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law & crime
law & crime March 23, 2019
Wider laws to allow Victoria Police to take DNA samples
Privacy fears surround Victoria’s new DNA laws, which would allow police to take samples from suspects before they are charged with any crime.
law & crime March 23, 2019
The public service code of conduct
A Canberra public servant’s anonymous posts on social media led to her sacking and now to the High Court in a free speech case with far-reaching consequences for the federal government.
law & crime March 23, 2019
Following the killing of 50 Muslims by an Australian terrorist, local security agencies face questions of whether they overlooked the threat posed by white extremists.
law & crime March 23, 2019
Shooters party set to wield power in NSW
With NSW facing the possibility of a hung parliament, fear grows that the state’s gun laws – already eroded by two decades of deal-making with the Shooters party – will be further traded away.
religion March 16, 2019
As Chief Judge Peter Kidd steadily reads his sentencing of George Pell, the author sits among those assembled in court, watching the cardinal, and considering the nature of power in the justice system.
religion March 1, 2019
The lifelong damage George Pell caused to his victims is now well known. In the wake of the cardinal’s conviction, his work and his prominent supporters are cast in a new and horrific light.
law & crime February 9, 2019
Hayne’s ‘disinfectant’ sees banks’ share prices rise
In the wake of the Hayne royal commission, the big banks’ share prices rose, raising questions of how much the culture of greed is threatened by its recommendations.
immigration February 2, 2019
Risks to foreign students on campus
The rape and murder of Aya Maasarwe near her La Trobe University accommodation shocked the world. But absent from the headlines was acknowledgement of the increasing prevalence of sexual assaults on international students.
indigenous affairs January 26, 2019
Outstanding fines and Indigenous imprisonment
Indigenous women are being jailed over small fines at alarming rates. In Western Australia, one charity has crowdfunded hundreds of thousands of dollars in just weeks to secure their release.
europe December 15, 2018
Portugal’s medical model of drugs
Drug policy reform in Portugal, from pill testing to decriminalisation, may provide a model for Australia. Lisbon’s ‘dissuasion commissioner’ Nuno Capaz talks about understanding drug use as a medical, rather than a moral, issue.
law & crime December 15, 2018
Fourth AFP officer suicides at work
After a fourth officer’s suicide in just 18 months at Australian Federal Police headquarters, staff hold little hope the organisation will change.
