Attorney-General for the State of Queensland v. G

The Supreme Court of Queensland considered an application by the Attorney-General for the State of Queensland under the Dangerous Prisoner's (Sexual Offenders) Act 2003 in respect of G, a prisoner serving a four-year sentence for indecent dealing with a girl under 14 years of age. The application sought an order for G to be examined by two psychiatrists and to be detained in custody until the application was determined. The respondent argued that the application was not made within the last six months of his period of imprisonment as required by the Act.

The Court found that the argument advanced by the respondent was implausible and that the application was made within the prescribed time. The Court reasoned that the term "period of imprisonment" should be interpreted in the context of the Act's purpose, which was to prevent the release of dangerous sexual offenders. The Court rejected the respondent's argument that the term referred to the full duration of imprisonment imposed by the sentencing judge rather than the actual time served.

The Court then considered whether there were reasonable grounds for believing that G was a serious danger to the community in the absence of a supervision or continuing detention order. The Court found that the applicant had demonstrated such grounds based on a psychologist's report that assessed G's risk of sexual recidivism as moderate to high. The Court also considered factors such as G's medical conditions, age, and successful completion of rehabilitation courses, but ultimately concluded that these factors did not sufficiently diminish the risk of reoffending.

The Court declined to make an interim detention order due to substantial unexplained delay in bringing the application and the relatively short period of time before G's release. The Court also noted that the police would likely monitor G's activities and that G would be cautious in the interim period.

The Court ordered the matter to be stood down to enable inquiries to be made as to a suitable date for the hearing of the application and made no order as to costs.