Latest news with #DoliIncapax
News.com.au
5 days ago
- News.com.au
Mum furious as son's 13-year-old killer walks free under legal loophole
A heartbroken mum is campaigning for a law change after her son's 13-year-old killer walked free because of his age. Kristie Morris' son Brody, also aged 13, was stabbed to death during a pre-arranged fight with a former friend in Kariong, north of Sydney, in January 2022. He died on the street, surrounded by other teens who had come to watch and film the fight, after receiving three stab wounds from a kitchen knife. A five-month trial was held in the NSW Supreme Court in 2023, and although the accused pleaded not guilty the jury was told there was no dispute he had fatally stabbed Brody. In the end, the killer was found not guilty under an old legal principle, Doli Incapax, which holds that children under the age of 14 cannot be held criminally responsible unless it is proven beyond all reasonable doubt they realised what they were doing was seriously wrong. Ms Morris, 40, was devastated by the decision and has launched a petition aimed at removing what she describes as a 'legal loophole'. 'My heart is shattered. My 13-year-old son was stabbed to death by another 13-year-old - someone he used to call a friend,' Ms Morris wrote in the online petition, which had reached almost 2,000 signatures on Friday. 'I sat through the court case, listened to the details of how my son died, and watched as the boy who killed him was found not guilty, despite clear evidence. 'Not because he was innocent - but because of his age, because of a legal loophole called Doli Incapax. 'The law said he was too young to understand what he did. But my son is gone. Forever. And the boy who took his life walks free, with no punishment, no consequences, nothing. Where is the justice in that?' Ms Morris said Doli Incapax had 'robbed us of accountability'. 'If a child is old enough to take a life, they are old enough to answer for it and be held accountable. 'This is not a call for harsh punishment of all young offenders. This is a call for real accountability, with age-appropriate consequences and rehabilitative justice.' She argued Doli Incapax may have served justice in its time, but these days children with access to smartphones grow up faster. 'They are exposed to violence online, engage in complex digital planning, and often understand exactly what they're doing - and yet, the law presumes they cannot.' The petition by Ms Morris comes as another alleged teen stabbing case shocked Australians this week. A girl was allegedly stabbed to death by a fellow student on a foreign exchange trip from China to Australia. The two girls, aged 14 and 13, were both staying with the same host family in Edgeworth Newcastle, New South Wales, when the incident took place. The older girl was allegedly stabbed in the torso late on Monday night and, despite being rushed to John Hunter Hospital, succumbed to her injuries. The 13-year-old was arrested at the scene and charged with murder the following day. She did not apply for bail, which was subsequently refused, and is due to appear in court again in October with a Mandarin interpreter.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Daily Mail
The legal loophole that lets 13-year-olds get away with 'murder' - as a heartbroken mother demands justice after her son's teenage killer walks free
A devastated mother whose 13-year-old son was stabbed to death by another boy the same age is demanding urgent changes to Australia's youth justice laws after his killer walked free from court. Kristie Morris, 40, endured a harrowing five-week trial at the Supreme Court in NSW, only to see her son Brody's killer found not guilty under a centuries-old legal clause, 'Doli Incapax'. The legal loophole rules that children of 13 or under can be found to be too young to be held responsible for their actions, regardless of the seriousness of their offending. 'My heart is shattered,' Ms Morris told the Daily Mail. 'My 13-year-old son was a larrikin who loved fishing and was stabbed to death by another 13-year-old, someone he used to call a friend.' The boy who took her son's life admitted what he did. There were multiple witnesses and video evidence. But in court, he was found not guilty. 'Not because he was innocent, but because of his age,' Ms Morris said. 'Because of a legal loophole. The law said he was too young to understand what he did. 'But my son is gone. Forever. And the boy who took his life walks free, with no punishment, no consequences, nothing.' 'Where is the justice in that? There is none. Doli incapax robbed us of accountability.' Children under the age of 14 cannot be held criminally responsible unless it is proven beyond all reasonable doubt they realised what they were doing was seriously wrong. The ancient common law principle, Doli Incapax, Latin for 'incapable of crime', is designed to protect children from harsh punishment. But for this mother, it has instead left her family shattered and without justice. Earlier this week a 13-year-old Chinese exchange student was charged with murdering a 14-year-old in the home of their host family in Edgeworth, Newcastle NSW. The family heard a commotion late on Monday night and discovered the 14-year-old allegedly stabbed to death with a kitchen knife, with wounds to her torso. The 13-year-old was arrested and remains behind bars but police so far say they do not know what led to the attack. 'When I saw that story on the news my heart went out to the parents,' said Ms Morris. 'I know the emotions they are going through will be exactly what I went through losing Brody, or maybe worse because they are not here.' Brody met his former friend in a residential street in Kariong, an hour north of Sydney, for a pre-arranged fight on January 11, 2022. Tensions between the pair had been brewing for weeks and a group of local teens had gathered to watch. One witness, who filmed the encounter, claimed she thought it was only going to be a 'muckaround fight.' But within seconds it was over, with Brody suffering three fatal stab wounds inflicted by a kitchen knife. 'My older son came and woke me and said, "Quick mum, we have to go - Brodie has been stabbed" and I ran straight to the scene,' she told the Daily Mail. 'We were there in less than ten minutes and arrived as the ambulance got there. 