Police Face Fines for Preventing Public from Filming Them
Almost everyone has a camera phone these days - a handy tool for capturing timeless memories. But the proliferation of camera phones and CCTV cameras also has a valuable law enforcement function - increasing the likelihood of those acting outside...
The Scary Trend in Online Dating
Tinder, the world’s most popular mobile dating app amongst young people right now, describes itself like this: “The people we meet change our lives. A friend, a date, a romance, or even a chance encounter can change someone’s life forever....
‘Making a Murderer’: Is Steven Avery Innocent or Guilty?
Over the Christmas and New Year break, many of us spent precious time with loved ones, eating, drinking, and being merry. Others were glued to their TV screens, binge-watching the Netflix true crime series, Making a Murderer, which was released...
How Billie Holiday Broke Her Lawyer’s Heart
Lawyers have a position of responsibility when it comes to their clients, the courts and the community. They hear from people at some of the most difficult, emotional, and important times in their lives. They often hear the full story,...
Judge Refers to Defendant as ‘Mr Guilty’
‘Freudian slips’ happen to all of us from time to time. Unfortunately, judges are also prone to slip-ups - even when giving crucial instructions to jurors when a defendant’s future is on the line. Indeed, there are several instances of...
Extremists Treated Differently Based Upon Religion
Media reporting about the threat of terrorism in Australia is relentless, with the focus almost exclusively being upon international Muslim extremist groups. In the wake of the tragic Paris attacks, public fear has triggered calls for a range of measures...
Police Officer Charged with Murder After Shooting Teenager Dead
Dashcams can prove to be very handy in the event that your car is involved in a crash. But many interesting, funny, or even tragic events have also been unintentionally captured by these increasingly-popular devices. Dashcam footage has recently emerged...
Wrongly Imprisoned Man Released After 16 Years
30-year-old Los Angeles man Luis Lorenzo Vargas was convicted of sexually assaulting three women in 1999 after being loosely identified by the complainants - who said that the perpetrator had either one or two small tattoos of a teardrop running...
Whaling Company Fined for Wilful Contempt
The Federal Court of Australia has fined a Japanese whaling company $1 million for the criminal offence of ‘wilful contempt’ after it breached a 2008 order made under section 475 of the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cth)...
DNA Falsely Connecting People to Crimes
DNA is often thought of as a ‘magic bullet’ – having the ‘final say’ as far as the facts are concerned, but this isn’t always the case. In fact, the improper use of DNA evidence is fraught with danger -...
