In many ways, broadcaster Derryn Hinch has been an outstanding social justice advocate over many years. But as a repeat offender with contempt for the law and no sign of remorse, he is also what is commonly referred to as a 'hardened criminal'.
This moral ambiguity is a trait Hinch shares with many, perhaps most, prisoners. They have an essential goodness that is frequently accompanied by a chronic inability to live and work within society's norms.
The difference is that Hinch has always had a platform to speak for himself. He is well known and understood, and largely respected by many in the community. Most so-called criminals do not get the opportunity to explain themselves and rise above the stereotypes. They are regarded as low-lifes, even years after they have paid their dues and been released from prison.
Much media and community discussion of sentencing focuses on retributive rather than restorative justice. Fear and community sentiment unduly influence decisions about the release of prisoners hoping for freedom after completing their minimum sentence. They are often kept in jail for political or other reasons that have little to do with justice and good public policy.
This is especially true in cases involving prisoners serving time for crimes that provoked widespread outrage, such as the 1991 murder of heart surgeon Victor Chang. In 2009, then NSW Corrective Services Minister John Robertson argued that Phillip Lim, one of Chang's murderers, should not be released from prison because 'Victor Chang was an incredible doctor. I think his murder shocked everybody.'
The progress of Lim's rehabilitation, it seemed, was less relevant than continuing community outrage. Such attitudes on the part of politicians surely betray a contempt towards the law, which could be seen as equal to that of Hinch and other offenders. At times, it seems, there is little difference between what politicians and shock jocks say on sentencing.
The Australian Catholic Bishops' forthcoming Social Justice Statement is titled Building Bridges, Not Walls: Prisons and the justice system. The bishops describe the 'potent' role of community fear in 'get tough on crime' policies, which usually involve building more prisons and winding back innovative strategies such as community detention. Public sentencing policy, they insist, is not about addressing community fear and outrage, but assisting offenders to become constructive citizens.
'It is time for all Australians to revisit the needs of prisoners, their loved ones and those who work with them ... It