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‘Disastrous’: No body, no parole laws unfair to innocent prisoners, Folbigg says
NSW’s “no body, no parole” laws have been slammed as “disastrous” by Kathleen Folbigg, the woman who spent 20 years behind bars for the wrongful conviction for the death of her four infant children.
Naomi Neilson
Folbigg signed her name to an open letter that called for the “no body, no parole” laws to be reformed so the State Parole Authority can regain the power to release a prisoner even if they have not cooperated in locating victims of a homicide.
The letter was organised and circulated by RMIT University’s Bridge of Hope Innocence Initiative.
The laws, which were amended in 2022, were designed to incentivise prisoners to provide closure to victims’ families.
“There is scant evidence they are effective at achieving this goal.
“Instead, no body, no parole laws are disastrous for prisoners who continue to assert their innocence, exacerbating what is commonly called the ‘innocent prisoner’s dilemma’,” the letter said.
Prior to the reform, the parole board considered the prisoner’s disclosure of their victims’ remains but retained a discretion to release them. The 2022 change removed this discretion.
Folbigg’s name joined 114 other academics, lawyers, advocates and criminal justice professionals, including former NSW Court of Appeal judge and Centre for Public Integrity’s chair Anthony Whealy KC.
Lindy Chamberlain-Creighton, who was wrongfully convicted of the murder of her baby Azaria Chamberlain, also signed the letter.
The letter set out that innocent prisoners are already at a disadvantage because a failure to admit responsibility or express remorse could mean they will be denied parole.
If they do accept responsibility, express remorse and join pre-release programs, it could be seen as an admission that would jeopardise “any options they have for having their conviction overturned”.
“No body, no parole laws create a further injustice for people who have been wrongfully convicted of homicide,” it said.
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Naomi Neilson
Naomi Neilson is a senior journalist with a focus on court reporting for Lawyers Weekly.
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