Establishing Guidelines for Coronial Best Practice Use of Internal Autopsy. Last year in Queensland 2700 Coronial internal autopsies were conducted at a cost of $5.3 million. In addition to the economic cost, other relevant concerns include few qualified personnel, public health risks, and cultural and religious sensitivities associated with internal autopsy. Anecdotal evidence suggests that for a number of these deaths, the internal autopsy was not necessary to establish cause or circumstance ....Establishing Guidelines for Coronial Best Practice Use of Internal Autopsy. Last year in Queensland 2700 Coronial internal autopsies were conducted at a cost of $5.3 million. In addition to the economic cost, other relevant concerns include few qualified personnel, public health risks, and cultural and religious sensitivities associated with internal autopsy. Anecdotal evidence suggests that for a number of these deaths, the internal autopsy was not necessary to establish cause or circumstance of death. The purpose of this research is to create guidelines to enable coroners to weight all sources of evidence before ordering internal autopsies The purpose is to decrease the number (and associated costs, risks and distress to families) of unnecessary internal autopsies being performed without compromising the finding as to cause and circumstance of death.Read moreRead less
Private Security and Public Interest: Exploring Private Security Trends and Directions for Reform in the New Era of Plural Policing. This study will provide the first ever comprehensive assessment of private security and what it can and cannot offer society in terms of fair and effective order maintenance, crime prevention and law enforcement in Australia. Stemming from problems incurred by the sector, the research will address how governments should regulate the growing range of policing functi ....Private Security and Public Interest: Exploring Private Security Trends and Directions for Reform in the New Era of Plural Policing. This study will provide the first ever comprehensive assessment of private security and what it can and cannot offer society in terms of fair and effective order maintenance, crime prevention and law enforcement in Australia. Stemming from problems incurred by the sector, the research will address how governments should regulate the growing range of policing functions undertaken by private providers. It will also address the issue of how private police can best satisfy legal and justice criteria, meet the demands of accountability and develop mutually beneficial models of cooperation with the public sector. The research will recommend to policy-makers preferred 'plural' policing models for the 21st century.Read moreRead less
Characteristics and causes of indigenous over-representation in the criminal justice system: A Victorian case-study. Addressing Indigenous disadvantage was identified as a national priority by the Council of Australian Governments in 2002. Our research builds on this initiative by examining important policy questions that are central to Indigenous disadvantage within the justice system. This research adds substantial value to the existing national investment in the collection of data on Indige ....Characteristics and causes of indigenous over-representation in the criminal justice system: A Victorian case-study. Addressing Indigenous disadvantage was identified as a national priority by the Council of Australian Governments in 2002. Our research builds on this initiative by examining important policy questions that are central to Indigenous disadvantage within the justice system. This research adds substantial value to the existing national investment in the collection of data on Indigenous involvement in justice processes, and will assist in the development and implementation of programs to address what has previously been an intractable problem. A key element in the project is establishing strong links with Indigenous community representatives so that the results of the research are made available to those most directly concerned with them.Read moreRead less
Understanding and Costing Offending Trajectories: Creating an Evidence-Base for Targeting Crime Prevention. The research will provide an evidence-base for targeting diversionary and crime prevention programs and for assessing their cost-effectiveness. Many of these programs have resulted in a range of beneficial outcomes and they are receiving increased government funding. By providing a better understanding of offending pathways, the research will enable programs to be targeted towards particul ....Understanding and Costing Offending Trajectories: Creating an Evidence-Base for Targeting Crime Prevention. The research will provide an evidence-base for targeting diversionary and crime prevention programs and for assessing their cost-effectiveness. Many of these programs have resulted in a range of beneficial outcomes and they are receiving increased government funding. By providing a better understanding of offending pathways, the research will enable programs to be targeted towards particular at-risk groups at crucial developmental phases. The innovative longitudinal costing method that will be developed and applied in the Queensland context will enable an assessment of the cost-effectiveness of diversionary and crime prevention programs. This will provide a sound empirical basis for directing scarce government resources.Read moreRead less
Sentencing and public confidence: public perceptions and the role of the public in sentencing practice and policy. Public confidence is critical to the effective operation of the criminal justice system. This project will generate much needed current national data on public attitudes about sentencing. It examines avenues for the incorporation of public opinion into sentencing policy and processes, and provides accurate measures of the factors involved. The results will enable governments to res ....Sentencing and public confidence: public perceptions and the role of the public in sentencing practice and policy. Public confidence is critical to the effective operation of the criminal justice system. This project will generate much needed current national data on public attitudes about sentencing. It examines avenues for the incorporation of public opinion into sentencing policy and processes, and provides accurate measures of the factors involved. The results will enable governments to respond to periodic crises in public confidence in constructive and informed ways, rather than act in response to law and order rhetoric, linked with harsh sentencing regimes, and costly and potentially unnecessary increases in incarceration rates.Read moreRead less
