Community sentiment and joint enterprise murder: Challenging the mandatory minimum sentence

In Australia, adults (and juveniles) convicted of murder are subject to a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment with a 20-year minimum non-parole period. This sentence is imposed on secondary offenders under doctrines of extended criminal liability, as well as the principal offender. Although a stated justification for mandatory sentences is public confidence, very little is known about public attitudes towards imposing a mandatory life sentence on offenders convicted of murder under extended criminal liability. Using a self-selected sample of the South Australian public and an online vignette survey approach, the study finds, first, that public knowledge of actual murder-related statistics and current sentencing practices is poor. Second, findings indicate that desert-based, or proportional, punishments are often preferred for secondary offenders, rather than the mandatory minima.