Disqualified Drivers Can Now Apply to Get Their Licences Back
The Road Transport Amendment (Driver Licence Disqualification) Act came into effect on 28 October 2017, allowing certain disqualified drivers in NSW to apply to the local court for the removal of their disqualification periods. Who can apply? If you are...
Man Faces Prison for Allegedly Head-Butting Tony Abbott
The man accused of head-butting Tony Abbott during his trip to Tasmania last month has had his charge upgraded. Hobart DJ Astro Labe was originally charged with common assault, but the charge against him has now been upgraded to ‘causing...
Queensland to Finally Expunge Homosexuality Convictions
Queensland has passed laws which allow people who were convicted of homosexuality offences to have those entries deleted. Homosexual intercourse was a crime in Queensland until 1991. Anyone can now apply to have records of eligible offences charged or convicted...
Government Refuses to Pay Victims of Police Brutality
The Western Australian government has been criticised for appealing a District Court decision to award $1.1 million in damages to a couple who were illegally Tasered, wrongfully arrested, unlawfully detained and maliciously prosecuted by police after they stopped to help...
Brandis Rebukes Dutton Over “Un-Australian” Lawyers Remarks
Back in August, Australian immigration minister Peter Dutton caused a furore when he accused lawyers who represent asylum seekers on a pro bono basis of being “un-Australian.” The backlash from inside and beyond the legal profession was widespread. Now, it seems Australia’s...
WA Government Defensive Over DNA Fiasco
An inquiry into government pathology service, PathWest, has found 11 anomalies in the forensic testing of samples relating to six of the 19 criminal cases examined. The revelations have put the state government on the back foot, with health minister Roger Cook...
High Court Rules that Anti-Protest Laws are Unconstitutional
A former politician’s recent win against the Tasmanian government calls into question the validity of anti-protest laws around the country. Former Greens Party leader Bob Brown is no stranger to standing up for what he believes in, and he’s long...
Stop Testing Drivers for Minute Traces of Cannabis
Most Australian states and territories currently carry out mobile drug testing (MDT) operations that only test for three illicit substances: amphetamines, MDMA and cannabis. In Tasmania and the Northern Territory, police test for longer lists of illegal drugs. In NSW, authorities have...
Simply Punishing Violent Criminals Does Not Reduce Reoffending
Research into violent offenders suggests they are less deterred by punishment than others, and that a strictly punitive approach to punishment does nothing to reduce their likelihood of reoffending. MRI scans Researchers from Canada and the UK scanned the brains...
Intensive Correction Orders Reduce Re-Offending Rates
The NSW inmate population is at an all-time high. In June this year, there were 13,092 inmates being held in our state’s correctional facilities, according to NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) figures. 4,309 of these full-time adult...
