'Jalal's Law': Driving Reform in the Wrong Direction

Abstract

This article provides a case study of the process of criminalising a form of dangerous driving in Victoria. It examines the process whereby an ostensibly draconian Bill was transformed into one far less damaging to fundamental criminal law principles and illustrates how populism may be tempered by proper parliamentary procedures, cooperation between parties and a desire to balance political and legal imperatives. It also examines the place of constructive offences in the criminal law and the role that the consequences of an offence plays in the structure of the substantive criminal law and in sentencing, particularly in the context of driving offences.