The Queensland Corrective Services’ Victims Register: support and safety for victims of crime

14/09/2022 In Corrections 2030 principles, Empowerment, Safety

The Queensland Corrective Services’ Victims Register: support and safety for victims of crime

Victims’ rights are in the spotlight on National Victims of Crime Day on 16 September.

Queensland Corrective Services (QCS) is committed to ensuring victims of crime are supported and have a voice every day through the Victims Register.

Established under the Corrective Services Act in 2016, the Victims Register is a vital service for victims and survivors of violence and sexual offences.

A small, dedicated team at QCS works passionately to maintain the register which supports, empowers and helps to protect the safety of victims of crime.

Victims who are registered are kept up-to-date and informed about important events in the sentences of the prisoner they are registered against.

The Victims Register assists victims to plan for their safety if a prisoner is released, empowers them to make submissions to decision makers about prisoner releases, and notifies them of prisoner events that may affect their safety.

By registering, an eligible person can lawfully receive information that may otherwise be unavailable to them, such as:

the prisoner’s eligibility or date of discharge from prison
the death or escape of the prisoner
the prisoner’s current location, security classification and length of the term of imprisonment
the results of the prisoner’s application for parole orders
any circumstances or exceptional events relating to the prisoner that could endanger the life or physical safety of the victim or survivor.

Significantly, the Victims Register empowers victims who are registered by supporting them to make a written submission to the Parole Board Queensland when a prisoner applies for parole, or to the Supreme Court when an order subject to the Dangerous Prisoners (Sexual Offenders) Act 2003 is being considered.

By providing a submission, victims and survivors have the opportunity to inform the Parole Board Queensland or the Supreme Court the impact that the prisoner’s offending has had on them and others, and any safety concerns that they have for themselves and others, if the prisoner was to be released on parole or subject to a community supervision order.

As at 30 June 2022, there were 1,475 eligible persons registered on the QCS Victims Register.

736 new applications were processed during 2021-22, resulting in 464 new registrations on the Victims Register, of which 395 (60%) were linked to domestic and family violence.

Who can register?

People who are eligible to register with the Queensland Corrective Services’ Victims Register are victims of an offence (including victims under 18 years), the parent or guardian of a victim or an immediate family member of a deceased victim.

There is also broader protection for people whose safety may be endangered by prisoners or offenders sentenced to sexual and violent offences such as witnesses.

Victims of domestic and family violence are also eligible to register as vulnerable persons.

How to register?

For detailed information about registering with the QCS Victims Register, including a link to an application form, go online at https://www.qld.gov.au/law/your-rights/victim-rights-and-complaints/victims-registers/adult