Government assests grab fails

Spousal and child abuse sometimes goes unreported because arrest and successful prosecution can result in a family's principal money-earner being behind bars. Imagine then the deterrent to reporting that this sort of assets grab might produce:

A Perth woman has welcomed a decision to drop attempts to seize her family's home under Western Australia's tough criminal property confiscation laws.

Her husband was convicted and jailed for child sex offences but his crimes were committed at another house and the State wanted to seize his home in lieu of the other property.

The woman's lawyer sums up quite nicely:

"I could never understand why they were pursuing a family home knowing that they were going to be throwing a wife and two little kids onto the streets," he said.

"I just hope that this forms the policy now with respect to the punishment or lack thereof with respect to innocent third parties."