The Link Between Exposure to Lead and Crime
New research is attempting to piece together the complex relationship between environmentally induced chemical changes in the brain as a child and anti-social conduct as an adult, especially impulsive, violent crime. Adding to previous research, a recent peer-reviewed study published...
Residents Demand Safe Injecting Facility
The Melbourne suburbs of North Richmond and Abbotsford have long been the site of an extensive street drug market. And with it come the harms associated with an unregulated and criminalised drug trade. Between 2009 and 2015, there were 96...
It’s Time for an Australian Bill of Rights: An Interview with Senator Nick McKim
Gillian Triggs issued a stern warning when she finished her term as Australia’s Rights Commissioner earlier this year. Reflecting on her five years at the helm of the Australian Human Rights Commission, she lamented that “we are regressing on almost...
Protesters Storm Council Meeting Over Australia Day Ban
Protesters have stormed the Yarra City Council building to protest it’s decision to stop hosting Australia Day celebrations on the 26th of January – the day of the first fleet’s arrival in Australia. In the wake of debate about the...
Asylum Seekers Left Destitute at the Hands of Dutton
Stooping to a new low, the Turnbull government has begun cutting off the welfare payment to vulnerable asylum seekers and given these people three weeks to vacate their government-supported accommodation. Leaked documents from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) initially revealed...
The Common Law Continues to Develop in Australia
The common law – or ‘judge made law’ – refers to the body of law developed by the decisions of judges. In a common law system, past decisions are known as ‘precedents’. Fundamental to the common law is the principle...
Drug Law Reform: An Interview with Former NSW DPP Nicholas Cowdery
On 2 June 2011, the Global Commission on Drug Policy declared, “The global war on drugs has failed.” In its report, the commission found that prohibition has led to increased drug consumption, the growth of powerful crime networks and contributed...
Judge’s Decision Was a “Substantial Miscarriage of Justice”
Kenneth Bell was being held in prison awaiting trial on allegations of sexual assault, when he was savagely attacked on 16 June 2013, suffering a fractured eye socket, traumatic brain injury, and left in a coma for several days. Due...
“Pure Greed”: Criminal Lawyer Imprisoned for Fraud
Queensland criminal defence lawyer Tim Meehan has been sentenced to five and a half years behind bars for fraud. Mr Meehan, formerly a partner at Bosscher Lawyers, pleaded guilty last year to one count of aggravated fraud and eight counts...
Closing the Gap: An Interview with Ngalla Maya Founder Mervyn Eades
A non-profit mentoring program for young people leaving prison in WA is gaining national attention. Situated in the Perth suburb of Belmont, the Ngalla Maya program is in its third year of operation. And due to its success, it’s recently been granted...
