Level 1/16 Malop St, Geelong VIC 3220, Australia
Level 1/16 Malop St, Geelong VIC 3220, Australia
If you have been charged with any offending against a child, you need legal advice from specialists in Criminal Law. The Court process for charges relating to children victims are inherently complex and can be lengthy. Geelong Lawyers, Barristers and Solicitors can help you to navigate these processes and procedures.
There are many criminal offences that can involve children. These can include possession of child abuse material, transmitting indecent communication to a child, supplying a child with a drug of dependence, assaulting a child and sexual penetration of a person under 16 years of age.
Offences against children include both Victorian offences against the Crimes Act 1958 as well as Commonwealth offences against the Criminal Code Act 1995. Often the charge is dependant on how the offence was committed, the location of the accused and the location of the alleged victims. Australia has an expansive legislative framework that criminalises sexual offending against children even where the children are located overseas, or where the children do not exist. Such examples can include police operations where police members pose as children in online chat rooms in order to apprehend offenders.
The Court process for charges involving children is complex. There are many rules governing what evidence is admissible, the types of questions children can be asked in cross-examination and the running of special hearings in the County Court. Hearings for charges involving children are often prioritised by the Court, and as such there are strict time frames for disclosure, cross-examination applications and jury trials.
At Geelong Lawyers we can assist you by providing you with providing you with advice before a police interview, advising you on the nature of a police brief of evidence and representing you at all stages of the Court proceedings. If a case has resolved and you wish to plead guilty, Geelong Lawyers can represent you at the Plea Hearing before a Judge or Magistrate.
The penalties are dependant on what charges ultimately proceed. The majority of offences against children include imprisonment, however there are complex statutory considerations that are taken into account by a Judge or Magistrate.
For most sexual offending against children there are mandatory orders that a person be listed as a registered sex offender as per the Sex Offenders Registration Act 2004. The length will depend on an offenders criminal history and the number and type of sex offences proceeding at time of sentence. The duration for a Sex Offenders Registration Order ranges from 7 years to life. Placement on the Sex Offenders Register can have great negative implications on your life, including employment, so you should seek legal advice as early as possible.
