Victims

What is a Registered Victim?

A Registered Victim is a victim of crime, or a family member representing them, who has been placed on a register by Victims Support staff at Corrective Services NSW.

You need to contact the Victims Register to be registered as a victim of crime.

If I am a Registered Victim, what information can I access about an offender?

As a registered victim you are entitled to be given information about any changes to an offender’s sentence.  On request you can be provided an annual update of the offender’s location in custody and security classification.

What documents can I access about an offender?

Victims of Serious Offenders can get access to modified documents about what an offender has done towards his rehabilitation while in custody. These documents are available close to an offender’s earliest release date. 

What information can I access about an offender coming up for parole?

If an inmate is eligible for parole the Victims Register will notify you to explain the process and whether you can make a submission. A Victim Submission is always confidential and not seen by an offender without the victim’s consent. The State Parole Authority considers all submissions before making a final parole decision.

What say do I have about an offender being considered for parole?

Victims can provide a written submission to the State Parole Authority about an offender’s parole. Victims of a serious offender can make either a written or verbal submission in a review hearing in court. 

If you are a victim your submission can:

• express your view as to whether parole should be granted or refused
• relate how you have been impacted and any concerns you have about the inmate being considered for parole
• request any conditions you feel should be imposed, such as exclusion zones 

Does the offender see my submission?

Not unless you want them to. 

When providing a submission, you can seek a Section 194 order which will keep the submission private and confidential. This means only the SPA members will have access to this submission. 

If you choose to attend court, you can also sit in a section of the public gallery that is not seen by the inmate who appears at the hearing via Audio Visual Link from the correctional centre.

What if I don’t want to make a submission?

You are not compelled or under any obligation to provide a written or verbal submission to the SPA. 

If you do not want to attend the review hearing you will still be informed of the outcome and the SPA’s decision via the Victims Register. 

You can also request a copy of the SPA’s written determination (if one is available) through staff at Victims Register.  

Can I request an offender serve their full sentence and not get out on parole? 

You can request this but it's important to remember that an offender on parole is still serving out their sentence. Although they are out of prison they remain under the supervision of authorities and must obey all the conditions of parole.

If an inmate is released after serving their whole sentence in prison then they are not supervised or compelled to obey any parole conditions out in the community. Having served all their sentence in prison they are free to rejoin society and authorities have no legal power to monitor their behaviour in the community. 

Most inmates are given a head sentence (maximum sentence) and a non-parole period (the minimum term that must be served in prison).

At some point an inmate’s sentence will come to an end.

Inmates only become eligible for parole when they have served the non-parole period of their sentence. On parole they can begin reintegrating into the community, still serving their sentence but remaining under the close supervision of authorities and subject to a large range of parole conditions restricting their behaviour and movements.

Victims can ask the State Parole Authority to impose additional conditions and exclusion zones for offenders on parole. 

But if an inmate is released at the end of their maximum sentence they are free to leave prison with no restrictions and victims are then unable to request any conditions or exclusion zones.

Evidence consistently shows that supervising offenders in the community reduces the risk of reoffending and offers better protection for the community.

Parole provides a safety net to keep communities safer.