Not Guilty of Drug Driving Despite Cannabis in System
Northern Rivers region resident Joseph Carrall was pulled over by NSW police senior constable Chayne Foster on 23 June 2015 for a random drug test. The officer asked the driver whether he’d taken any illicit drugs within the last 48 hours, to...
Aussie Teens Turning Away from Drugs
There’s some positive news in the latest National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NDSHS) – most notably the fact that drug, alcohol and tobacco use appears to be declining amongst our nation’s teenagers. The NDSHS survey of 24,000 people, which was...
New Rules for Disqualified Driving
On 14 August, NSW attorney general Mark Speakman announced a suite of new reforms to driver licence disqualification laws. The changes, that will begin operation in late October, include pathways for driving whilst disqualified drivers to apply for their licence to be reinstated at...
The Hurtful Side of the Marriage Equality Vote
Critics of the federal government’s twice blocked marriage equality plebiscite – which has now morphed into a non-compulsory postal vote – have long warned that such a move would unnecessarily subject the LGBTIQ community to a hateful and discriminatory ‘no’...
Priests Should be Prosecuted for Failing to Report Child Sexual Assault
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has recommended that clergy who fail to report child sexual assaults disclosed during religious confessions should face criminal charges. The Commissioners heard evidence that confessions of child sexual abuse were...
Woman Convicted for Attempting an Abortion in NSW
A Sydney woman has been convicted of self-administering a drug in an attempt to terminate her 28 week pregnancy. Cue outrage – and let the chant of ‘her body, her choice’ ring loud and clear. But the important thing to...
Nimbin Locals Imprisoned for Selling Cannabis
Jurisdictions around the world are legalising cannabis. One in five US citizens now lives in a state where the recreational use of the plant is permitted. Uruguay changed its laws to allow marijuana use nationwide back in 2013. And Canada...
False Domestic Violence Complaints Ruin Lives
Domestic violence has reached epidemic levels in Australia. The figures show that on average, one person is killed every week at the hands of their current or former partner. Shelters, crisis services, and frontline community legal centres are stretched to...
Is Trump Tweeting Us Into War with North Korea?
It seems that in the age of Trump, tweeting threats of war has become part and parcel of US foreign diplomacy. On Friday, the US president wrote on the social media platform that “Military solutions are now in place, locked...
Man Charged with Making False Emergency Calls
A Canberra man charged with making a series of allegedly false complaints to emergency services has pleaded not guilty, contending that it is “not a crime” to call triple-0. The allegations 61-year old Henryk Jozwik allegedly called emergency services a...
