ACT Corrective Services
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Government agency responsible for monitoring, and managing sentenced offenders in the community and maintaining the secure custody of offenders in detention.
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ACT Victims Register
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A register that records the names and contact details of victims who have asked to be registered in order to receive information about an adult offender who is in prison or under the supervision of ACT Corrective Services.
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Community Based Sentence or Order
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A court can order that an offender serve a sentence in the community upon the condition that he or she be of good behaviour, perform community service work and/or be subject to probation supervision for a specified period of time.
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Community Service (Work) Order
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A court can place a condition on an offender’s good behaviour order that requires the offender to perform a specified amount of unpaid work in the community. If an offender’s good behaviour order includes a condition that he or she be required to perform community service work it is called a community service order.
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Custodial Sentence
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A sentence that requires the offender to serve a term of imprisonment by way of full-time detention. If an offender is given a custodial sentence for more than one offence, a court can order that the sentences be served either concurrently or consecutively. Concurrent sentences run at the same time as each other, whereas consecutive sentences run one after another. A sentence may be partly concurrent and partly consecutive.
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Good Behaviour Order
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A written promise by an offender to be of good behaviour and not commit another offence for a specified period of time. The effect of the order is that, if an offender commits a further offence during the period of the order or fails to comply with any additional conditions of the order, he or she may be required to pay a sum of money, serve a term of imprisonment that has been suspended and/or be re-sentenced for the original offence.
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Harm
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Physical injury, mental injury, emotional suffering (including grief), pregnancy, economic loss or a substantial impairment of rights.
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Licence
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The conditional release of an offender that has served at least 10 years of a sentence of life imprisonment. A licensee is required to abide with the conditions of release for the term of his or her natural life.
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Life Imprisonment
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In the Australian Capital Territory, a sentence of imprisonment that is for the term of an offender’s natural life.
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Non-Association Order
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A court can make an order that prohibits an offender from being with or communicating with, or attempting to be with or communicate with, a particular person for a specified term. Such orders are called non-association orders and can only be made in conjunction with a good behaviour or periodic detention order.
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Non-Parole Period
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A non-parole period is the minimum amount of time an offender is required to serve his or her sentence by way of full-time detention. The earliest date an offender can be released from prison is the end of the non-parole period. In particular cases a court may decline to set a non-parole period.
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Oral Submission
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A verbal or spoken statement by or on behalf of a victim for the purpose of informing the Sentence Planning Group or the Sentence Administration Board of his or her concerns regarding an offender’s release and/or approved absence from custody
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Parole
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The conditional release of an offender from prison following the expiration of the minimum term of the sentence (non-parole period). A parolee is required to abide with the conditions of release until he or she completes the full term of the sentence imposed.
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Parole Eligibility Date
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The earliest date an offender can be released from prison if granted release on parole.
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Periodic Detention
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A sentence of imprisonment that is served for a specified number of days in each week. In the Australian Capital Territory offenders subject to periodic detention orders are kept in full-time detention from 7:00pm each Friday until 4:30 pm the following Sunday.
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Place Restriction Order
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A court can make an order that prohibits an offender from being in or attempting to be in a specific place or area or within a stated distance of, a specific place or area. Such orders are called place restrictions orders and can only be made in conjunction with a good behaviour or periodic detention order.
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Primary Victim
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The actual victim of a crime.
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Probation (Supervision)
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A court may place a condition on an offender’s good behaviour order that requires the offender to submit to the supervision and control of ACT Corrective Services for a specified period of time.
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Registered Victim
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A victim of crime who has been placed on the ACT Victims Register in order to receive information about an adult offender.
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Rehabilitation Plan
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A timetable of programs that need to be undertaken by an offender to address his or her offending behaviour. Rehabilitation plans are based on an assessment of an offender’s needs and risk of re-offending. They are applied from the time an offender is placed in custody.
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Rehabilitation Program Order
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Together with probation supervision a court can place a condition on an offender’s good behaviour order that requires the offender to undertake a rehabilitation program. If an offender’s good behaviour order includes a condition that he or she is required to undertake a rehabilitation program it is called a rehabilitation program order.
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Security Classification
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A rating of the offender’s required level of supervision; risk, or perceived risk, to the security of a prison, other detainees and community safety.
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Sentence
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The punishment imposed by a court after an offender has pleaded guilty to a crime or has been found guilty of the offence after a hearing or trial.
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Sentence Administration Board
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An independent statutory body that determines whether an offender is suitable for release to parole and provides recommendations to the Attorney-General about the release of offenders on licence. The board also decides the consequences of sentenced offenders failing to comply with periodic detention orders, parole orders and licences.
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Sentence Planning Group
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A body that, amongst other things, determines the security classification of a prisoner.
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(Victim) Submissions
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A document written by or on behalf of a victim for the purpose of informing the Sentence Planning Group or the Sentence Administration Board of his or her concerns regarding an offender’s release and/or possible approved absence from custody.
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Suspended Sentence
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When imposing a term of imprisonment a court may suspend all or part of the sentence. This means that the offender does not serve the suspended portion of the term of imprisonment immediately. Suspended sentences are usually given upon the condition that an offender abides with certain conditions and/or successfully completes a community based sentence within a specified period of time. If an offender fails to comply with the conditions of their suspended sentence, he or she may be required to serve the suspended portion by way of full-time detention.
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Transitional Release
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Approved leave of absence from prison with the aim of preparing and easing an offender’s return to the community.
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Transitional Release Security Classification
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The security classification which makes an offender eligible to apply for unsupervised external leave. Offenders given this classification have been assessed as requiring a low level of supervision.
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Transitional Release Community
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A cottage-style accommodation facility at the Alexander Maconochie Centre that houses and provides offenders with a transitional release security classification an opportunity to develop life skills and participate in external employment, educational and rehabilitative programs.
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Unsupervised External Leave
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Approved leave of absence from prison (day or overnight) given to an offender prior to his or her release from full-time detention. This may include temporary leave granted to an offender for the purpose of participating in employment and educational programs.
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Young Offender
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A person who has been convicted or found guilty of an offence by a court and was under 18 years of age when the offence was committed.
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Youth Justice Victims Register
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A register that records the names and contact details of victims who have asked to be registered in order to receive information about a sentenced young offender.
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