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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-09-27 Daily Xml
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Bills

Criminal Law Consolidation (Human Remains) Amendment Bill

Second Reading

Debate resumed.

Mr BROWN (Florey) (11:18): I rise to support the Criminal Law Consolidation (Human Remains) Amendment Bill. It is sometimes said that murder is one of the few serious crimes where the victim is voiceless. The dead cannot speak to us and demand justice. However, there is little doubt that murder is a crime that creates a number of victims. The ripples of pain and anguish caused by the early extinction of life are often felt deeply across a wide circle of people, even beyond family groups and across whole communities.

One of the experiences I count myself fortunate to have had since becoming a member of this house is to spend time talking with members of the Homicide Victims Support Group, some of whom are here today. They have shared with me their experiences and their unique perspectives on our criminal law, and I wish to thank them for helping me to better understand what they feel. On this particular bill, they have asked me to inform the house of their views, which I will now share:

Reasons we believe that an offender deserves to have a separate sentence imposed on them if they have moved/damaged or tried to prevent the victim being found after a murder is committed. There should also be a sentence for anyone who assists someone to do these things after the murder.

[Firstly] Murder is the WORST crime someone can commit and leaves the most devastating consequences on a victim's family. But if the victim's body is moved, destroyed or hidden, this crime is magnified and causes HUGE long term effects to the Loved ones for many reasons and impedes their grieving and recovery by years.

[Secondly] Offenders have a CHOICE about moving/destroying/damaging or hiding a victim's body—even if they plead that they didn't mean to kill the victim, they still knew what they were doing if they intentionally tried to divert the course of Justice by choosing to hide their crime and should be held accountable for the choices, when victims' loved ones have no choice about being caught up in such a devastating crime.

Trying to hide their crimes by choosing to move/destroy/damage/hide a victims' body means they have no remorse and are being selfish in trying to save themselves with NO CONSIDERATION to the victim or their loved ones as to the extra Trauma this causes.

Families are often unable to say 'goodbye' or see the victim because of the damage done or the length of time it takes to find the victim and this impacts on their grieving and Trauma, as coming to terms with someone murdered is hard enough but if your loved one is burned, dismembered, exposed to elements, buried or many of the other things that are done, then we have to live with this knowledge that their bodies were disrespected even further for selfish reasons and this can have devastating and long lasting effects on the Loved ones.

Many of the Victims that are moved/buried/drowned are not found for months or years or never and this leaves the loved ones wondering and hoping they will come back but unable to grieve, and their lives are 'on hold' and unable to live their lives properly because there is no answer to the many questions of their disappearance.

The other HUGE reason for a extra penalty separate to the Murder charge for this crime is the impact on the POLICE who have to try to solve these cases and live with the TRAUMA it causes them to have to find a body that has been destroyed/ damaged/buried/dismembered etc, as part of their job and then tell the loved ones of these horrendous outcomes to the victim. It also makes identification difficult and more tedious and takes longer, is often difficult to retrieve the bodies and costs more to the State to solve the crime.

It can also make a difference to an offender not being able to be charged with murder because the evidence is destroyed and it impedes the investigation, changes the outcomes and causes some crimes to remain unsolved as well as causing some frustration to the loved ones and the Police personnel who work very hard to bring the offenders to Justice and some peace to the families.

Please remember—justice will only be achieved when those not affected by crime feel as indignant as those who are and change what needs to be changed.

It is not often we can call a piece of legislation truly good, but this is a good bill. It is true that it will not bring anyone back, but if it helps to bring closure to just one family in the future then I believe it has delivered. I urge members to support the bill.

Ms CLANCY (Elder) (11:22): I rise today in support of this bill to introduce four new offences relating to concealing, mutilating or interfering with human remains and, in doing so, wish to thank the Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services for his efforts to bring this bill to this place. I also wish to acknowledge the opposition, who have signalled their support for the successful passage of this important legislation, and I acknowledge members of the Homicide Victims Support Group here today.

Until the successful passage of this bill, there have been no specific offences in South Australia that prohibit a person from concealing or interfering with human remains. The Malinauskas Labor government is committed to changing this and delivering on another election promise in doing so. As representatives, putting those directly impacted by legislation, or the current lack of legislation, at the centre is paramount to our success as legislators.

We must put those with the expertise and those with the lived experience at the centre of every single decision we make. This bill does just that: it listens to the families who, already dealing with excruciating grief, are unable to properly say goodbye. It is an unimaginable pain. This bill ensures that offenders no longer benefit from hiding a body, which can significantly impact the criminal investigation process by destroying valuable forensic evidence.

One of the most important roles of government is the safety of the people we represent. That is why the Malinauskas Labor government is putting victims and justice at the heart of our response to crime. Treating victims of crime as simply just a witness is not good enough. Strong governments should be working to repair some of the damage that has been done. That is why we will be investing an additional $2 million to help victims as they go through court processes, provide better education about their rights and support their recovery from trauma.

Labor has a proven track record of improving community safety, providing support for victims and reforming our justice system. It was a Labor government that removed the statute of limitations on child sex offences, established our first child sex offender register and appointed the state's first Commissioner for Victims' Rights, and it will be a Labor government that criminalises the act of interfering with or concealing human remains.

