VIC What is "Attempt" and what are the possible charges or consequences for a minor?

[EBlaird]

Good afternoon, I'm hoping to get some information.

I will try to briefly explain the situation.

I was walking on the street when teenager (who I thought was an adult as it was dark and I couldn't quite see his face) yells out to me that he is going to "stab me" "kill me right here on the spot" and to "give him my money" he never produced a weapon, but he had been fiddling with his bag and waist band. It turned into me running and him chasing me, I managed to call 000 and the police caught up with us eventually while he was running after me. They never found a weapon.

When I spoke to the police, they asked me how far away he was when he demanded my money, we came to the conclusion it was around 10 metres. The officers were talking to each other and mentioned "do you want to take him in for attempted."

They asked if I was willing to make a statement I agreed. Later I had found out he was 15 and not an adult as I originally thought.

Without any clear evidence such as a recording of the incident, what possible charges (if any) does he face if I do go and make a statement?

I don't exactly what to ruin his life if this is a serious matter but he does need to be taught a lesson.

any information would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

 

[Scruff]

First up, the basics. It might sound a bit obvious, but bear with me...

In criminal law, you have "offences". Each offence prohibits a certain act. If a person commits that act, then they can be charged with that offence and if found guilty, can be given up to the maximum penalty for that offence.

I'm in NSW, so I'll explain how it works here, but I'm sure it would be the same or similar in VIC.

In the NSW Crimes Act, there is a specific section that deals with "attempts". An "attempt" in criminal law simply means that a person tried to commit an "offence" but didn't succeed. So in your case, the offender tried to rob you, but didn't succeed because the Police caught up with him before he caught up with you. So this is an "attempt" to commit robbery or whatever the actual offence would have been if he had been successful.

Under the "attempts" section in the NSW Crimes Act, the accused faces the same penalty as if "the offence had come to fruition". In other words, the maximum penalty is the same for "attempted robbery" as it is for a successful "robbery" - and likewise, "attempted fraud" carries the same maximum penalty as a successful "fraud", etc.

Because he was caught before an actual robbery occurred, the Police may charge him with a different offence - possibly something less serious. This usually comes down to what offences the Police or the Prosecutor think they have the best chance of proving in Court.

I don't exactly what to ruin his life if this is a serious matter but he does need to be taught a lesson.

Don't concern yourself with this. It's the worst thing you can do as a victim or a witness.

He may be only 15, but that doesn't mean that he hasn't got a record as long as your arm or that he hasn't already had plenty of chances. Given the way you described the incident, even if he hasn't got a record, I'd bet that just means that he hasn't been caught before or that he's had a few "let off's" (no conviction recorded due to his age).

So while I understand where you're coming from, it's not your concern. Consider this:
At the moment, you're concerned about ruining his life. Always remember that you're not responsible for that if it happens - he is.
But more importantly, how are you going to feel if you do nothing and then in a month from now, you find out the same thing happend to someone else - only this time, he did have a knife and he stabbed the victim?

You don't know what the future will bring. You don't know if he will learn his lesson if you act or if he will re-offend if you don't. If you want to do what's right and do it with a clear conscience, then do what you believe the wider community would expect of you. My personal opinion on that would be to co-operate fully with the Police and testify if asked to - particilarly because it is such a serious offence.

Good Policing is only as good as the community involvement. If victims and witnesses don't get involved, then we end up with chaos on the streets. Police can act on what's reported and Courts can act on what's brought before them. But before any of that can happen, the community needs to believe that the system works and trust it enought to report in the first place and follow through when needed.

So here's my belief in a nutshell. As a member of our community, report crime whether or not you are the victim. Never concern yourself with an offender's circumstances, because it's not our place to do so - we have Courts to consider those things during sentencing if the offender is found guilty. The only time that we have a right to judge is when we are a member of a Jury. Reporting crime and following through if asked, is how our Courts get the opportunity to make those tough decisions on our behalf. So if we don't do our part, then the Court never gets the opportunity to do it's part. Too often that is the case and the inevitable result is more crime.

I know it sounds idealistic, but that's the world we live in and the system we have. So the best advice I can give anyone who is debating whether or not they should get involved, is to do what the wider community expects of you. In cases where you are a witness and not a victim, then reverse the situation and consider what you would want the witness(es) to do if you were the victim. It pretty much comes down to the simple fact that if we don't do our part, then we only have ourselves to blame for the world we live in.

Finally, whatever you decide to do next - you have to live with. So make sure that you're comfortable with whatever that is.

Hope that helps.