New law to crack down on alcohol-fuelled violence takes effect today

A tough new law comes into force today that will see violent drunks banned from licensed premises for two years.

Attorney-General, Robert Clark, said the new law would help deter and prevent alcohol-fuelled violence and keep streets and licensed venues safer for young people and others who want to have an enjoyable night out.

“These bans will send a clear message that drunken, violent behaviour will not be tolerated, and that those who engage in it will face significant consequences for their personal and social life, in addition to whatever other sentence they receive.

“It means that, on top of their other sentence, for two years those convicted of alcohol fuelled violence won’t be able to go to a pub with their mates or take their girlfriend to a nightclub.”

Mr Clark said the new law complemented a wide range of other legislation introduced by the Napthine Government to help keep Victorians safer, including at least 10 years behind bars for coward punch killers and statutory minimum sentences for gross violence offences and attacks on police and emergency workers.

Under the new law, the court must make an alcohol exclusion order whenever the court is satisfied that an offender convicted of a specified offence was intoxicated at the time and that their intoxication significantly contributed to the commission of the offence. 

Alcohol exclusion orders will prohibit the offender from entering specified licensed premises or consuming liquor in any licensed premises anywhere in Victoria for a period of two years.  If an offender has been imprisoned for their offence, the exclusion will apply from the time they are released.  

The ban on entering specified licensed premises will apply to entry to any part of most licensed premises such as pubs, nightclubs, licensed restaurants, function centres and specified major events. The orders will also ban entry to the bar area of other licensed premises. A court will be able to authorise entry to premises (but not consumption of alcohol) for genuine work-related or other purposes.

The new law will apply to a wide range of violent and sexual assault offences committed on or from today.