Criminalisation of poverty and homelessness in Australia: A national study. The project aims to assess the policing and enforcement of public order crimes and related offences (e.g. obstruct/disobey police, breach of bail, and minor property offences) on individuals experiencing poverty and homelessness. The project endeavours to collect and analyse qualitative data from across Australia on the lived experience of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, regarding the impact of crimin ....Criminalisation of poverty and homelessness in Australia: A national study. The project aims to assess the policing and enforcement of public order crimes and related offences (e.g. obstruct/disobey police, breach of bail, and minor property offences) on individuals experiencing poverty and homelessness. The project endeavours to collect and analyse qualitative data from across Australia on the lived experience of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, regarding the impact of criminal laws and police powers concerned with presence in, and movement around public places. It will particularly focus on the impact on women, children and Indigenous peoples. The outcomes will seek to reduce the criminalisation of homeless people, by identifying law and policy reform options, and comparing their cost with that of 'business as usual'.Read moreRead less
Just spaces: security without prejudice in the wireless courtroom. How do jurors respond to seeing defendants in a glass cage, in a traditional wooden dock or at the Bar table? The project will examine how courtroom design shapes attitudes; and, bringing together court executives, architects and researchers, will show how flexible wireless courtrooms can meet both security and human rights standards.
Gauging informed public opinion on sentencing sex offenders: a national study. Sex offences appear to attract the greatest community condemnation and desire to punish, particularly when involving predatory stranger rapists or when the victims are children. This national study aims to ascertain informed public opinion on sex offender sentencing by exploring the views of jurors in sex offence trials in all higher courts in Australia.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100945
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$334,000.00
Summary
Improved interviewing framework in sexual assault cases. This project aims to provide a better interview framework to be used by police in the investigation and possible prosecution of sexual assault allegations. The current interview framework used around the world was not specifically designed for adult sexual assault complainants and has been intensely criticised. This project will design a revised interview framework that meets the complex investigative and evidential requirements for these ....Improved interviewing framework in sexual assault cases. This project aims to provide a better interview framework to be used by police in the investigation and possible prosecution of sexual assault allegations. The current interview framework used around the world was not specifically designed for adult sexual assault complainants and has been intensely criticised. This project will design a revised interview framework that meets the complex investigative and evidential requirements for these interviews. This is expected to increase just outcomes and victim satisfaction with the criminal justice response.Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL130100050
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,073,424.00
Summary
What counts? Prosecution and the criminal trial in Australian history. This project will investigate the successes, failures and limits of the criminal trial in Australia, from the colonial era to the post-war decades. By using the rich resource of Australian archives, this project will provide an enduring foundational knowledge of Australian criminal justice in its historical and international context.
Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal sex-offenders in Australia: Assessing risk for practice and policy. A key priority of Australian governments is to improve community safety through reducing the risk of sex offenders re-offending after release from prison. This project will assess the validity of tools used to predict the risk of sexual offender recidivism and identify alternate risk assessment tools for Indigenous and non-Indigenous sex offenders.
Targeted crime: policing and social inclusion. This project will undertake a criminological study of the policing of targeted incidents and crime, that is, incidents and crimes motivated by bias, prejudice or hatred towards members of particular groups, communities and individuals. It will develop a best practice policing framework for targeted crimes and incidents.
Forensic reasoning and uncertainty: identifying pattern and impression expertise. Maintaining high standards of evidence is vital for an effective justice system and ensuring that innocent people are not wrongly accused. This project aims to improve the reliability of forensic evidence and the value of expert testimony in the criminal justice system by examining forensic decision making.
Sexual victimisation and justice: reconceptualising theory, research and policy. In the aftermath of serious crime, victims have needs for information, support, material assistance and justice. This project centres on victims' justice needs and presents and tests a model to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of justice responses, including courts, conferences, compensation and truth - seeking.
A comparative analysis of youth punishment in Australia and the United Kingdom. This project is a comparative Australian and United Kingdom investigation of penal policy and the punishment of juvenile offenders. The research analyses the changing approaches to juvenile incarceration, particularly in the context of perceived effects on crime and the substantial public and social costs of incarceration.