In December 2019, in Queensland, Rowan Baxter abducted his daughter Laianah, age four, from his estranged wife, Hannah Clarke. Detective Sergeant Harris investigated the abduction. Afterward, he shared that no child protection order existed to prevent Baxter from having continued access to the children.
This gap in the criminal code would have devastating consequences for the family. The following year, Rowan Baxter murdered his wife and children while they were on their way to school.
This tragedy may have been prevented had the criminal code enabled police to do something about Baxter’s alarming behaviour. The incident has since prompted the Queensland government to initiate the implementation of a women’s safety task force and to develop new laws that criminalise coercive control.
What Is Coercive Control?
Put simply; coercive control is a behavioural pattern that is part of an attempt to exert power over another person in a domestic partnership. Examples of this sort of behaviour include manipulation, like gaslighting, and psychological abuse like degradation, humiliation, and threats.
Strictly speaking, coercive control is still categorically domestic violence, at least according to the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012 in Queensland. Still, domestic relationships are largely private in nature, and incidents like these are hard to track.
Is Coercive Control a Criminal Offense?
For a police to be able to charge someone who is coercively controlling, there would need to be an event characterised as assault or abuse. The coercive control leading to such an event is not yet punishable by law.
While the state is currently working to criminalise coercive control, it is not, as of right now, a criminal offense in its own right. That said, a criminal lawyer can advocate for a victim of coercive control if they can locate a link between that coercive control and abuse, according to the Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act 2012. This coercive control can be used to make an application for a domestic violence order.
What To Do If You’re Dealing with Coercive Control
If coercive control reaches a stage of physical harm or property damage, you should immediately report this to police. You can also contact a domestic violence in Brisbane to support you in an application for a domestic violence order. Still, if coercive control has not yet amounted to an incident like one of these, it might be daunting to reach out to a criminal lawyer. You may wonder, what’s the point? Perhaps you’ve already talked to the police, and their response hasn’t been what you had hoped for.
Don’t let these worries keep you from seeking support from a criminal lawyer. Legislature does not exist in a vacuum, and lawyers are highly skilled at advocating for those who need protection against coercively controlling individuals.
We encourage you to contact a criminal lawyer in Brisbane as soon as possible if you find yourself in this challenging position.
Sources:
https://www.gnl.com.au/articles/2022/may/coercive-control/
https://www.legislation.qld.gov.au/view/pdf/2017-05-30/act-2012-005