Communities want to see justice being done and are not shy about making their opinions felt if they believe an offender has been let off with a too-lenient sentence.

The general public’s view of sentencing is usually borne out of emotion or fear driven by hysterical media coverage and usually there are complex, sometimes undisclosed reasons, why offenders are treated lightly or offered the chance of rehabilitation instead of a stint behind bars.

Politicians also play to the crowd on the issue of law and order and take a populist approach by introducing sentencing laws that might please the voter, but do nothing to address the broader issues of prevention, education or social breakdown.

However, one recent change to the law that makes good sense allows magistrates to ban violent offenders from licensed premises and public events for a period of time.

One such order was handed down in the Warrnambool Magistrates Court this week.

Police successfully applied for a two-year exclusion order to be placed on a 25-year-old who had kicked another man in the face while being ejected from a local pub for being violent and drunk.

The Sentencing Act exclusion order bans the offender from entering, remaining or consuming alcohol in a licensed premises, including a restaurant or café.

It also means the offender can’t attend a major event as defined under the Liquor Control Reform Act. 

Events include the AFL grand final, the grand prix, the tennis open or major Melbourne racing meetings.

If the offender is caught misbehaving again at such an event, they face jail time.

While it might prove to be a challenge for police to make sure that the offender is abiding by the ban, the principle behind the legislation is nonetheless sensible. 

It gives offenders a chance to mend their ways or face the consequences.