28 September 2018

Police have released their latest statistic on Homicide Victims , and it shows a significant decrease in Homicide convictions in 2016 with 2017 looking to be lower again.

Sensible Sentencing Trust Youth Advocate Jess McVicar says this is great news and hopes a decrease will continue in the years to follow and says we need to see a decrease in all violent crimes not just homicide.

“We need our communities to feel safe in their own homes and for children to be protected from harm. No one chooses to be a Victim and we would love to be able to see a country where there were no future Victims of crime.

Jess says the decrease shows something is starting to work in the system and Sensible Sentencing Trust says holding offenders to account for their actions and the Three Strikes Legisaltion has been hugely instrumental in the drop in Homicide.

“ Community Safety Must be Paramount and if that means that it takes prison to achieve this then we are ok with that because one less homicide means one less victim and another family saved from the agony of loosing their loved one”

“ There is still a lot of work to do, There are still too many Victims”

Before Three Strikes was introduced in 2010 the homicide statistics were incredibly high, and then from 2010 the statistics have decreased hugely. In 2009 there were 94 Homicides and in 2010 there were 77 and 2016 58.

Jess says “the Sensible Sentencing Trust has motivated New Zealanders to stand up for their safety and demand the Justice System is set up to prevent and protect against criminals.

When asked if we are likely to see a continuing decrease in Homicide Statistics Jess said the Trust truly hopes this would be the case.
“ For a continuing decrease we really need to look at Youth Justice System Overhaul , Youth Offending is becoming more violent yet we are seeing constant reports of youth reoffending while in Oranga Tamariki care. We need to look at why these young people are offending , what are their offences , how do they relate to what has happened to them throughout their childhood. Which more often than not comes back to Domestic Violence in the family home."

We as a country need to stand together for our children, Victims of domestic abuse ,Victims of Homicide , Victims of all crime and say enough is enough.

ENDS

© Scoop Media