Premier Chris Minns vowed three weeks ago the government would have to 'step up' when he made an urgent trip to Moree where violent gangs were terrorising residents.
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And he did just that yesterday when the NSW government announced $13.4 million juvenile crime response for Moree in a pilot program to improve community safety.
The new initiatives include additional judicial resources for Local (and Children's) Court jurisdictions for six months and additional Aboriginal Legal Service funding.
There will be a new $8.75m bail accommodation and support facility to be built in Moree for young offenders. This will provide police and courts with more options to put a young person on bail with higher confidence that they will not reoffend.
An additional $12.9m will be spent on regional measures state-wide, including an expansion of youth action meetings and Aboriginal youth patrols in several locations.
Posting and boasting offence
The government also announced it would introduce legislation that will create a new offence for "posting and boasting" in the Crimes Act 1900 imposing an additional penalty of two years imprisonment for people who commit motor vehicle theft.
It comes as The Land reported last week there was more of chance of being a victim of crime in a regional area than the city, with car theft topping the list of crimes, which is being fuelled by young people under 18 posting their crime on social media.
Bail laws will also be strengthened to include a temporary, extra bail test for young people between 14 and 18 charged with certain serious break and enter offences or motor vehicle theft while they are already before the courts on similar allegations.
What it means for Moree
Northern Tablelands MP Adam Marshall thanked the Premier "for listening..and acting so quickly to help" tackle the growing tide of juvenile crime across regional NSW.
"This is great news for Moree - we have secured half of the money in the government's statewide package announced today - but now have some hope of turning this awful youth crime trend around," Mr Marshall said.
Mr Marshall said he welcomed legislation to toughen bail laws for young offenders, making it harder for repeat offenders to continue to be bailed by the local court, which was a huge frustration for local police, victims of crime and the general community.
He said the real game changer would be the new bail accommodation and support facility to be built in Moree.
"This will give the courts and police more options in dealing with young offenders but also ensure that when a young person is bailed by either police or court, they are not released back into the community to continue offending," Mr Marshall said.
"This is exactly what we've been asking for - an innovative approach which we will trial here, with a view to establishing similar facilities in other parts of regional NSW."
Mr Marshall said under the new measures, additional judicial resources for the Local and Children's Court will be provided to Moree including the appointment of a second magistrate and further funding for the Aboriginal Legal Service.
"Further, a six-month action plan to optimise service delivery to ensure that services provide maximum benefit, including, better co-ordinating the more than 70 government funded organisations in Moree," he said.
"This is something everyone in Moree put to the Premier when he visited - we need better co-ordination and accountability for the more than $50 million spent in Moree each year by government in early intervention programs."
Premier Chris Minns acknowledged the proposed changes would result in increased incarceration rates.
"Our hope is that in the long run, with intervention and support that (incarceration rate) changes but I'm being transparent about it," he said on Tuesday.
NSW Premier Chris Minns said he had travelled to many regions including Moree where he had spoken to mayors and police who said "we need to do more when it comes to crime rates, so that's what we're doing".
"We know there is no easy solution but the reforms we are announcing look at the big picture at a whole of community level, to really intervene and help prevent crime and give young people a chance at life," Mr Minns said.
Attorney General Michael Daley said the government was introducing some important legislative measures that respond to the immediate concerns expressed by regional communities about repeat offending on bail and dangerous crimes being committed, and then filmed and disseminated.
"What the delivery of the place-based response in Moree and the broader regional crime prevention initiatives mean is that young people will have more support and be connected to services that will not just help to prevent re-offending, but also will provide those young people with important wellbeing assistance," Mr Daley said.
Greens MP Sue Higginson said the proposed changes were a knee-jerk reaction.
"No one wants to see young people engaging in crime but all of the evidence before us shows tougher, punitive measures do not reduce the incidence of crime," she said.
"It just further traumatises the kids and damages social cohesion."
