This page provides information about how the ODPP can support you during the court process. For information about other kinds of support, see Other support services.
If you are a witness to or victim of a crime, you may be required to assist in the prosecution of a case. This would normally mean going to court and giving evidence by telling the judge and jury what you have experienced or witnessed.
For more information on what happens during the court process, please see our preparing for court page.
Giving evidence can be a stressful experience and it is normal to feel nervous or anxious about going to court. Sometimes the information you are asked to talk about might feel embarrassing or emotional. For some people, being in the same room as the accused person may make giving evidence difficult, especially when the evidence you are giving is personal.
Sometimes, even people who are witnesses of crimes, but not victims of crimes, feel nervous or anxious about going to court. This might be because of a history with the person accused of committing the crime, because of a disability or mental health condition, or for many other reasons.
The Crown Prosecutor may want to meet with you at some stage before you have to go to court. This is a good opportunity for you to meet the people dealing with the case and to talk to them about any concerns or questions you might have about the case.
If you are worried about giving evidence, you can talk to the Crown prosecutor about whether you are eligible to receive support from the Witness Assistance Service (WAS). If you are not eligible, we may still be able to refer you to other support services.
Witness Assistance Service (WAS)
The Witness Assistance Service supports witnesses and victims giving evidence for the State through witness assistance officers.
Who WAS can assist
WAS resources are allocated according to need, and it may not be possible to meet all requests. WAS gives priority to the following types of matters being prosecuted by the ODPP
- Sexual offences
- Family violence offences
- Child abuse offences
- Offences resulting in the death of a victim
- Attempted murder
WAS also gives priority to special needs witnesses, such as persons with a disability, indigenous witnesses, or those from a non-English speaking background.
If you are not eligible for the Witness Assistance Service, we may still be able to refer you to other support services.
What WAS do
A witness assistance officer can
- give you information about court procedures and legal processes
- provide debriefing from court
- liaise between you and ODPP staff
- take you on a tour of the court
- go to meetings with you
- support you in court or on video link when you give your evidence, or while waiting to give your evidence
- liaise with the court about interpreters (if required)
- help you prepare your victim impact statement
- refer you to services in the community
Feedback to WAS
The Witness Assistance Service welcomes feedback about your experience of the process.
If you have any suggestions as to how we can improve our service for witnesses and victims of crime, please send us an email to Witness.AssistanceService@justice.tas.gov.au
Children and special witnesses
Some groups of people may need extra help when giving evidence.
They include
- children (under 18) in relation to a broad range of offences
- people with an intellectual, mental or physical disability
- those who may be affected by age, cultural background, relationship to any party in the proceeding or the nature of the subject matter
If the court accepts that you meet one of these criteria then it is possible to
- have a support person with you in court
- use an audio-visual link to give evidence from another room rather than being in court
- have some persons excluded from the court room
If you think this would apply and be helpful to you, then you should ask the Crown prosecutor or witness assistance officer about it.
Legislation - Evidence (Children and Special Witnesses) Act 2001