Proactive policing to hold perpetrators accountable and support victim-survivors
Responsible government
- New South Wales
Fourth Action Plan actions
- Primary prevention is key
- 2 Improve coordination across primary prevention activities to maximise their impact on community attitudes and behaviours that lead to violence.
- Improve support and service system responses
- 17 Collaborate across services, sectors and workforces to ensure responses to women affected by domestic, family and sexual violence are coordinated, meet women’s needs, avoid women having to retell their story and promote their recovery.
What are we doing?
NSW Police Force operate a three-tiered, proactive perpetrator accountability model that reflects the different levels of risk posed by domestic and family violence offenders. The three tiers are:
- Apprehended Domestic Violence Order (ADVO) compliance checks;
- Suspect Target Management Plans (DV STMP) II; and,
- Domestic Violence High Risk Offender Teams (HROT).
What have we achieved so far?
The ADVO compliance check program was implemented state-wide in 2017. The purpose of the ADVO compliance check is to hold a defendant accountable for their actions and behaviours by checking whether they are complying with their ADVO conditions.
The program also involves checking on the person in need of protection and taking the necessary action if a breach is detected. DV STMP II was implemented state-wide in 2016. This was a coordinated approach used to identify, target and manage repeat domestic and family violence offenders. In November 2020, Suspect Target Management Plan III commenced utilising artificial intelligence to assist in the identification of suggested STMP nominations. The Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) released an evaluation of STMP and DV STMP. This report concluded that STMP II and DV STMP II had the effect of a reduction in crime by those targeted offenders.
HROTs are continuing to operate in each of the six police regions across NSW. Each HROT includes a number of police officers and an intelligence analyst. HROTS proactively investigate domestic and family violence high-risk offenders using covert and overt investigative skills.
NSW Police Force completed a trial of the use of Body Worn Video (BWV) to record DVEC statements between September 2019 and April 2020 in three Police Area Commands and Police Districts. The intent of this trial was to understand whether BWV was a feasible recording option in these circumstances, without adversely affecting victims and the quality of evidence presented to the Court. An evaluation was completed with recommendations in relation to the use of BWV to maintain the quality of the recordings. The recommendations from the trial included that BWV is only to be used in exigent circumstances, where a Mobipol is unavailable for use. MobiPol remains the preferred tool. If exigent circumstances exist, police can use BWV to obtain DVEC evidence but only if they have undergone training to ensure that they are aware of the current audio/visual limitations of BWV.
What is next?
NSW Police maintains its priority on the implementation of strategies that are effective in disrupting the behaviour of domestic and family violence offenders. The use of ADVO compliance checks as an independent and combinatory strategy with STMP III offenders will continue. Noting the effectiveness of DV STMP II, the NSWPF is also reviewing the nomination process and the suitability of identified targets, in conjunction with the commencement of the Chimera platform as an aid, for PACs/PDs.
What difference will we make?
NSW Police Force’s perpetrator accountability strategies aim to reduce the rate of domestic and family violence in the community by reducing the risk of reoffending and providing protections to victim-survivors of crime. The model aims to stop perpetrators behaving violently and abusively.