Category: Justice Access
Rann plan bad idea for justice
Article posted on Wednesday 10 March 2010
SA Premier Michael Rann, up for re-election in March 2010, is proposing that a defendant's personal history should be revealed to juries - before they decide guilt or innocence - so as to send more people to prison. CLA and the SACCL, plus most other kno… more »
Indigenous stats
sound alarm bells
Article posted on Monday 08 March 2010
Victoria is one of the more enlightened states in looking after Indigenous people...but still the statistics are appalling, as this analysis by Keith McEwan (pictured) points out. "Life is not so good for an Indigenous person living in Victoria...or, for… more »
NZ cuts are the unkindest of all
Article posted on Saturday 06 March 2010
As governments worldwide cut back on prison numbers to save money, New Zealand is headed in the other direction, counter-intuitively cutting back on rehabilitation services, which will increase repeat offending and lead to more cost to the taxpayer.“To… more »
Bikie laws
on hold:
WA active
Article posted on Tuesday 02 March 2010
With an appeal pending in the High Court from the SA Government because of the over-turning of part of its 'bikie' legislation, similar laws are largely on hold Australia-wide. In WA, motorcycle groups are getting active ahead of a likely mid-year in… more »
Do same crime, serve same time...
but not if living in Queensland
Article posted on Wednesday 24 February 2010
A man's serving five years in jail in Queensland for customs duty evasion, a federal offence. Anywhere else in Australia he would be free. Is this a fair go? Here Tim Vines outlines how 'justice' in Australia depends on where you live. And there's also s… more »
CLA calls on Tassie to abandon
laws curtailing election comment
Article posted on Friday 19 February 2010
Tasmania still has anti-freedom-to-blog laws that South Australia this month canned before the 20 March 2010 elections expected in both states. In Tassie, you can be fined $12,000 AND sent to jail for three months for not putting your name and address a… more »
Stand up for our eroding liberties
Article posted on Thursday 18 February 2010
Editor, CLA Your Opinion: The Tax Commissioner's defence of his powers to break into homes and businesses without judicial warrants as 'trust me, I'm a good guy' is a dangerous argument. Powers such as these should be resisted when proposed, and removed… more »
Purchasing lore: Govt buys badly
Article posted on Wednesday 17 February 2010
Ideological but illogical, inefficient and expensive...words that sum up how the Australian Government buys in its legal expertise, Ernst Willheim says in analysing the recently-released Legal Services Procurement Report. The report has some excellent re… more »
WA Premier's re-think welcomed
Article posted on Tuesday 16 February 2010
There's an upsurge of community concern in Perth about how police are using their new stop-and-search powers (which are largely mirrored throughout Australia). WA Premier Colin Barnett has promised to review the powers, so CLA issued a supportive stateme… more »
ALRC tells government
how to do
Commissions
on the cheap
Article posted on Sunday 07 February 2010
Australia looks likely to get a new form of major investigation - the Official Inquiry - as a second tier to the existing Royal Commission system, after the Australian Law Reform Commission table its report No 111, 'Making Inquiries'. The ALRC has ma… more »
Assault on
liberties
long, laboured
Article posted on Wednesday 03 February 2010
Round-robins of 'tough on crime' legislation go from state to state, nation to nation. Here, noted Manchester QC Mark George analyses the cumulative effect of years of repressive laws in the UK, which have whittled away the traditional protections of the… more »
SA's 'stand-out' AG strikes again
Article posted on Tuesday 02 February 2010
Michael Atkinson, the South Australian Attorney General noted for quaint ways, is at it again: a new law means you must attach your name/details to any letter or blog comment once the March 2010 SA election is formally called, which is expected imminentl… more »
Prisons in Victoria, 2010
Article posted on Monday 01 February 2010
How well are Australia's prisons serving the community? One major Royal Commission recommendation was that the community constantly keep watch on what is happening in prisons. Here, CLA's Keith McEwan does just that, for the Victorian prison system.… more »
Radical stop-and-search powers
ruled invalid by EU court
Article posted on Wednesday 13 January 2010
In a surprise decision, the EU Court of Human Rights has overturned a House of Lords judgement and told Britain that its police stop-and-search powers are invalid. The government must now reframe the laws to abide by human rights.Controversial stop-a… more »
State abuses power by assets freeze
Article posted on Wednesday 13 January 2010
CLA is campaigning against the draconian provisions of draft legislation on 'Serious and Organised Crime', which is now (Feb 2010) being considered by federal parliament. Here is proof, from WA, of how the state can abuse similar legislation, and inflict… more »
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