THE LAW AND THE ISSUES
The double jeopardy law was enacted to prevent wrongful convictions
and the need to encourage efficient investigations. In 2007, Queensland’s
government modified the double jeopardy rule by allowing retrials for an
acquitted offender if new evidence was gathered. Under the legislation of 678C
the ‘court may order a retrial for 25 year offence-tainted acquittal.’ The
controversial decision made in Queensland’s High Court regarding the murder
case of R v Carroll [2002], was and is one of the main contributors to the
current debate of making the double jeopardy law retrospective. Although the
double jeopardy law was enacted to serve as a protection of an accused person
from multiple prosecutions, it has caused judicial disputes that stands has
made the public rage with anger and frustration. Queensland’s Attorney General
is a firm advocate for abolishing the double jeopardy law and is fighting for
the government to make it retrospective. “Changes to the state’s double
jeopardy laws will help solve more murder cases” (Stevenson, 2014). The main
predicament surrounding the double jeopardy law is that the testing of DNA and
technology is drastically developing each day yet the courts are lacking in
adequate evidence to charge an accused person of committing a crime, especially
a heinous crime involving murder or rape. Attorney General Mr Bleijie
aggressively states “under the double jeopardy laws, without having the
retrospectivity in place…those offenders are still out in our community”
(Stevenson, 2014). This has caused the public to become out-raged with the
legal system regarding the double jeopardy rule because dangerous criminals are
being set-free into the communities with no sentence or charges which is
affecting the safety of the people and is leaving the opposition with no
closure.
"“I’m very much in favour of changing things that don’t work and this rule doesn’t work…the demented, dogmatic adherence to something because it’s been around for a long time” -Former Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard
"“I’m very much in favour of changing things that don’t work and this rule doesn’t work…the demented, dogmatic adherence to something because it’s been around for a long time” -Former Prime Minister of Australia, John Howard