Digitally recorded evidence-in-chief

A DREC is evidence-in-chief from a victim of family violence.

If used as evidence-in-chief, the DREC will not be tendered into evidence. The court may receive the DREC after the hearing to assist in the administration of justice.

If necessary, the brief authoriser and/or the police prosecutor will edit or redact the DREC. This will happen before the court proceeding, in line with legislation. If the court requests further editing, this will need to be done at a police station.

Police prosecutors will take technical equipment required to play a DREC in court.

This includes:

• a laptop, and
• relevant cables to connect to the court system.

As defined by legislation, a transcript of the DREC will only be provided in circumstances where:

• there is a reasonably foreseeable risk that if supplied with an audio DREC, the accused would illegally supply or publish the audio DREC
• the particular circumstances of the accused mean that a transcript is required (e.g. they are hearing impaired)
• the matter is to be heard in the County Court or Supreme Court jurisdictions, or
• a court orders that a DREC be transcribed.

Yes. A DREC may be played in an FVIO proceeding.

In a FVIO proceeding, the DREC will focus on capturing details of the incident at the time.

Police may need to capture a victim’s family violence history in further written statements.

Victoria Police aims for DREC recordings to be as succinct as possible.

Victoria Police members aim for 15 minutes or less in duration. However, the length of a DREC will vary from case to case.

The use of digitally recorded evidence in chief (DREC) represents a change to practice for legal practitioners representing either the victim or the accused. Legal practitioners usually receive a written statement from the victim as part of the brief of evidence.

The process remains the same for:

• providing briefs of evidence, and
• family violence intervention orders (FVIO) applications.

A DREC may be used for:

• summary matters
• indictable matters, and
• in a FVIO proceeding.

An accused will be served with an audio only copy of the DREC. In some circumstances the accused will only be served a transcript.

The accused will be provided with an opportunity to view the video DREC:

• under supervision at the time of the police interview
• at a later date arranged with the police informant, or
• through their legal representation.

An accused may choose not to view the DREC.

A legal practitioner can show their client the video DREC at any time. However, it is an offence to provide a DREC in a prohibited form to an accused person.

There are other offences which apply to possessing, copying, supplying and publishing a DREC.

Victims may make an application in writing to request that the DREC not be used in:

• the course of an investigation of a family violence incident, or
• in a subsequent prosecution.

If an application is made, a police member will be required to assess the victim’s request. They will also assess the safety risks the victim may face if the DREC is not used in evidence.

The DREC may still be used if it is believed that the victim is at greater risk if a prosecution does not occur.

The police informant will notify the victim of the outcome of their request.

The DREC is subject to the normal rules of evidence disclosure. It may have to be disclosed to the accused and/or their legal representative.

A DREC should be stored and managed by legal practitioners. This should be done in accordance with existing legal and professional obligations.

It is an offence to publish, copy or supply DREC footage to another person, except as permitted by the legislation. This is in accordance with Section 387L of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009.

Yes. If the DREC is to be used as evidence-in-chief, you will be required to:

• attest to the truthfulness of the statement contents in court
• be available for cross-examination and re-examination.

If you do not attend court, the DREC may still be used as a prior statement according to the normal rules of evidence.

You may make an application in writing to request that the DREC not be used in:

• the course of an investigation of a family violence incident, or
• in a subsequent prosecution.

If an application is made, a police member will be required to assess your request. They will also assess the safety risks you may face if the DREC is not used in evidence.

The DREC may still be used if Victoria Police believe that you are at greater risk if a prosecution does not occur.

A police informant will notify you of the outcome of your request.

The DREC is subject to the normal rules of evidence disclosure. It may be disclosed to the accused and/or their legal representative.

You can share the audio copy of the DREC with another person, such as a support worker.

However, you must not publish the DREC.

The person you share your DREC with can only supply the DREC to another person, or copy or publish the DREC, in limited circumstances. These are set out in section 387L of the Criminal Procedure Act 2009.

A support worker is generally not permitted to copy, publish or supply the DREC to another person.

You will receive an audio copy of the DREC on request to Victoria Police. You may also request to view your video DREC.

Before providing you with access to the DREC, Victoria Police will consider:

• your welfare, and
• the potential impacts of providing you access.

An accused will be provided with an opportunity to view the video DREC under supervision:

• at the time of the police interview
• at a later date arranged with the police informant, or
• with their legal practitioner.

An accused person:

• may choose not to view the DREC
• will not be shown content that could endanger your safety.

In most circumstances, Victoria Police will give an accused person an audio only copy of the DREC.

Victoria Police may have reason to believe that providing an audio copy presents a risk that the accused will improperly share it. In this case, the accused will be provided with a transcript.

Yes. The DREC can be used in civil proceedings for an FVIO.

In civil proceedings for an FVIO, the DREC will focus on the most recent incident.

You may be required to provide further details to police at a later date to support an FVIO application. This will be taken as a written statement.