FIFA Scandal: Is Our Political System Corrupt?
Australia has recently been accused of corruption in a report by the FIFA ethics committee into the World Cup bid for 2022. The Committee alleges that Australian officials broke the rules around bids and ethics and tried to buy votes,...
Students Buying Assignments Online Could Face Fraud Charges
Thousands of students could potentially face investigations for potential fraud after an investigation by Fairfax media revealed many have been buying assignments online, and even paying other people to sit online tests for them. The assignments were bought through a...
Is a Cautioning Scheme for Summary Offences in NSW Needed?
The criminal justice system is under a great deal of pressure. Alleviating some of the strain would allow police and other law enforcement agencies to focus on serious crime, without clogging up the system with minor offences. Over the years,...
Mandatory Sentencing in the NT – Perpetuating Injustice
Imagine serving time in prison for murder - even when you weren’t present at the scene of the crime. It might reek of injustice, but for Zak Grieve, this is his reality. The 19 year old Katherine man was convicted...
The Hidden Costs of Going to Court – Court Costs and Victim’s Support Levies
It is understandable that people facing criminal charges are ordinarily anxious about the impact those proceedings may have on their liberty and future. What everyone may not know is that those who are guilty of a criminal offence will normally...
Do Serco Prisons Encourage Reoffending?
Being incarcerated is a serious penalty and although it is intended to act as a deterrent to crime, statistics from the Australian Institute of Criminology have shown that there is a strong rate of reoffending by inmates after they have...
Why are suspended sentences increasing the prison population?
Suspended sentences were reintroduced into NSW in the year 2000. A suspended sentence is actually a good behaviour bond under section 12 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999. You will only be eligible for a suspended sentence is you...
NSW Consorting Laws Upheld by High Court
A recent bid to have controversial NSW consorting laws repealed has been unsuccessful, with the High Court upholding the current legislation. Habitual consorting laws have been around since 1929, but were recently reviewed and updated to deal with an alleged...
The zero-tolerance approach: do we really need to get ‘tough on crime’?
In 1989, President Bush proclaimed “The rules have changed: if you sell drugs, you will be caught, and when you’re caught, you will be prosecuted; and once you’re convicted, you will do time.” Many have declared the “war on drugs”...
ICAC Requests New Anti-Corruption Laws
According to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), current laws are not enough to prosecute public figures who are accused of protecting their own financial interests. The head of the ICAC, Megan Latham, recently requested that the Crimes Act be...
