Ms Maria McDonald:

I thank Senator Black. I will answer the second part of the question first about offering offenders rehabilitation in order to seek help. That happens currently, in an indirect manner. The victim always must consent to that process. Offenders may decide they want to seek help, they may contact Cuan Mhuire, which may set up a place and the judge might give such offenders the opportunity to engage in that process. Potentially, in those circumstances they may give a suspended sentence, depending on what comes out of it. It is generally up to the offender to engage in that process themselves. From a victim's perspective, rehabilitation is very important because addiction is a spiralling issue, where a person is going to come back before the courts again and again. If the addiction can be resolved then the chances of re-offending are very likely to fall. It would therefore be very positive from the victim's perspective. How one actually strategically does that is a difficulty because as I have said, it is sometimes quite difficult to get in to those rehabilitation processes. Unless there is a clear process available to the judge as to what they can and cannot do in those cases, and unless the offender is aware of them, then it can cause difficulties.

On the issue of training, I completely concur that training should be provided on addiction issues. It would be of benefit to the offender and the victim of crime. I was involved in a case involving gambling addiction and the judge understood that concept so the offender got help and support, whereas another judge may not have understood the concept of gambling addiction and a very different result may have happened for that offender as a result. It is important that judges understand addiction. Very often somebody comes before the courts again and again, so the judge would very often like to have an option to refer that individual to get support services if possible.