A man who hospitalised a paramedic will escape a mandatory jail term for assaulting an emergency service worker because she was not treating a patient when she was attacked.
A decision on Thursday to drop the charge against a 58-year-old Seaford man on a legal technicality has raised questions about the suitability of the much-vaunted Victorian laws which have failed to protect first responders since they were introduced more than a decade ago.
The Victorian Ambulance Union immediately wrote to Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny on Thursday afternoon demanding an urgent review of the Sentencing Act, saying the police prosecutor’s decision to withdraw the charges effectively rendered the laws worthless.
Veteran paramedic Kathryn McCormack is still awaiting surgery after the man kicked her in the stomach during a random attack on her and a junior female colleague in Main Street in Mornington on September 13.
“It’s extremely disappointing that the laws that are meant to protect us are not able to be used,” McCormack told The Age.
The uniformed paramedics were walking along the street after starting their shift when they witnessed a dispute and attempted to calm the situation. It is alleged the Seaford man then crossed the road and attacked the pair, kicking McCormack in the stomach, before members of the public came to the paramedics’ aid.
The man was initially charged with assaulting emergency workers, recklessly causing injury, making threats to kill, possessing a controlled weapon, and unlawful assault.
But during a brief hearing on Thursday, Frankston Magistrates’ Court was told that police prosecutors had agreed to withdraw the assault on an emergency worker charge relating to the paramedics, having “conceded that the complainant in relation to that charge was not on duty”.
However, charges that the man assaulted police who attended to arrest him still stand, along with a host of other charges that will be heard in late April.
Speaking outside court moments after the charges had been downgraded, McCormack said she felt as though all emergency service workers had been let down.
“It just feels like an absolute let-down in this situation, where my colleague and I were working and have been [allegedly] assaulted and, unfortunately, we’ve been let down by the system,” she said.
The veteran paramedic has not been able to return to full duties while awaiting surgery, though McCormack said she could not discuss details of the alleged incident while the case continued.
Victoria in 2014 introduced mandatory minimum six-month jail sentences for anyone convicted of assaulting emergency workers, including paramedics, police, doctors and nurses delivering emergency care, firefighters and prison officers.
But after a string of assaults on paramedics failed to see the minimum sentences applied, the Andrews government in October 2018 toughened the laws to remove the option for judges to impose community corrections orders – seen by the judiciary as jail terms served in the community.
The 2018 legislative changes made injuring an emergency worker a category-one offence, for which courts must impose a custodial sentence.
But Victorian Ambulance Union secretary Danny Hill said the latest failure to pursue the charge demanded immediate bipartisan action to again overhaul the laws.
“According to this law, a paramedic is not considered to be on duty unless they are treating a patient. Effectively, that means the emergency worker assault laws don’t apply to an offender who bashes a paramedic at their branch, while they are refuelling or restocking the ambulance or while they are picking up lunch,” Hill said.
“Paramedics are never off duty. The radio is never more than an arm’s distance away, and they are expected to respond straight away, no matter what.”
According to Crime Statistics Victoria data, there were 2430 assaults against emergency services or other authorised officers in 2025. Since 2016, there have been 20,412 recorded assaults against emergency workers, though nobody has yet been convicted under the special emergency worker assault laws.
In the days after Christmas, Ambulance Victoria issued a public appeal for people to respect ambulance crews after a spate of incidents that saw paramedics rammed by a car, spat on and punched during a horror festive weekend.
Hill said the latest decision not to pursue the specialist charges created a loophole that continued to endanger vulnerable first responders.
“Just this weekend, we have had reports of violence against paramedics including a person who trashed the Kilmore branch and several of its ambulances, and a person pulled scissors on a MICA crew. It’s every day and it’s not OK,” Hill said.
“These laws were meant to send a strong deterrent and a message that assaulting an emergency worker is not OK. But this is a loophole you can drive a truck through, and it needs to be fixed now.”
Ambulance Victoria chief executive Jordan Emery said ongoing court action prevented him commenting specifically on the incident, but stated that “any form of abuse against our people – whether physical or verbal – is totally unacceptable”.
“The decision not to proceed with charges over the alleged assault of two of our paramedics is extremely disappointing. They are entitled to feel let down,” Emery said.
“Paramedics are highly trained health professionals who deserve to be treated with respect. They should never be threatened or assaulted while at work.
“I want to acknowledge the bravery, commitment and service of the paramedics involved in the Mornington incident, and to each of our almost 6000 paramedics and first responders who show up every day in service to Victorians.”
A Victorian government spokesperson said it was seeking advice on the concerns raised by the ambulance union and Ambulance Victoria.
“Every day our police and paramedics put their lives on the line to ensure the safety of Victorians and any act of violence against them is completely unacceptable,” the spokesperson said.
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