Criminal Amendment (Victim Impact Statement) Rules 20041 December 2004
We, the Honourable WILLIAM JOHN ELLIS COX, Companion of the Order of Australia, Chief Justice, and the Honourable PETER GEORGE UNDERWOOD, Officer of the Order of Australia, the Honourable EWAN CHARLES CRAWFORD, the Honourable PIERRE WILLIAM SLICER, the Honourable PETER ETHRINGTON EVANS and the Honourable ALAN MICHAEL BLOW, Puisne Judges of the Supreme Court of Tasmania, in the exercise of their powers under section 81A of the Sentencing Act 1997 , make the following Rules of Court under the Criminal Code Act 1924 .
These Rules of Court may be cited as the Criminal Amendment (Victim Impact Statement) Rules 2004 .
These Rules of Court take effect on the day on which section 7 of the Sentencing Amendment Act 2002 commences.
In these Rules of Court, the Criminal Rules are referred to as the Principal Rules.
After Order IV of the Principal Rules, the following Order is inserted:
Order IVA – VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENTS
1. InterpretationIn this Order –Court means the Supreme Court;Director means the Director of Public Prosecutions;victim impact statement means a statement made under section 81A of the Sentencing Act 1997 by a victim of an offence.2. Duty of victim to provide copies of victim impact statement(1) A victim who wishes to furnish to the Court a victim impact statement is to provide the statement to the Director, or counsel authorised by the Director, with copies for the prosecutor and the counsel for the offender.(2) On providing copies of the statement under subrule (1) , the victim is to advise the Director whether he or she wishes to read the statement to the Court.3. Provision of victim impact statement to presiding judgeThe Director or counsel authorised by the Director is to –(a) provide to the presiding judge any victim impact statement relating to the offence which has been provided by a victim of the offence; and(b) inform the presiding judge whether the victim has requested to read the statement to the Court.4. Reading of victim impact statementA victim impact statement is to be read to, or by, the Court before the presiding judge passes sentence on the offender.5. Postponement of reading of victim impact statementIf a victim has requested to read a victim impact statement to the Court but is not present, the presiding judge may postpone the reading of the statement and is to cause notice of the time fixed for the reading of the statement to be given to the victim.6. Power of victim to amend victim impact statementSubject to rule 7 , a victim who has furnished a victim impact statement may amend the statement at any time before it is read to, or by, the Court.7. Power of judge to exclude irrelevant materialIf the presiding judge so directs, a victim is not to read to the court any part of his or her victim impact statement that the presiding judge considers to be irrelevant to the proceedings.8. Power of victim to withdraw victim impact statementA victim who has provided a victim impact statement may withdraw the statement at any time before it is read to, or by, the Court and, if he or she does so, the statement is not to be read to, or by, the Court.9. Requirements for victim impact statementA victim may furnish to the Court only one victim impact statement and the statement –(a) is to be legible; and(b) may be either printed or handwritten; and(c) except with the leave of the presiding judge, may not be longer than 20 pages, including medical reports and other annexures; and(d) may, but need not, be in a form approved by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
W. J. E. COX
Chief Justice
P. G. UNDERWOOD
Puisne Judge
E. C. CRAWFORD
Puisne Judge
P. W. SLICER
Puisne Judge
P. E. EVANS
Puisne Judge
A. M. BLOW
Puisne Judge
Countersigned,
I. G. RITCHARD
Registrar
Displayed and numbered in accordance with the Rules Publication Act 1953.
Notified in the Gazette on 22 December 2004
These Rules of Court are administered in the Department of Justice.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the rule)
These Rules of Court provide for a victim of an indictable or prescribed offence to furnish the Supreme Court with a victim impact statement to be read to or by the Court if the offender pleads guilty or is found guilty of the offence. The Rules of Court also provide for the requirements to be observed in preparing a victim impact statement, for the right of the victim to read the statement to the Court and for the presiding judge to direct that any irrelevant material in the statement is not to be read to the Court.