The Effectiveness of Forensic Science in the Criminal Justice System. Policing plays a major role in combating crime in the community, reassuring and assisting persons affected by crime so that they can continue, or return, to enjoying their lives. Forensic science is increasingly relied upon by law enforcement to solve crime, and by the judicial system to prosecute offenders. However, the value and impact of forensic science has yet to be established. Through a comprehensive examination of fore ....The Effectiveness of Forensic Science in the Criminal Justice System. Policing plays a major role in combating crime in the community, reassuring and assisting persons affected by crime so that they can continue, or return, to enjoying their lives. Forensic science is increasingly relied upon by law enforcement to solve crime, and by the judicial system to prosecute offenders. However, the value and impact of forensic science has yet to be established. Through a comprehensive examination of forensic science usage in the criminal justice system in Victoria and ACT, this research will develop an evidence-based best-practice model for using forensic science efficiently and effectively. This will benefit the Australian community through the achievement of better and more cost effective criminal justice outcomes. Read moreRead less
Challenges, Possibilities and Future Directions: A National Assessment of Australia's Children's Courts. Children's Courts occupy a unique position in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems in responding to often marginalized delinquent youth and vulnerable children and families. Philosophical and structural shifts in Australia and overseas suggest community and legal system responses are often ineffective and contribute to longer-term problems, creating social challenges for governments ....Challenges, Possibilities and Future Directions: A National Assessment of Australia's Children's Courts. Children's Courts occupy a unique position in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems in responding to often marginalized delinquent youth and vulnerable children and families. Philosophical and structural shifts in Australia and overseas suggest community and legal system responses are often ineffective and contribute to longer-term problems, creating social challenges for governments and communities alike. This national study will examine how key stakeholders, including, significantly, judicial officers, view the Children's Court's contemporary responses and challenges, their preferred alternatives responses and the viability of suggested reforms, thus offering a unique contribution to informing legal and social policy change.Read moreRead less
Juror confidence in justice: democratic participation or deference to authority? Australia will be better protected from terrorism and crime if its justice system has the confidence of its citizens. Currently it does not. Without such confidence, justice offers neither a credible deterrent nor a protector of rights. Courts are typically designed and run using a hierarchical model of authority, while new therapeutic and restorative approaches make justice processes more democratic. There is litt ....Juror confidence in justice: democratic participation or deference to authority? Australia will be better protected from terrorism and crime if its justice system has the confidence of its citizens. Currently it does not. Without such confidence, justice offers neither a credible deterrent nor a protector of rights. Courts are typically designed and run using a hierarchical model of authority, while new therapeutic and restorative approaches make justice processes more democratic. There is little evidence of how either of these impacts on justice for participants. Understanding the process by which people develop trust during one critical adjudicative process, the jury trial, will allow juries, and other forms of lay decision-making in judicial processes, to be used more effectively in the justice system.Read moreRead less
Restorative Justice and Responsive Regulation. The objective of this research is through a series of projects to bring the autor's restorative justice and responsive regulatin research programs of the last decade together, to intergrate them. this means to bear a restorative and responsive approach to transforming the entire legal system, not just criminal or regulatory law/administration. hwever, it does also mean reforming criminological theory with regulatory theory and applying restorative ....Restorative Justice and Responsive Regulation. The objective of this research is through a series of projects to bring the autor's restorative justice and responsive regulatin research programs of the last decade together, to intergrate them. this means to bear a restorative and responsive approach to transforming the entire legal system, not just criminal or regulatory law/administration. hwever, it does also mean reforming criminological theory with regulatory theory and applying restorative justice to business regulation, as well as tort, tax, contract and all areas of law.Read moreRead less
Adult Sexual Assault: An evidence-based policy, practice and advocacy model for Victoria Police. Sexual violence causes long term health and economic costs. One Australian study estimates the fiscal cost to victims and the community as 230m dollars per year. The trauma of the assault is often compounded by police investigative processes that victims find alienating and demeaning. Eliminating significant barriers to police reporting and creating a more just criminal response is essential. Sexual ....Adult Sexual Assault: An evidence-based policy, practice and advocacy model for Victoria Police. Sexual violence causes long term health and economic costs. One Australian study estimates the fiscal cost to victims and the community as 230m dollars per year. The trauma of the assault is often compounded by police investigative processes that victims find alienating and demeaning. Eliminating significant barriers to police reporting and creating a more just criminal response is essential. Sexual assault is recognised globally as a Human Rights issue that is receiving increasing attention by governments in Australia. This project will result in the implementation of a policing model that advances the rights and welfare of victims therefore contributing an important step in ameliorating some of the documented health consequences.
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