There has been recent reporting in the media suggesting that the Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP) is excluding victims of crime from the justice system. The figures do not support this suggestion.
This reporting is based upon the number of victim and witness consultations conducted in 2023/2024 being fewer than the target set by government and provided in the OPP’s Annual Report. Target projections are based on data from the previous year as well as any known issues that may affect estimates.
In 2023/2024 a total of 42,473 victim and witness consultations were conducted. This is only 3% fewer than in 2022/2023 during the peak of the Covid backlog when there were the highest number of consultations recorded. Accordingly there was an 8% reduction in court hearings and briefs prepared in 2023/2024 resulting from the elimination of the Covid backlog.
In fact, the number of victim consultations relative to caseload increased in the
financial year 2023/2024 compared to 2022/2023.
Since the Covid backlog was cleared there has been a return to more baseline numbers, although still above pre-Covid levels. Reflective of this is a revised victim and witness consultation target of 34,000 – 38,000 for 2024/2025 which the OPP is likely to exceed.
The OPP is committed to assisting victims and witnesses through the criminal justice process and considers the consultation outcomes to be a very strong reflection of that commitment.