When False Accusations Lead to Tragedy
When people make accusations against others, they normally think that they are justified. A bit of sketchy information combined with emotions like frustration and anger can all work together to make a hunch seem like solid reality. In trivial circumstances,...
Incriminating Yourself On TV, Radio or Social Media
There were shock-waves across America recently when millionaire Robert Durst appeared in a top-rating documentary about his life, including three murders he is accused of committing. During the final episode of the documentary series The Jinx, Durst - apparently unaware...
Do Police Need More Weapons to Deal with ‘Lone Wolf’ Attacks?
For many of us, the memories of watching the Sydney siege unfold are still fresh in our minds. Three people lost their lives when the saga culminated in a deadly shooting in the early hours of December 16 last year...
How Can We Stop Women From Being Killed by Strangers?
It was a regular evening on 8th of March 2015 when Prabha Arun Kumar embarked on her usual route home through Parramatta Park in western Sydney. Just minutes later, tragedy unfolded as she was brutally stabbed to by a stranger...
Jill Meagher Murder – Should Juries Know About Prior Offences?
Adrian Bayley: It’s a name that sends chills down the spines of women right around the country. The 41-year-old man found himself in the media spotlight after he was convicted of murdering 29-year-old ABC employee Jill Meagher in Melbourne in...
“Suicide by Cop” and the Growing Need for Police Mental Health Training
“Suicide by cop” It was a Sunday afternoon in San Francisco when 32-year-old Matthew Hoffman approached police officers and started asking questions about the weapons they were carrying. Later that evening, police noticed Hoffman loitering around a restricted parking lot...
Murder or Miscarriage? The Feticide Debate
One of the most hotly debated legal issues these days is whether those who have intentionally caused a miscarriage should be charged with foetal homicide - commonly known as ‘feticide.’ On the one hand, women’s rights advocates have cautioned against...
Is Death by Firing Squad Ever Justified?
It’s the fate that awaits members of the Bali Nine, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran - and a penalty that has drawn widespread criticism from human rights advocates all around the world. But in a move that has been labelled...
Woman Avoids Prison after Killing Abusive Partner: Fair?
Jessica Silva had ended her abusive relationship of four years, over which time her partner, James Polkinghorne, had repeatedly tormented her. She did not report the abuse to police because she was too scared, and she didn’t think police could...
Food Contamination: Should there be harsher penalties?
Food contamination can be a serious matter, as the recent Hepatitis A outbreak from frozen berries has shown. At least 13 people across the country have been diagnosed with the virus after eating a certain brand of frozen berry products...
