Criminal Justice Visas and Stay Certificates
Needless to say, people who are accused of crimes in Australia can be charged even if they are not Australian citizens or permanent residents; but are just here on working, study or holiday visas. So what happens if a temporary...
Forgotten Victims: The Families of Serial Killers
There is little sympathy for one group of victims affected by a serial killer’s reign of terror. Under the ferocious glare of the public and the weight of their own shame, desperate mothers, regretful fathers, angry daughters, and broken sons...
Court Overturns Jury’s Decision and Releases Convicted Murderer
Sydney man Moustapha Dib was convicted of murder in 2012 and sentenced to at least 30 years in prison; but he walked free from Goulburn jail on Monday after serving just over three years behind bars. Dib had previously been...
Barrister Cleared of Murder Gets Life Back on Track
Perth barrister Lloyd Rayney once made a living prosecuting criminal cases - but in an ironic twist of fate, the former Crown prosecutor was charged with his wife’s murder in 2010. Corryn Rayney’s body was found in a shallow grave...
Australia’s Most Famous Bank Robbery
Bank robberies and dramatic ‘hold-ups’ make for gripping movie plots - but to what extent does this mirror real life? Just last week, a botched bank robbery took place in Sydney’s CBD, right in front of visiting celebrity Kelly Osborne,...
Passports to Label Sex Offenders
New legislation in the US has passed through the House of Representatives which would lead to sex offenders being identified by a special mark on their passports. But in order to become law, the bill must first be signed by...
New Zealand’s ‘Three Strikes and You’re Out’ Policy
Since 2010, New Zealand has implemented a ‘three strikes policy’ to crack down on repeat offenders. The laws take power away from the courts when it comes to determining penalties for those convicted of multiple serious offences, and can lead...
Lawyers Must Fight for Human Rights
NSW Chief Justice Tom Bathurst spoke at the Law Society’s Opening of the Law Term dinner this month, raising concerns about the withering-away our most fundamental legal safeguards and protections. In response to a recent inquiry by the Australian Law...
Newspaper: It’s Time to Legalise and Regulate Cannabis
The Economist refers to itself as a newspaper providing expert economic analysis. One of the its stated aims is to “take part in a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.” In...
Magistrate ‘Unimpressed’ by Police Ignorance of the Law
When police arrested and fined 27-year-old Sydney drag queen Aaron Manahan - AKA ‘Aaron Manhattan’ - for urinating in public, he decided to make light of the situation by playing what he thought would be a harmless prank. The day...
