Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

45 minutes

Part A: Flipped activity - audio interview

20 minutes

Part B: The law-making process

30 minutes

Part C: The coward punch law

10 minutes

Reflection

Part A: Flipped activity - audio interview

Step 1

Prior to this lesson or for homework, have students listen to the following audio interview:

Audio File: Change Agents: Amee Meredith and Caterina Politi on reforming ‘one-punch’ laws (Source).

In response to this form of violence (coward punches), Australian states and territories have enacted quite different laws, often following campaigns by family members seeking justice for a lost loved one.

On this episode of Change Agents, Andrew Dodd speaks to two of these campaigners. In Victoria, Caterina Politi campaigned successfully for ten-year mandatory minimum sentences following the death of her son, David Cassai. And in the Northern Territory, Amee Meredith lobbied for tougher sentences after the death of her husband, Brett, who was also a territory police officer.

This audio file can be accessed or downloaded directly from the link above, allowing students to listen on any device.

Step 2

After listening, students can respond to these reflection questions:

Why did Caterina Politi and Amee Meredith believe there was a need to change the laws in Victoria and the Northern Territory?
What actions did they take to bring about changes to the law?
What are your initial thoughts about the concept of a coward punch law?
What are your thoughts about civilians campaigning for legislative reform?
What are your thoughts about the political process of legislative effort?

Part B: The law-making process

Step 1

Distribute the Student Worksheet and read this along with students:

There are two main avenues through which laws can be made in Australia: through the court system (common law) and through the Parliamentary process (legislation). The majority of laws are made by Parliament, as this is the reason they exist - to make and amend laws that are aligned with the interests of Australians. The typical way this occurs is:

A member of Parliament (MP) sponsors legislation they feel aligns with the interests of the voters they represent
An MP will introduce a proposal for legislation (called a ‘bill') once extensive research, drafting and community engagement has been conducted to ensure it aligns with their voters' interests.
The bill is subject to the parliamentary process
Once a bill has been introduced by an MP it will be debated, amended and approved by both houses of Parliament. At the state level (i.e. just Victoria), the lower house is called the ‘Legislative Assembly’ and the upper house is called the ‘Legislative Counsel’. At the federal level (that is, for all of Australia), the lower house is called the ‘House of Representatives’ and the upper house is called the ‘Senate’. Members of either house can introduce a bill and, depending on where the bill originates, must be passed by the house where that MP sits and the house in which they do not (it could be with or without amendments depending on the outcome of the debate that occurs).
The bill is given royal assent and is declared law
Once a bill has been passed by both houses a federal bill will be presented to the Governor-General (the Queen’s representative at a federal level who acts as a stand-in for the Queen) and a state bill will be presented to that state’s Governor (the Queen’s representative at a state level who acts as a stand-in for the Queen) to receive royal assent (sign-off) and be declared law.

Step 2

Engage the class in a discussion about law-making using these questions as prompts:

What else do you know about the law-making process?
Did you recognise any of the steps of the law-making process from the experiences described by Caterina Politi and Amee Meredith (in the audio interview)?
What are your thoughts about the law-making process?
Do you have any further questions about the law-making process?

Part C: The coward punch law

Step 1

Show students this quote from the audio interview in Part A:

I believed that there was a massive black hole in our legislation between manslaughter and aggravated assault, or serious harm.
amee meredith

Ask students:

What do you know about this black hole or gap in the legislation?
Do you believe there was sufficient reason for creating coward punch laws?
Are there any remaining gaps in legislation that you can think of when it comes to assault and killing?
What did you think about the interview with Caterina Politi and Amee Meredith?

Step 2

Read the following along with students:

The origin of coward punch laws

As society evolves and the expectations of its citizens change, the laws that govern need to adapt as well. The origins of the coward punch law can be traced back originally to Queensland, in 2007, where two men died from a single blow to the head. The attackers were charged with manslaughter (killing another person but without possessing the requisite intent to be charged with murder) but were acquitted (that is, they were found not guilty) due to the fact that to be found guilty of manslaughter the event must be ‘foreseeable’. As such, a gap in the legislation (that is, the law) was identified.

Since 2007, several incidents of one punch deaths have occurred and public outrage motivated various Australian jurisdictions to enact laws specifically criminalising this behaviour.

Description of the coward punch laws

The coward’s punch law (known by a variety of names, including ‘one punch law’) deals with incidents where:

A single punch/strike has been inflicted and;
It is delivered to any part of a person’s head/neck and;
This punch/strike causes an injury to a person’s head/neck.

This description comes from the Victorian legislation in the Crimes Act 1958 - Sect 4A ‘Manslaughter - single punch of strike taken to be a dangerous act. A version of this law exists in every Australian jurisdiction (that is, each state and territory) (source). This law also specifies that even if a person does not die as a direct result of a single punch/strike, the incident will still be governed by this law if that person dies from a resulting injury (i.e. if a person is punched, falls and hits their head on concrete and dies as a result of the fall as opposed to the initial punch). In Victoria, if convicted under this law, the offender faces a term of imprisonment of no less than ten years in most cases (Sentencing Amendment (Coward’s Punch Manslaughter And Other Matters)) Act 2014 - s.4.

Step 3

Invite students to discuss these questions in pairs:

What stood out to you?
Does anything about the origin or description of the coward punch laws surprise you?
Do you think the new coward punch laws sufficiently plugged the gap between manslaughter and aggravated assault laws?
What do you think about the minimum term of imprisonment in Victoria?
Do the new coward punch laws provide justice for victims and/or their families?

Have students share some of their thoughts with the class.

Reflection

Show students this quote from the audio interview:

You decided to do something in the face of the frustration and the grief.
andrew dodd

Invite students to write a short essay in response to one of these prompts (they can choose to write for or against):

Citizens are powerful agents for change
Law-making is best left in the hands of politicians
Laws should remain largely unchanged in order to promote greater community understanding of what is acceptable and what is not.

Differentiated learning

Extension

Students might like to create an Instagram campaign that educates the public on the new coward punch laws and why they are important.

Provisions for learning support

Parts of this lesson could be delivered using a learn@home format so that students can work through the content in their own time. Some students might prefer to create a voice recording or interview-style response to the reflection task.

Teacher reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching practice today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

Coward Punch - Legislative Reform

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