HE HAS spent time in jail, held his failed liver in his hand, been brought back from the brink of death and never shied away from controversy.
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But there is a certain charm to Derryn Hinch that makes people confide in him. He has heard stories – of children being molested and raped, of parents facing a life without their daughter – murdered by their abusive ex-partner.
“Most of them all have terrible stories to tell,” Mr Hinch said.
Last week Mr Hinch went into a fast food outlet to purchase a coffee. Within minutes he was separately greeted by three different women.
“Three women came up to me in eight minutes to tell me about stories of their children being molested. All (cases) went to court, none have been satisfied. Three in eight minutes,” Mr Hinch said.
At the Ballarat launch of his Justice Party – Mr Hinch’s attempt to get into the Senate and make some sort of change – emotion was high.
Supporters hugged Mr Hinch, they even cried. Mr Hinch admits he has become “some sort of champion” – a title he was never vying for.
“If you’d asked me six months ago if I’d be running for the senate, I would’ve laughed,” Mr Hinch said.
“I met and interviewed every prime minister since Robert Menzies, I’m a journo … (but) if I can get in and get to Canberra, I reckon I can do something.”
Mr Hinch’s party has clear goals.
He wants justice in sentencing, bail reform, parole reform, domestic violence law reform, equality, animal justice, voluntary euthanasia.
But there is one goal that stands above the rest. His determination to create a public national sex offenders register.
“In America you can type in an address in an app and all these little flags come up, like searching for a motel.
“You can click on the flag and it shows the sex offender, a picture of them, their address and their offence.
“You can drive past the house and the door has a red flag. No one is throwing molotov cocktails at these houses – but the public has a right to know.”