GPS tracking devices could increase rates of vigilantism,the Queensland government has been warned.
There will be a presumption against bail for those arrested for serious crimes,such as armed robbery and rape,under the proposed reforms.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance has accused the government of going too far,fearing that forcing young people on bail to wear electronic monitoring devices would “inflame the already present concerns of the growing vigilante responses to youth crime”.
“The devices may make it easier for this group to identify the children on bail,making them more vulnerable when in public,” the organisation wrote in a public submission.
“There is very little benefit in incurring the substantial cost of introducing electronic monitoring of young people on bail,given the evidence that there is no significant positive effect in terms of crime reduction,and the substantial risk that young people required to wear such a device are being set up to fail,resulting in increased incarceration for this vulnerable cohort.”
The alliance also warned that teenagers accused of crimes might find it difficult attend school,find a job or secure safe housing if they had GPS trackers wrapped around their ankles.
In a separate submission,the state’s Human Rights Commission said GPS tracking for teenage offenders was not evidence-based and could “create more harm than good”.
It claimed the Palaszczuk government had put forward “insufficient and misleading evidence” to convince the public the trackers would improve public safety.