Case 22: Imprisonment for unpaid fines of man with a cognitive disability prevented

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Zakaria Taha had an intellectual disability. He was issued with numerous fines for different minor offences including riding a bike without a helmet and taking public transport without a ticket. After he failed to pay the fines, his case came before the Victorian Magistrates’ Court. The Magistrates’ Court had the power to cancel some or all of the fines if it was satisfied that there were special circumstances, like an intellectual disability, or that prison would be excessive, disproportionate or unduly harsh. However, the Magistrate was not aware that Mr Taha had an intellectual disability and did not make inquiries as to whether or not he did. The Magistrate ordered that Mr Taha pay off the fines by monthly instalments and that if he defaulted on the payments, he would be imprisoned for 100 days. Mr Taha defaulted on the instalment payments and challenged the Magistrates’ Court decision. The Victorian Court of Appeal ruled that the Magistrates’ Court decision was invalid because the court had an obligation, before making an imprisonment order, to enquire about whether the person had any special circumstances, like an intellectual disability, that would justify making a less severe order. The Court of Appeal’s decision was heavily influenced by the Charter and in particular the rights to equality, liberty and fair hearing. The Court of Appeal reached the same conclusion in relation to the similar case of Tarni Brookes, who was a survivor of family violence and had a mental illness, and who received numerous driving fines, mainly for driving on a toll road without CityLink registration.

Source: Victoria Police Toll Enforcement v Taha; State of Victoria v Brookes [2013] VSCA 37. Also see our case summary here: https://www.hrlc.org.au/human-rights-case-summaries/magistrates-must-inquire-beforeimprisoning-people-with-special-circumstances-for-unpaid-fines