The Law and Penalties for Aggravated Sexual Assault in New South Wales
A man who was found guilty by a jury in Downing Centre District Court of multiple counts of aggravated sexual assault, kidnapping and armed robbery has been sentenced to a full term of 38 years in prison with a non-parole...
40 Year Prison Sentence for Australia’s ‘Worst Paedophile’
Ruecha Tokputza has been described in court as “Australia’s worst paedophile”, and has been sentenced to 40 years imprisonment after pleading guilty to 50 charges including having sexual intercourse with a child under the age of 14, engaging in sexual...
Australian Prisoner Rights Activist Ends 33-Day Hunger Strike
Sydney man Jock Palfreeman has ended his month-long hunger strike inside correctional facilities in Bulgaria. The 32-year-old began his protest on 21 April, with the aim of drawing attention to rights violations in the local prison system, as well as...
Should It be a Crime to Publish Fake News?
Integrity campaigners have labelled the spread of disinformation during the recent Federal Election campaign as ‘intolerable’, and are calling for criminal laws specifically designed to deter such conduct in the future. One campaigner, former NSW supreme court justice Anthony Whealy,...
Police Use of Strip Searches Skyrockets in NSW
At the 11 May Midnight Mafia festival at Sydney Olympic Park, NSW police officers searched 272 punters following an indication from a sniffer dog. Of these, 32 were charged with possession and eight were issued with new on-the-spot fines. This...
The Crime of Kidnapping in New South Wales
A mother and daughter have been sentenced to imprisonment for detaining, assaulting and attempting to force a woman to transfer title to a car. Judge Warwick Hunt of the Downing Centre District Court heard that between 3.40pm and 7pm on...
Past Trauma Elicits More Sympathy Than a Mental Health Condition
A study from the United States has found that jurors are generally more sympathetic towards defendants who have experienced a difficult upbringing than those who suffer from chronic brain injuries and disorders such as paranoid schizophrenia and anti-social personality disorder....
Employee Can be Suspended Pending Outcome of Serious Criminal Charges
St George Rugby League player Jack de Belin has lost his bid for reinstatement to the NRL pending the outcome of the sexual assault claims against him. Judge Melissa Perry of the Federal Court recently handed down a judgment in...
Sexual Harassment Rife Within the Legal Profession
It’s a well-publicised fact that sexual harassment is prevalent in the legal profession, and now a new survey suggests that Australia has one of the highest rates of bullying and harassment amongst law professionals in the world. Australia provided the...
New Drink Driving and Drug Driving Laws in NSW
On 25th September 2018, the New South Wales parliament passed the Road Transport Legislation Amendment (Penalties and Other Sanctions) Bill which comes into effect across the state on Monday, 20 May 2019. The legislation amends the Road Transport Act 2013...
