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BFD writer JC writes that National MP Tim Macindoe’s idea is a good one but he thinks that the punishment should be at the front end of the punishment, not the back end.
I have some enthusiasm for a Member’s Bill that the National MP for Hamilton West, Tim Macindoe, has lodged. It is a no body, no parole bill which he says will help to bring closure to those who have lost loved ones. The bill would see no parole for convicted murderers if they don’t reveal the location of their victim’s body.
“Sadly, there are some offenders who refuse to disclose where the bodies of their victims are” Macindoe said. “This adds considerably to the distress of relatives who sometimes spend a lifetime agonising over what might have happened, and their inability to hold a funeral and lay their family member to rest.”
Predictably the government has labelled the policy “dog whistle politics”. A law expert, while admitting it might be popular with the public, says the bill is unnecessary. The Concealment of Location of Victims Remains Bill would require the Parole Board to take into account a prisoner’s refusal to reveal the location of their victim’s body when considering parole. It would also require the sentencing court to include it as an “aggravating factor”.
Criminal Bar president, Len Andersen QC, says the bill is not necessary as the Parole Board already takes into account remorse or lack of it, which includes not admitting where the body is, which means they would be unlikely to get parole. Mr Andersen also points out the risk of people wrongly convicted being punished. The bill would be likely to only be relevant to those convicted of a crime but who still claimed innocence. A recent decision by the Parole Board concerning the release of a rapist gives me little confidence in them.
Here’s what I would do. Firstly, take it away from the Parole Board. Secondly, have it apply only to those who are convicted of murder where there is not a shadow of a doubt in respect of their guilt. Thirdly, give the responsibility to the sentencing judge. If the convicted offender refused to say where the body was then a mandatory ten years would be added to their sentence.
I feel this would be a more effective way of motivating offenders to reveal the whereabouts of bodies.
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