On the police facts sheet and the court attendance notice that you may have received you will have a reference to the law part and a short description of offence. These references help the court and the legal profession to identify the exact offence you have been charged with. The law part and short description for this offence are set out in the table below:

The maximum penalty for the charge of failure to provide necessities of life (Section 44 of the Crimes Act) is 5 years imprisonment.

In NSW, a court can impose any of the following penalties for a failure to provide necessities of life charge.

• Section 10: Indecent Assault proven but dismissed
• Fine
• Good behaviour bond
• Community service order (CSO)
• Suspended sentence
• Intensive correction order (previously periodic detention)
• Home detention
• Prison sentence

You’ll find a brief description of each of these penalties at the bottom of this page.

Likely Penalty

District Court

Based on our experience and statistics from the Judicial Commission of New South Wales we believe that the penalty in a case that is within the mid range of seriousness for the offence of failure to provide necessities of life, if heard in the District Court, is likely to be a bond under section 10 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act.

To convict you of a failure to provide necessities of life charge, the police must prove each of the following matters beyond a reasonable doubt:/p>

1. You were legally liable to provide the victim with the necessities of life;
2. You intentionally or recklessly neglected to provide the necessities of life to the victim.
3. Your failure caused a danger of death or serious injury, or the likelihood of serious injury, to the victim.
4. Your acts were without reasonable excuse.

They will also need to prove that you were the person who committed the failure to provide necessities of life offence.

Possible defences to a Indecent Assault charge include but are not limited to:

• Duress
• Necessity
• Self Defence

Where the amount of prohibited drug exceeds the indictable quantity, this matter is strictly indictable which means that it can only be finalised in the District Court.

Where the amount of prohibited drug does not exceed the indictable quantity, this matter is a Table 1 offence which means that either the DPP or an accused can elect to have the matter dealt with in the District Court. If no election is made it will be dealt with in the Local Court.