'I was in absolute shock. I was vomiting, screaming - it was like an out of body experience.' Brody died on the street. The accused pleaded not guilty to murder at the Supreme Court in NSW in November 2023, but the jury was told there was no dispute the teen fatally stabbed the boy. But they were instructed to instead consider whether the accused was too young and immature to understand that his actions were 'seriously or gravely wrong.' After the five-week trial, the young boy was found not guilty of murdering his former friend and Brody's family broke down in tears. 'It was horrible, it was like he didn't matter. There was no justice for him at all.' 'There is no record that this ever happened, he will never be named and now no one is responsible for Brody's death.' In July Ms Morris decided she couldn't just stand by and watch this happen to another family and with the support of her daughter Lily and son Jack she decided tht 'Brody's death shouldn't be in vain'. 'Brody's death can't be in vain, something needs to change and I won't stop because it's becoming more common. 'You can't just wipe your hands clean of these kids there must be a system that ensures accountability, even if they are found not guilty under Doli Incapax. 'If a child is old enough to take a life, they are old enough to answer for it and be held accountable.' Criminal psychologist Dr Tim Watson-Munro says there has been much discussion about raising the criminal age of responsibility in Australia. 'Thirteen is really on the cusp in many ways,' he told Daily Mail. 'It depends on whether they fully understand the magnitude of what they are doing. 'Thirteen is still a very young and immature person, but they are entering conceptual thinking. 'So it needs to be found that any 13-year-old had not fully understood what they were doing.' Ms Morris said she doesn't want harsh punishments or long jail sentences for young kids, but a system of age-appropriate consequences and real rehabilitative justice. After the five-week trial, the young boy was found not guilty of murder 'This allows for intervention when it is most needed early, before more lives are lost and more futures destroyed,' she said. 'Doli Incapax may have served its time, but that time has passed. 'In today's world, children grow up faster, with smartphones and access to endless information. 'They are exposed to violence online, engage in complex digital planning, and often understand exactly what they're doing and yet, the law presumes they cannot. 'That outdated assumption is failing both victims and the children it's meant to protect.' Current laws have the minimum age of criminal responsibility set at 14, one of the highest in the world, and the mum says it sends the wrong message. 'It means youthful indiscretion overshadows personal responsibility,' she added. 'It tells young people their actions have no real consequences. 'For families like ours, it's devastating. It undermines the pain, the trauma, the loss and it endangers other children too.' Many legal experts and psychologists argue children as young as 10 are capable of understanding right from wrong particularly in cases involving violence, she said. Ms Morris has now launched a petition on calling for accountability and justice as Brody's legacy, and pleading for more to sign up and join her. She added: 'Your signature could help stop other families from suffering the way we have.'
ABC News
08-05-2025
- ABC News
Victorian court strikes out charges against teenagers over Mildura bashing
Charges against two Victorian teenagers who bashed two other girls last year have been dropped on the grounds that they did not understand the severity of their actions. The Children's Court heard the girls, who were aged 12 and 13 at the time, demanded a vape from three girls they knew from social media at a Deakin Avenue entertainment complex in Mildura in late November 2024. "Why are you standing there so scared?" the court was told one of the two young girls said to the trio. "Give us a vape or I'll smack you in the mouth," the court was told the other girl said as she pushed one of the victims against a wall. The court was told the incident was recorded on the older girl's phone by a friend as another person clapped. The pair then dragged two of the three girls around the hallway of the venue, the court heard, and proceeded to punch one of the victims 15 times in the face. The other victim was kicked while she cowered on the ground and tried to protect herself. "It's clearly a violent episode," Magistrate Russell Kelly told the court. The older girl was charged with affray and recklessly causing injury. The younger girl was charged with affray and threatening to cause injury. None of the victims or their families attended the hearing. Prosecutors sought to have the charges continue based on interviews they argued proved the girls knew what they were doing was morally wrong. Doli incapax – the presumption that children younger than 14 are incapable of criminal intent – can be used to protect young offenders from prosecution. The lawyers for the two girls argued that the interviews with police demonstrated that neither girl understood the severity of their actions, their rights when cautioned, or their right to access to legal representation. Magistrate Kelly told the court he was not convinced either girl knew their actions "were morally wrong beyond reasonable doubt" and that the younger girl should have been given access to a lawyer and not just a support person. He told the court he accepted that the girls knew the consequences of their actions and that the older girl knew someone caught doing the wrong thing went to court and could be end up being incarcerated. Magistrate Kelly told the court the younger girl was responding to questions as opposed to offering information. The prosecution withdrew all its charges against the two girls. Youth crime and the age of criminal responsibility have attracted attention in Victoria this year and led to the introduction of new bail laws. Some groups, including Victoria Legal Aid, are calling for the age of criminal responsibility to be raised from 10 to 14. The national children's commissioner and the Australian Human Rights Commission say Victoria's new bail laws will not make communities safer and will lead to more children being incarcerated.
