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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2025-10-28 Daily Xml
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Question Time

Criminal Justice System

The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI (Leader of the Opposition) (14:28): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Attorney-General about the integrity of South Australia's justice system.

Leave granted.

The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI: Today's front page of The Advertiser carries the headline 'Crims get easy ride' with the subheading 'Faceless bureaucrats let crooks out of jail early'. The article details the ordeal of journalist Ben Hyde, who was seriously injured in a 2021 crash, and reports that the offender responsible has been approved for early release from prison before the expiration of his non-parole period. My questions to the Attorney-General are:

1. How many offenders have been approved for release from prison on home detention prior to the expiration of their non-parole period in each of the past five years?

2. What processes are in place to ensure victims are notified, consulted and their views properly considered before such decisions are made?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Deputy Premier, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector, Special Minister of State) (14:29): I thank the honourable member for her question. In relation to statistics, I don't have statistics that fall within the Department for Correctional Services with me, but I am happy to go away and see what can be found.

What I will try to do, if it is possible, is go beyond just the last five years and look at the whole of the last term of the Liberal government, because the policy and procedures, as departments apply home detention, is something that the former Liberal government had during the whole time they were in government but saw fit not to change, or saw fit not to have any concerns with.

Again, it is within the Correctional Services Act and the Department for Correctional Services, but my understanding in relation to the one particular part the honourable member is referring to is that no final decision has been made.

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