Legislation has today been proclaimed to allow Magistrates and Judges to sentence suitable offenders to Home Detention Orders.
Amendments to the Sentencing Act 1997 were passed in November last year to introduce Home Detention Orders as a new sentencing option, as part of the Hodgman Liberal Government’s $4.3 million-a-year commitment to alternative sentencing options.
Home Detention Orders will require an offender to be at a specified premise, during specified times and to comply with strict conditions, including electronic monitoring.
The Department of Justice is in the final stages of putting in place a monitoring and compliance team in Community Corrections that will provide 24-hour, seven-day-a-week monitoring of court-ordered offenders who have been tagged with a GPS ankle band.
Magistrates and Judges can now request a pre-sentence assessment as to whether an offender is suitable for a Home Detention Order. Once an assessment is supplied, the courts will consider whether it is appropriate to place an offender on a Home Detention Order that will be monitored by Community Corrections.
The Hodgman Liberal Government believes all Tasmanians deserve to live in safety and free from the impact of crime, and this new law will give the courts more sentencing options.
While we make no apologies for being tough on serious crime, we want offenders to get their lives back on track and become productive, law-abiding members of society who no longer pose a threat to their victims or community safety.