00:00A mother's grief.
00:03Sorry.
00:04Samara Laverty, visiting the place her son Declan was killed by Keith Kiranua and making
00:13a plea for tougher sentences.
00:16There needs to be a deterrent, given that the offence that Mr Kiranua was out on bail
00:22for was a very serious offence, stabbing someone else.
00:27Ms Laverty also recognising opportunities were missed to turn around the life of her
00:33son's murderer.
00:34I found during the trial that Mr Kiranua was actually a very intelligent and articulate
00:40person.
00:41Maybe if the right interventions had happened at the right time, we wouldn't be in this
00:46position and neither would he.
00:48The CRP leader by her side promising to introduce reforms which would stop more people charged
00:55with violent offences from being released.
00:57Declan's law will represent serious bail reform right across the Northern Territory.
01:04But her vow to introduce a presumption against bail for violent offenders coming under scrutiny.
01:10The Criminal Law Association doesn't support that.
01:12We don't think it will reduce crime in any way.
01:16It doesn't prevent a crime from happening and so it's energy in the wrong direction.
01:20The CRP's proposed changes will mean more people spending time on remand for first time
01:24offences.
01:25But the opposition leader is vowing the changes will empower police and reduce the rate of
01:30knife crime in the Territory.
01:32But questions from the legal community linger over whether tougher laws are the solution.
01:38Presumption against bail doesn't stop the crime from happening in the first place.
01:41So what you have to look at then is investing in things that do prevent crime.
01:47While debate rages, Samara Lavity pushes on.
01:50Her hope that no one else has to go through what she has.
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