The Criminal Law Consolidation (Human Remains) Amendment Bill 2022 introduces four new offences into the Criminal Law Consolidation Act 1935. The offences introduced by the bill are as follows:

an offence of concealing, mutilating or otherwise interfering with human remains, where the intended or actual outcome is that the remains are more difficult to find, or to conceal the commission of an offence, with a maximum penalty of 15 years' imprisonment;

a more general offence of concealing, mutilating or otherwise interfering with human remains, with a maximum penalty of 15 years' imprisonment;

an offence if a person finds human remains, or what they suspect to be human remains, and fails to report this to the police, with a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment; and

an offence of finding human remains and then acting to conceal those remains, again with a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment.

These new offences will ensure that offenders who deliberately add to the pain and suffering of families by taking steps to conceal the body of their victim will be able to be charged with a specific offence, which will go some way to acknowledging the additional suffering of victims' families. Furthermore, an offender need not have been charged with murder to be prosecuted for these offences.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank the incredible efforts of advocacy and justice that have seen this bill come to this place. We thank the Homicide Victims Support Group, the Commissioner for Victims' Rights and SA Police for their support of this bill. We thank the families of Daniel Hind and Allison Nitschke, who have been unwavering in their advocacy for reform in this area.

Concealing or mutilating human remains makes criminal prosecutions more difficult and can lead to charges being downgraded, in addition to the grief, suffering and uncertainty for the loved ones of victims. In 1973, Geoffrey Adams killed his wife, Colleen, at their home in Maitland on Yorke Peninsula. Colleen's remains were not discovered until 2018. With the significant passage of time, Geoffrey Adams managed to secure a manslaughter verdict rather than the possibility of murder.

I share the member for Gibson's reflection on this debate and just how distressing it is that legislation such as this needs to be introduced. Since the year 2000, there have been at least 28 cases where a body has been disposed. We have heard the stories both here and in the other place of the unfathomable pain and suffering felt by too many families.

This bill, to introduce new offences relating to concealing, mutilating or interfering with human remains, forms just part of the Malinauskas Labor government's steadfast commitment to supporting the victims of justice and placing their experiences at the heart of every decision we make. I commend the bill to the house.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON (Ramsay—Minister for Tourism, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (11:28): I rise today to speak on the Criminal Law Consolidation (Human Remains) Amendment Bill. I will be supporting this bill. Others here have touched on many important reasons for the passage of this bill. There are significant impacts endured by all victims, families and friends in the event that the body of their loved one is not returned to them, often exasperating an already traumatic experience.

I acknowledge that the overwhelming pain of losing a loved one to an act as despicable as those described today is hard to comprehend. Through my role as Minister for Multicultural Affairs I am often connected to our diverse and multicultural society. I would like to touch upon the impact on our cultural and religious groups for whom death rights carry particular significance. Birth, marriage and death are recognised in many cultures as significant events not only for the immediate families but also for the broader community as a whole.

Death as a celebration of life and a passage to a higher state is a cornerstone of faiths all over the world. All communities and faith respect certain rituals and funeral practices and, as a multicultural society, South Australia is at the forefront of work to ensure that culturally sensitive arrangements in death are acknowledged and supported.

Funeral practices are as diverse as the cultures they derive from. Some Islamic practice teaches that in the final moments before death Qur'anic verse should be read and the body should be faced towards Mecca. Following death, the eyes should be closed, the jaw bandaged closed and the body should be buried within a day of death.

For Hindus, the importance of cremation rather than burial is the Vedic ritual whereby the spirit can be passed from the realm of mortals to the realm of gods. Judaism teaches that the body of the deceased should not be left alone between the time of death and the time of burial. For Sikhs, it is imperative that, following death, the deceased is washed, dressed in traditional Sikh dress and cremated within a day.

The loss of a family or friend is painful and distressing for anyone. The additional burden of that person being lost to violence or murder cannot be underestimated. All of us will experience the death of someone we care about. The gathering of friends and family in remembrance of that person at that funeral can provide a sense of closure or relief to those left behind. For many in our community of different faith and cultural backgrounds, death rites and funeral rites are fundamentally about the passage of the soul to heaven or the afterlife.

Taking away the ability for a family or community to mourn, to practise religious or cultural rituals that provide a sense of peace and spirituality is cruel and selfish of those who have committed the worst possible crimes. If this law returns just one person to their family to be laid to rest respectfully, properly and in accordance with their faith it will be a good and noble thing.

Until now, there have been no specific offences in South Australia that prohibit a person from concealing or interfering with human remains. Labor is committed to changing this by listening to the families and victims who, already dealing with untold grief, are unable to properly say goodbye.

Several offences are introduced by the bill, including the offence of concealing, mutilating or otherwise interfering with human remains where the intended or actual outcome is that the remains are more difficult to find, or to conceal the commission of an offence, with a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison.

