The barrister in charge of prosecuting criminals in the ACT believes too many people are being let free by the courts to commit further crime.
The territory's chief crown prosecutor, Anthony Williamson SC, said many crimes were committed by people out on bail awaiting trial or by criminals who had not been jailed for earlier offences.
He said courts were being duped by defendants and by convicted criminals who put forward false reasons for not being jailed.
"Multiple instances have been identified of accused people either grossly exaggerating or falsely asserting they or family members have serious medical conditions. False information has been provided about offers of employment. False claims have been made about engagement with rehabilitation services and proposed bail addresses have been nominated which do not exist," said Mr Williamson, the Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, in the Bulletin of the ACT Bar Association.
"A very high portion of serious offences committed in the territory are committed by people who are subject to either bail, parole or a good behaviour order."
He declined to comment beyond what he had written in the internal barristers' newsletter.
Other legal experts on the Australian legal system said ACT courts were much softer on serious crime than in NSW.
In NSW, for example, someone who robs a convenience store with a knife would usually be jailed. In the ACT, a similar robber would be far less likely to be jailed, particularly for a first offence.
In NSW, someone who punched someone out of the blue in a pub or on the street - a coward punch - which caused serious injury like breaking the victim's jaw would likely be jailed for three to five years.
In the ACT, they would be much more likely to be sentenced to a "community-based term of imprisonment" (which despite the terminology doesn't actually mean imprisonment).
The ACT system puts greater emphasis on the rehabilitation of offenders and less weight on other sentencing purposes of deterrence, denunciation and recognising the harm caused to victims, critics of the system say.
The ACT has the highest rate of reoffending in the country, a 2021 Productivity Commission report shows.
The report said two-thirds of offenders in the ACT committed a new offence within two years of being convicted for their previous one.
"This is about 10 per cent higher than the national average," Mr Williamson said.
The tone of his remarks are much tougher than ACT Attorney-General Shane Rattenbury's in the same barristers' bulletin.
The Greens MLA said repeat crimes had fallen: "Recidivism in Canberra has already decreased by 15.8 per cent over the last three years, despite our programs only being in their early stages."
Mr Rattenbury was very reluctant to have people locked up: "I remain absolutely committed to reducing crime in Canberra, but I do not accept that the only way to do so is to bring the full force of the state crashing down on everybody who breaks the law. Although it might be politically expedient to call for a 'tougher' approach to crime, the evidence could not be clearer that ramping up the punitive nature of a justice system leads to increased criminality in the future."
He blamed poverty for some crimes, saying: "People are complex, and often those who are involved in crime come from disadvantaged backgrounds."
He welcomed Mr Williamson's drawing of attention to the issue of people duping courts to go free.
"For our courts to make fully-informed decisions, it is vital that the information with which they are presented is credible and reliable. It is never acceptable to mislead the court," he said.
The chief crown prosecutor did not blame police or lawyers for criminals reoffending after being freed, saying lawyers were not "fact-checkers".
He said the pressure on the court system was great: "Practitioners do an outstanding job in taking instructions from multiple clients who are in the court cells, only having been transferred from the watchhouse minutes earlier.
"The charges these defendants face and their subjective circumstances vary greatly. Within seconds of one bail application being finalised by the busy magistrate, the next one is called on. It is unquestionably a stressful and demanding work environment for all.
But Mr Williamson said: "Police and prosecutors will now be placing a greater focus on making inquiries after court in relation to the veracity of the information and evidence that has been provided.
"Where evidence is obtained that false or misleading material or information has been relied upon in either a bail application or sentencing proceeding, further charges will most likely be laid."
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