Can I Charge Someone with a Crime?
We often receive requests from members of the public who wish to commence criminal proceedings against someone who has wronged them - for instance, an ex-spouse who is harassing them, a former friend who has stolen their property, or someone...
Fascinating Cases: First Slavery Prosecution in Australia
Slavery has been illegal for the majority of Australia’s post-colonial history - although it has existed and continues to exist right up to today. Here, like in the rest of the world, human trafficking and sexual servitude are a hidden...
‘Room to Read’ and ‘Sheldrick Wildlife Foundation’
Not everyone has the dedication and persistence to grow a charity that changes the world for the better. But the people behind ‘Room to Read’ and the ‘Sheldrick Wildlife Foundation’ are making a real difference to lives of children and...
Should ICAC Get the Power to Press Criminal Charges?
It is a generally accepted rule that only prosecutorial bodies like the police and Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) have the power to instigate criminal proceedings. But in a move that turns the norm upside down, NSW Attorney-General Gabrielle Upton...
Australian Prisons: Dumping Grounds for Mentally Ill Aboriginals
Indigenous people and those suffering from mental health conditions are the most overrepresented groups in Australians prisons today. Around 38% of inmates in Australia have been diagnosed with a mental illness - and 27% of our prison population is Indigenous....
The Fascinating History of Animals on Trial
If you’ve ever caught your beloved pet gnawing away at your favourite pair of shoes, you might have searched their face for tell-tale signs of guilt, but you’d never consider reporting them to the police to face charges of malicious...
Murderer Asks Court for a Release Date
Kevin Crump was sentenced to life imprisonment for the horrific rape and murder of Virginia Morse and Ian Lamb in 1973, with a recommendation that he ‘never be released’. He has been behind bars for the past 42 years -...
Three Crimes that Aren’t Usually Enforced
In NSW, there are thousands upon thousands of criminal offences scattered throughout many different pieces of legislation; from murder and sexual assault, down to the many hundreds of driving offences contained in our web of traffic legislation. But not all...
‘He Said, She Said’: Murray Directions in Sexual Assault Trials
Defending an allegation of sexual assault is no simple feat in the current social and legal environment. A myriad of rules now apply to protect complainants in sexual assault cases, including laws which block access to certain types of relevant...
Parole in NSW
A ‘non parole period’ is the time that an inmate must spend inside prison before being eligible to apply for release from prison ‘on parole’. The non-parole period may be followed by a ‘parole period’ - which is time spent...
