to For example,
• 2:55
  Speaker 2: if you were really naughty right now and I needed
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: some forensics off your phone would be waiting months for that.
• 3:02
  Speaker 2: So there are things in the system, and I think
• 3:05
  Speaker 2: Chester District Court Judge speaks to another one around local
• 3:08
  Speaker 2: health assessments or probation officer assistant corrections assessments of certain
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: people who have done the harm and all the offenders.
• 3:19
  Speaker 2: There are certain addiction mental health reports because you know,
• 3:24
  Speaker 2: at the end of the day, the justice system is
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: a result of all these terrible things happening from a
• 3:29
  Speaker 2: social perspective and an education and health perspective in a community.
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: So the most of what you're saying is the moment
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: you contract out to somebody, they won't have the resource.
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: That'll be your delay.
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: That is my concern.
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: Yeah. See, I just got fascinated the other day this
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: kid who's been charged with murder and Dunedin at the
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: Bush shelter. He's not appearing in that. Casesn't going till
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: twenty twenty six, twenty six, We're only midway through twenty
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: twenty four, and I'm thinking, what the hell's going on here?
• 3:54
  Speaker 2: Yeah, And that's what happens. The courts are absolutely jammed.
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: Things are so delayed, and quite literally, people have got
• 4:03
  Speaker 2: their lives on hold waiting, you know, people don't go
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: to school, so therefore the life trajection or the trajectory
• 4:11
  Speaker 2: of successful life is really compromised. It's not saying that
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: they won't be successful, but if you can't get through
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: your school and the university, you can't concentrate on your work,
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: you lose your house. There are so many horrible consequences
• 4:26
  Speaker 2: of these delays that I really admire and hope that
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: the stuff happens because it needs to. The human toll
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: is ridiculous.
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: Very well put. Nice to see you again, Ruth, Ruth Money,
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: victim's advocate and the.
• 4:38
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• 4:41
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• 4:44
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