In wake of a spike in carjackings and home invasions across Melbourne, the state government will today introduce legislation to create tough new offences for carjacking and home invasion.
The legislation has been developed in close consultation with Victoria Police and will include tough new penalties and statutory minimum sentences for aggravated carjacking and aggravated home invasion.
The new offence of carjacking will carry a maximum penalty of 15 years and those convicted of aggravated carjacking face a maximum penalty of 25 years.
Home invasion will have a maximum penalty of 25 years and aggravated home invasion will attract a statutory minimum non-parole period of three years.
“People have the right to feel safe in their homes and in their cars,” Premier Daniel Andrews said.
Minister for Police Lisa Neville said, “The community expects that police will have the powers and resources they need to target these criminals – and that's exactly what we're giving them.”
Salient features of the new offences:
- Once arrested, the accused will need to justify why they should not be remanded.
- This will apply regardless of the age of the offender.
- Carjacking offence will carry a maximum penalty of 15 years
- Aggravated carjacking convicts face a maximum penalty of 25 years and a statutory minimum non-parole period of three years.
- Home invasion will have a maximum penalty of 25 years.
- In addition, aggravated home invasion will attract a statutory minimum non-parole period of three years.
Definition of these crimes:
Home invasion is when a person, in the company of others, commits a burglary while armed or where there is a person in the house. To recognise the traumatic effect on victims, the Bill specifically introduces an element of “strict liability” which means it is irrelevant whether the offender knew if there was someone home at the time.
Aggravated home invasion applies where there are at least three offenders, they are armed, and commit a burglary on premises where a person was present and the offender knew or was reckless as to whether there were people in the home.
Carjacking applies when an offender or offenders steal a vehicle and use force, or threaten to use force.
Aggravated carjacking occurs when the person committing the offence has an offensive weapon, or they cause injury to another person during the commission of the offence.
