The Law, Penalties and Defences Relating to Child Prostitution in NSW
New South Wales has decriminalised prostitution (‘sex work’) involving consenting adults but, and perhaps needless to say, child sexual offences including conduct relating to child prostitution are treated very seriously by the law and the courts. Here is an outline...
What is the Knowledge Requirement for Drug Importation in Australia?
The Australian Federal Police arrested a man at Melbourne International Airport last week, over allegations he attempted to import 6 kilograms of heroin concealed in his luggage. The 67-year old Canberra resident was returning from a trip to Manila, Thailand...
Can Witchcraft or Fortune Telling Amount to a Crime in NSW?
‘Double, double toil and trouble!’ – the mischievous dealings of cackling witches, flying around on broomsticks and cursing your crops have been a source of moral panic for centuries. It’s not surprising then, that criminal offences against witchcraft have been...
Saw X: What Criminal Offences Could Jigsaw Be Charged With?
Horror fans have been treated with a new entry in the Saw franchise with Saw X hitting cinemas earlier this month. The series follows the twisted efforts of civil engineer John Kramer, also known as Jigsaw, as he “tests” unlucky...
Needle Spiking and the New South Wales Criminal Law
The have been several mainstream media reports in recent times of people unknowingly being injected with sedatives whilst out at pubs, clubs or festivals, causing them to become hazy and even to fall unconscious – and thereby making them susceptible...
Can School Bullying Amount to a Criminal Offence?
Bullying involves a person who is usually of greater physical strength and/or social power acting aggressively towards or otherwise belittling their target. School bullying occurs when students bully each other, often for social status within the cutthroat world of student...
Crime Scene Examinations: Police and Lab Bungles Can Lead to Acquittal
Key to any criminal investigation is the examination of the scene of a suspected crime, as well as the documentation and collection of evidence that has not been contaminated by those who have been there. Here’s how scene of crime...
The Legal Defence of Automatism in New South Wales
Last year, Brendon Paul Lidgard was found not-guilty of one count of dangerous driving occasioning death and three counts of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm inn the NSW District Court. The charges arose after Lidgard overdosed on his insulin...
The Legal Defence of Necessity In New South Wales
Four seamen are stranded on a life raft after their ship capsizes. After seven days without food and five without water, the situation gets desperate and a sinister decision is made. The victim? The teenage cabin boy, who is killed...
What Constitutes ‘Penetration’ for a Sexual Assault Offence in NSW?
Sexual offences in New South Wales have always distinguished between non-consensual physical activity involving actual penetration – including the historical offence of rape which was abolished in 1981 and the offence carnal knowledge which was abolished in 1986 – and non-penetrative,...
