Key facts
- A re-elected Victorian Labor government will create two new Australian-first offences related to domestic and family violence.
- One new offence will cover manslaughter where a person takes their own life as a result of family violence.
- A second new offence will target perpetrators who abandon a victim in need of medical care.
- The coroner recommended the abandonment offence after the deaths of Belinda Jones and Narelle Simmons.
- Labor will increase the maximum penalty for rape from 25 years to life imprisonment.
- The maximum penalty for persistent breaches of family violence intervention orders will double to 10 years.
A re-elected Victorian Labor government has pledged to introduce two new offences aimed at addressing domestic and family violence, which it claims will close existing loopholes in the justice system. Premier Ben Carroll is set to announce the commitment, which includes legislating a new form of manslaughter for cases where a person dies by suicide due to family violence. Additionally, a new offence will target perpetrators who abandon victims in need of medical care.
The proposed offences are partly in response to recommendations made by state coroner Liberty Sanger following the deaths of Belinda Jones and Narelle Simmons. Jones died in July 2023 after her partner allegedly left her overnight without seeking medical attention, and Simmons died in October 2021 after her partner assaulted her and left her at home for nine days before her body was found.
Beyond these two new offences, Labor also plans to increase the maximum penalty for rape from 25 years to life imprisonment. The maximum penalty for persistent breaches of family violence intervention orders will double from five years to 10 years, and the standard sentence for the murder of a current or former partner will be raised from 25 to 30 years. The government will also amend the Evidence Act to prevent invasive questioning of victim-survivors in court and allow patterns of sexual abuse to be considered as evidence.