Tasmanian strangulation charges reveal alarming trend in family violence

Figures obtained by The Examiner also reveal that a total of 139 people were charged, meaning that some people were charged with more than one count to January 30 2024.

So far 77 of the people charged have been committed to the Supreme Court for trial but only one trial has been conducted.

Strangulation was introduced as a stand alone charge in Tasmania after a report from the Sentencing Advisory Council.

The Council recommended the charge after other states recognised the "serious and dangerous nature of strangulation [and] the fact it has been shown to be a predictive indicator of escalation in domestic violence offences" including homicide.

Strangulation was also recognised for the "inherent dangerousness of the conduct as well as its use as a feature of coercive control in the context of family violence".

The confronting figures come after nationwide rallies and a debate continues about violence against women with new figures showing 34 murders of women by intimate partners in 2022-23.

UTAS senior lecturer in criminology Victoria Nagy said many victims who had been killed had had issues with their male partner strangling or attempting to strangle them in the past but these were ignored as signs of escalation of violence.

Dr Nagy said there was some evidence that violent pornography was contributing to the rise in strangulations.

"More porn has women being choked in it than before and this being presented as what women want, which is dangerous if this is where young men are getting ideas of what to do with a sexual partner," Dr Nagy said.

"There is research about how this form of harm against women in porn has escalated in the past few years with the majority being about inflicting pain on women as much as it is about sex."

"Many young women are saying that they feel that they cannot push back against this because they are being told by boys and young men that this is what sex is and they need to go along with it."

Magistrates Court of Tasmania statistics show a 8.4 per cent increase to 1729 in family violence order applications in 2022-23 compared with the 1594 year before.

Tasmania Police figures also show 3510 family violence incidents in the financial year to February 2024 compared with 3097 to February 2023.

Under Tasmania's family violence electronic monitoring program there are 41 perpetrators and 53 victim-survivors of family violence being electronically monitored.

"The family violence monitoring program in Tasmania has been funded to monitor up to 100 devices," a Justice Department spokesperson said.

On the eve of a national cabinet meeting Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff said women must have the right to feel safe as they go about their lives.

"The Tasmanian Government will work with the Federal Government to identify immediate actions that can be delivered," he said.

"As a nation, we must work together to ensure women and girls are safe."

Dr Nagy said that the number of strangulation charges showed that the legislative change was being utilised.

"That is good but due to backlogs in the courts it may be some time before we have more outcomes either finding the individual guilty or acquitting them," she said.

"Also seeing what punishment they receive will be interesting to see how the court sentences those who are found guilty and what message that sends to the community."

Tasmania had a record backlog of 743 cases at June 30 2023 with 157 cases older than two years old.

Defence lawyers often cite the backlog as reason why their clients, including family violence offenders, should be granted bail.

Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline 13 11 14; Men's Referral Service 1300 776 491; Kids Helpline 1800 551 800; beyondblue 1300 224 636; 1800-RESPECT 1800 737 732; National Elder Abuse 1800 ELDERHelp (1800 353 374)