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Amy Watts
2013 Churchill Fellow Amy Watts sadly passed away in
September 2016 after a long illness.
Amy was a champion for children’s rights and her Churchillian
determination and dedication to make a difference will be
remembered.
Amy was determined to reform the NSW’s courts to ensure
justice for children.
The Avalon Beach solicitor was awarded a Churchill Fellowship
in 2013 to investigate using “intermediaries” in the NSW
criminal justice system for child victims and witnesses.
Amy worked for the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions for
22 years, For a greater part of that time Amy was involved
in the development of legal policy and procedures for the
Office and in the drafting of law reform proposals for child and
adult victims of sexual assault who were involved in ODPP
prosecutions in NSW.
New legislative reforms have been introduced over the years
that ease the stress for children and adults giving evidence.
There does however remain one concern relating to the
manner of cross examination directed towards children and
vulnerable adults - a person who because of their age, stage
of development, intellectual capacity, cognitive impairment
or disability is no match in linguistic ability to a forensically
trained cross examiner whose role is to discredit their evidence
and put a reasonable doubt in the mind of the trier of fact.
Amy was a champion for children’s
rights and her Churchillian
determination and dedication to make
a difference will be remembered.”
Amy and her colleagues on the ODPP Sexual Assault Review
Committee, both from within the ODPP and outside agencies
have reviewed these prosecutions for years and shared
concerns and frustration on the reports submitted to the
Committee.
Their concerns were always that children and vulnerable
people should be allowed to give their evidence in a manner
and style appropriate to them. And, when cross examined, to
be treated with dignity and respect and in a manner which is
comprehensible to them.
Upon returning from her Fellowship Amy conducted various
information sessions on the findings of her project to the NSW
ODPP Sexual Assault Review Committee. As a result of this the
Committee wrote to the Attorney General of NSW summarising
the findings and recommendations for legislative and
procedural change for how criminal matters involving children
are to be dealt with and as a result policy changes to legislation
have been implemented.
The Criminal Procedure Amendment (Child Sexual Offence
Evidence Pilot) Bill 2015 was built on the efforts of Amy
Watts as Chair of the Government’s Sexual Assault Review
Committee, Amy Watts was a long-standing advocate for
procedural law reforms to benefit vulnerable children and the
bill was passed in November 2015.
Vale Amy Watts
Rewarding Australians Striving for Excellence
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