Where the offence under this section is committed by the person who caused the death of the victim, the penalty for this offence will be served cumulatively on top of any other sentence the offender has received for causing the death of the victim aside from where they have already received a sentence of life imprisonment. It should be noted that, in accordance with the Sentencing Act 2017, a cumulative sentence cannot be imposed on a person who received a sentence of life imprisonment. Instead, the additional offending will be taken into account by the court in setting an appropriate non-parole period that must be served by the offender.

A more general offence of concealing, mutilating or otherwise interfering with human remains has a maximum penalty of 15 years of imprisonment. It is now an offence if a person finds human remains, or what they suspect to be human remains, and fails to report this to police and incurs a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment. Lastly, an offence of finding human remains and then acting to conceal those remains has been introduced, with a maximum penalty of five years.

As we know, it is the people who are left behind, the victims of crimes, who suffer the most. This legislation is just part of Labor's response to supporting those victims and to encouraging people to come forward so they can continue their grief. It must be the not knowing, the wondering where that person is, thinking about them and not being able to say goodbye appropriately. I note the bill has the support of the Homicide Victims Support Group, and I would like to recognise members who are in the gallery today as visitors.

This is incredibly important legislation. It is quite profound and gives urgency, when this terrible situation occurs, to encourage that person to help, to assist and to provide closure. I support the bill.

Ms WORTLEY (Torrens) (11:35): I rise to support the Criminal Law Consolidation (Human Remains) Amendment Bill 2022. It is likely that many South Australians are not aware that in our state there is currently no law that specifically prohibits a person from concealing or interfering with human remains or, in fact, ignoring the finding of human remains. However, I say this: the families who have lost loved ones through the brutal taking of the life of their son, daughter, mother, father, wife, husband or other loved one know that this is the cold, hard truth—and they are suffering because of it.

I raise the tragic circumstances that Daniel Hind's family had to deal with, where his body was hidden for eight weeks. Despite being charged with murder, the person who inflicted this horrific crime and who took away a life was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to seven years and three months, with a non-parole period of five years and 10 months. Highlighted in this case was the loss of valuable forensic evidence. The prosecution had nowhere to go.

Prior to the March election, Labor committed to listening to the families of victims, families living with the lifelong heartache of losing a loved one and being unable to properly say goodbye, to lay them to rest, while dealing with grief that goes beyond words. We have heard that the Criminal Law Consolidation (Human Remains) Amendment Bill 2022 introduces four new offences to the current act. Those four offences are:

1. An offence of concealing, mutilating or otherwise interfering with human remains where the intended or actual outcome is that the remains are more difficult to find. The maximum penalty is 15 years' imprisonment. Where the offence under this section is committed by the person who caused the death of the victim, the prison time would be served cumulatively on top of any other sentence the offender receives, aside from a life sentence, as per the Sentencing Act 2017, although considered for parole purposes.

2. A more general offence of concealing, mutilating or otherwise interfering with human remains, with a maximum penalty 15 years.

3. If passed in this bill, it will also be an offence if a person finds human remains or suspected human remains and fails to report this to the police. This in itself will attract a five-year maximum penalty.

4. Finally, where human remains have been found, the act of concealing them will attract a maximum term of five years' imprisonment.

These new offences will ensure that offenders, through their actions or lack thereof, will no longer obtain any advantage by virtue of disposing or tampering with the body.

Labor's changes mean offenders face significant terms of imprisonment for concealing a body, in addition to any other charges. For too long and in too many instances in South Australia killers have benefited from a lesser charge and lesser penalty after concealing their victim's remains. This should not be the case. This is not justice.

As I pointed out earlier, the way in which the deliberate concealment of a body adds to the pain and suffering of families needs to be addressed and acknowledged. It is worth knowing that an offender need not have been the killer of the deceased for them to be prosecuted under these offences.

Importantly, this bill has the support of the Homicide Victims Support Group, the Commissioner for Victims' Rights and SA Police. It is on the public record that the grieving families of Daniel Hind and university student Allison Nitschke have been significant voices for the introduction of such legislation. Today I would like to acknowledge Lynette Nitschke, mother of Allison, and Phil Hind, father of Daniel, in their tireless work to reform this area of the criminal law in order to help others.

It is our hope that these laws will be seen by those who have lost loved ones under such dire circumstances through a vile act of murder as a way to transform the legal system to better reflect community expectations in this area. I commend the bill to the house.

The Hon. J.K. SZAKACS (Cheltenham—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services) (11:40): I thank members for their contribution to this debate, particularly their heartfelt support for these proposed changes, a truly nonpartisan support by all members of this place, as in the other place as well. I commend this to the committee, if the house is so inclined, for the third reading.

Bill read a second time.

Third Reading

The Hon. J.K. SZAKACS (Cheltenham—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services) (11:41): I move:

That this bill be now read a third time.

In very brief remarks before this bill concludes I particularly thank the members in the public gallery today, in the Speaker's gallery—family advocates, three people who have significant lived experience. I wish to thank you on behalf of not only the government but the entire house for your courage in using your voice for this change, for your bravery in continuing to speak of your experience, and I hope that you will know that whilst this legislation will not return your loved ones, it is done in their memory. We do so knowing the pain that you have lived and we seek for no-one else to live that pain. I commend this bill to the house.

Bill read a third time and passed.

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