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Updated May 13, 2026 — 4:44pm,first published 3:30pm
Good character has been abolished as a mitigating factor in sentencing sexual assault cases in NSW as part of watered-down reforms, as the government accuses the Coalition and Greens of failing victim-survivors.
The NSW government wants to remove the ability of those convicted of a crime to use their “good character” as an argument for a reduced sentence for all offences, not just sexual assault. But their efforts were stonewalled in the upper house, where Labor is in a minority and needs crossbench or opposition support to pass bills, forcing the government to support a gutted version of the bill.
Labor has now reintroduced the original reforms in a new bill, which will heap pressure on the Coalition and the Greens. In a fiery question time on Monday, NSW Attorney-General Michael Daley was asked a question about an unrelated law reform matter, which he used to accuse the Coalition of “abdicating their responsibility” to victims.
He warned the opposition should get used to hearing his attacks in question time until they reverse their position on the reforms.
The abolition of good character references was the goal of grassroots movement #YourReferenceAintRelevant, led by victim-survivors Harrison James and Jarad Grice. In an emotional press conference last week, James held up a photo of himself as a young boy during the time he was being abused by a family member, as he questioned the “humanity” of MPs who did not back the full bill.
“This little boy right here is who the Greens and the Coalition have decided is acceptable collateral in the political point scoring surrounding this bill,” he said.
Also backing a full end to the references is Duncan Wakes-Miller, whose son Barney was killed in a northern beaches car crash in 2020. Barney was a passenger in the car, while his friend, a P-plater who was drunk, was behind the wheel.
The driver was given a good behaviour bond.
“It is inhumane to sit in court like I did and hear good character references about the person who killed your loved one,” Wakes-Miller said.
While the NSW Sentencing Council recommended the reforms, advocacy groups and legal voices including two lawyers on the council, disagreed with a blanket ban on references.
Domestic Violence NSW wrote in a submission that victims of domestic violence in some cases can themselves be charged with offences when misidentified as a perpetrator by an abusive partner.
The Greens and the Coalition cited Domestic Violence NSW when explaining their amendments, which exclude the references for sexual assault offences and give judges the discretion to decide if they are relevant to consider in other cases.
That discretion would allow the courts to protect vulnerable people, Greens justice spokeswoman Sue Higginson said.
“The Minns Labor government wants to tell a woman who is a victim of domestic violence, who retaliates against her abuser, that she should be locked away because she is unable to put forward evidence of her good character,” Higginson said.
Shadow attorney-general Damien Tudehope said: “We chose to listen to those concerns and strike a balanced approach that excluded good character evidence for sexual offences and gave the courts the ability to ignore good character as it sees fit.”
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