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Killers who refuse to say where their victims’ bodies are hidden should be given an injection of truth serum, two prominent criminal defense lawyers have argued.
Former New South Wales Crown Prosecutor Margaret Cunneen SC and Victoria barrister Sharon Kermath are calling on state governments in Australia to at least test the concept once a murderer has been found. found guilty.
“It’s a great idea,” said Ms Cunneen The Australian.
“I think he might find favor now…for the sake of the victims.”
Former New South Wales Crown Prosecutor Margaret Cunneen SC (pictured) is calling on federal governments across Australia to at least test the concept of ‘truth serum’ once a murderer has been found found guilty if they refuse to reveal the location of a body.
Mind-altering psychoactive drugs such as sodium pentothal and scopolamine can manipulate the brain to make lying impossible (stock image)
Psychoactive psychoactive drugs such as sodium pentothal and scopolamine can manipulate the brain to make lying impossible.
Although similar chemical compounds have been used as far back as ancient Rome, no democratic country uses these drugs for criminal justice purposes – except for a small number of Indian states.
In an example of the use of such a drug, a wealthy businessman and his servant in Uttar Pradesh, northern India, were injected with a truth serum in 2007, after which they allegedly confessed to the gruesome murders of 17 children and women.
On another occasion, the sole surviving terrorist of the Mumbai attacks in 2008 was also said to have received Pentothal, which induces hypnosis and anesthesia.
Forcible injection of a poisoner – even in someone convicted of murder – is considered a gross violation of human rights under international law, particularly if it further incriminates the individual.
But Ms Cunneen believes there may be a way around this legal principle.
“There could be this protection that covers (the offender), which means it can’t be used to punish him, but it can be used to find information about other people or the location of bodies etc. “, she said.
His comments come a year after NSW introduced ‘no body, no parole’ laws, which prevent murderers from being paroled unless they reveal the location of their victim’s body. Dubbed ‘Lyn’s Law’, the measures were introduced following the eventual conviction of Chris Dawson (pictured) for the murder of his 33-year-old wife Lynette, who disappeared from their home on the northern beaches there over 40 years ago.
“If it was my daughter’s body that was missing forever, I would want that too. I guess the fundamental resistance comes from people being forced to testify against themselves.
“In a way, that’s what it is. This goes against the right not to incriminate oneself.
Ms Cunneen’s comments come a year after NSW introduced ‘no body, no parole’ laws, which prevent murderers from being released on parole unless they reveal the location of the body of their victim.
Dubbed “Lyn’s Law”, the measures were introduced following the eventual conviction of Chris Dawson for the murder of his 33-year-old wife Lynette, who disappeared from their home on the northern beaches more 40 years old.
The mother-of-two’s body has never been found.
Ms Cunneen’s comments were allegedly sparked by the case of convicted child murderer Bevan Spencer von Einem, who is currently serving life in Port Augusta Prison in Adelaide.
Von Einem was convicted of just one of the so-called family murders in 1983, but he is the prime suspect in the unsolved murders of four other young men between 1979 and 1982.
He has also been linked to the missing Beaumont children and two missing girls from Adelaide Oval in 1973.
Ms Cunneen’s comments are believed to have been sparked by the case of convicted child murderer Bevan Spencer von Einem, who is currently serving life in Port Augusta Prison in Adelaide (pictured)
The legislative change brought New South Wales into line with laws in Queensland, Washington state, South Africa, Victoria and the Northern Territory, where offenders can be denied parole s they refuse to divulge the whereabouts of the victims’ remains.
Ms Kermath, who has been acting in criminal cases in Victoria for more than two decades, supported Ms Cunneen’s argument, saying the chemical could provide great closure for the families of victims.
“If it’s after a case is over, the person has been convicted of murder, and there’s a body somewhere, that could be used to shut down the family,” Ms Kermath said.
Ms. Kermath highlighted the sensitive issue of consent in any upcoming changes to the law.
“For this to happen, parliament would have to pass a law stating that it could be used with consent, and if consent is not given, reasonable force could be used,” she said.
But other legal experts have dismissed that idea.
Rick Sarre, a law professor at the University of South Australia, called it “complete sleight of hand”.
“It’s a bit like torture,” he says.
“We used to use torture to get confessions or to get people to tell you things and it was totally unreliable. It seems as reliable as a polygraph and torture to get the truth.