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Riot – s 93B Crimes Act 1900

Riot charges carry serious penalties and is a serious offence under the law. This is why it’s likely to cause you a great deal of stress and anxiety. It’s very important to speak to an experienced defence lawyer to powerfully present your case to the Judge, and advise you with realistic and practical advice.

Our highly experienced specialist affray lawyers regularly attend courts all over NSW. With a proven track record of exceptional results they are in the best position to put you on the right track, guide you throughout the entire court process, and appear in court for you to maximise your chances at proving your innocence or obtaining a non conviction.

Call us now on (02) 8606 2218 to book a free first consultation with an experienced Criminal Defence Lawyer.

Your Options in Court

Before you are found guilty for this offence, the police prosecutor must prove each of the following elements ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ to the court. If any of these elements are not proven by police, you will be found not guilty and the charge will be dismissed in court:

  • 12 or more persons were present together
  • They used or threatened to use unlawful violence for a ‘common purpose’
  • Their conduct, when looked at as a whole, would cause a person of reasonable firmness at the scene to fear for their safety
  • You were one of those persons in the group of 12 or more

Defences to this charge

  • For example, you were forced with threats to take part in this
  • For example, you participated in this to prevent harm or injury
  • Self defence. For example, you participated to either protect yourself, someone else, or your property from harm or damage.

Our team of expert defence lawyers will give you accurate realistic advice on your best possible defences. They hold the experience and expert knowledge to be able to secure you the best chances at successfully proving your innocence.

To secure the best possible result for you, our specialist lawyers have a great deal of experience currently holding one of the highest success records of getting charges dropped or downgraded to something less serious.

It is extremely important you speak to an experienced specialist assault lawyer for quick reliable advice with a realistic and practical approach to your case. It may be that after what you have said and done in an interview room with police, you may have no other option but to plead guilty.

Whatever the case may be, if you do decide to plead guilty, the following is critical information for you to know in preparing your case to ensure that you get the best possible outcome. Our team of specialist criminal lawyers regularly attend court and have achieved exceptional results over the years, call them for your first free consultation, and your chances at getting a section 10.

25% discount on punishment

It is critical to obtain reliable experienced and realistic advice from a specialist criminal lawyer as early on in your case as possible. This is because, the earlier you plead guilty, the more discount you are entitled to receive from the punishment resulting in a more lenient outcome. You can be entitled to receive a discount of up to 25% by law. Bad advice can ruin this entitlement.

Your advice should be from an experienced specialist criminal lawyer who will clearly explain the pro’s and cons of every accept to your case so that you can make the right decision quickly.

Good character references

A good character reference can significantly help in improving the outcome of your sentence allowing an insight to the Judge of the kind of person you really are, resulting in a lenient punishment.

Our specialist criminal lawyers regularly read, review and guide clients on getting powerful good character references to hand to the Judge. Each reference should be from people who know you, including, your employer, family member, charity organisation, friend and even an apology letter from you.

Each reference should express your remorse, contrition , and insight into your offending conduct which will allow the Judge to further reduce your punishment.

Negotiate to drop charges

Our experienced specialist criminal lawyers, on many occasions, have successfully convinced police to drop and even downgrade charges to less serious one’s resulting in an exceptionally lenient punishment. There is always potential for this in every charge.

This can be achieved by carefully reading the police evidence, making note of all the inconsistencies and holes in their evidence, before then beginning the negotiation phase with police to convince them why the charge should either be dropped or downgraded. Our defence team will maximise your chances at succeeding in this with their relentless and strategic approach.

Negotiate facts

The Judge first reads the police facts of what you did before giving you a punishment. The punishment is based on many factors, including the police facts, which is why it’s critical to ensure the facts accurately represent what happened, and put you in the best possible light.

Our lawyers have successfully negotiated the police facts on countless occasions for their clients resulting in a much more lenient punishment. This is achieved by carefully reviewing the police evidence, pointing out all the problems in their evidence and then approaching police with reasons why their version doesn’t match up.

Psychologist reports

A well written psychologist or psychiatrist report from an experienced and highly respected expert can have a significant effect on a Judge to giving you a much more lenient punishment.

Only an expert psychologist or psychiatrist can provide an expert opinion on whether or not you were suffering a mental illness leading up to, or at the time of the offence. This can include schizophrenia, depression, or anxiety disorders which allowed the Judge to significantly reduce your punishment.

A psychologist report is also a great way to express your remorse and insight, and your perspective of why you committed the offence which can paint you in a much better light to the Judge resulting in a much more lighter punishment. Our defence team use the best most experienced and well respected psychologists and psychiatrists for this job.

Maximum penalty

The maximum penalty for this offence is up to 15 years imprisonment in the District Court, or up to 2 years in prison if your case stays in the Local Court.

The courts do not normally give the maximum penalty. The maximum is usually reserved for the most serious offenders, usually who have committed this kind of offence over and over again many times before.

Types of penalties

The penalties available to the court include:

  1. Section 10 Dismissal
  2. Conditional Release Order
  3. Fine
  4. Community Correction Order
  5. Intensive Correction Order
  6. Full Time Imprisonment

Our specialist assault lawyers appear daily in court for these matters with a proven track record of exceptional results. They have mastered the art of negotiating to getting charges dropped or even downgraded to something less serious at an early stage. Speak to our senior lawyers for realistic advice now by calling (02) 8606 2218.

FAQ

This is where there are 12 or more people present together who use or threaten unlawful violence.

The group must have a ‘common purpose’, and their conduct as a group is required to be such that it would cause a person of reasonable firmness at the scene to fear for his or her safety.

A person of reasonable firmness does not have to be present at the scene. Where there was no one at the scene, the court will consider the question of whether a hypothetical reasonable person at the scene would have feared for their safety.

Good Character Reference Guide for Court

How to Write an Apology Letter for Court