OFFENDERS with high levels of mental illness and low intellectual capacity are not getting the support they need once they have completed their sentences, a County Court judge believes.
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Judge Paul Lacava made the comments in the Bendigo County Court on Thursday while sentencing a Long Gully man who had been diagnosed with schizophrenia up to 20 years ago.
Having been through the corrections system multiple times, the man had stopped taking his prescribed medication and was involved in an attempted armed hold up in Bendigo.
Judge Lacava said his current circuit in Bendigo was “full” of offenders living with high level mental illnesses, with each case creating a dilemma in forming an effective sentence.
He said legal remedies too often were relied upon to solve health problems.
“The longer I sit on the bench, the less impressed I am by corrections to add any value to offenders with high levels of mental illness, psychological illness, or who are at or below the borderline of intellectual capacity,” he said.
“The system is designed as a one-size-fits-all, tick this box, tick that box, impose these conditions and she’ll be right mate.
“But it doesn’t fit these sorts of clients where they do have genuine, long-standing psychological ill health or are profoundly intellectually disabled.”
Crown prosecutor David Cordy agreed with the judge’s comments, and described the situation as a “disaster” which could place the safety of the public at risk.
“The community, on the one hand, is sick and tired of soft target robberies or attempted armed hold ups, and sick and tired of people acting in violent and aggressive ways,” he said.
“He knows that if he doesn’t take his medication and he gets on illicit drugs and alcohol, he can act in an anti-social and criminal way.”
Mr Cordy said too much onus was placed on offenders to adhere to their own conditions.
“It seems that the Office of Corrections places all responsibility on the offender to establish and maintain all contact, and they’re just not up to it,” he said.
Long Gully man Robert May, 37, had pleaded guilty in relation to the attempted armed hold up of the United petrol station on Marong Road on January 2, along with five intervention order breaches.
All of the offences occurred after a drug and alcohol binge during a period when he was not believed to be on medicated treatment, defence counsel Russell Kelly told the court.
May was remanded in custody to be sentenced at a later date.
His case was immediately after another man who had violated the conditions of his community corrections order, further frustrating Judge Lacava.
Plans to improve mental health response
The use of community corrections orders had rapidly increased since suspended sentences were phased out in 2014.
The state government will trial a mental health advisory service at the Melbourne and Sunshine magistrates’ courts, and spends more than $11 million on mental health care in prisons.
A new men’s prison at Ravenhall, to be completed in 2017, will also provide 75 specialist mental health beds.
Victorian Corrections Minister Steve Herbert said the government is working to address gaps in the responses to mental illness.
“The Labor government is taking action to improve the response to people with mental illness in the criminal justice system,” he said.
“The 2016/17 State Budget will invest $233 million to reform Community Correctional Services to better focus on the treatment needs of offenders and improve the services that are delivered to them.”
The transition from suspended sentences to community corrections orders was studied by the Sentencing Advisory Council.
The orders allow for the assessment and treatment of offenders after they are sentenced, but are usually restricted to two years or less.
Council chair Professor Arie Freiberg said the number of community corrections orders had risen dramatically, but they require skilled and experienced officers to ensure clients were given a comprehensive level of support.