This article examines the political context of recent bail law changes in Victoria. We find that bail reform continues to serve as a vehicle for performing ‘tough on crime’ politics, leaving evidence-based bail changes vulnerable to legislative backpedalling. As increased priority is given to community protection in bail legislation , over and above the principle of legal innocence, we consider how community safety is being interpreted as a long-term issue in the courts to enable access to bail in a political environment driven to restrict it.
This article paints a contemporary picture of the place of Kanak people in New Caledonia’s penal system, with attention to aspects which mirror the place occupied by Aboriginal Australians in our own. It is prompted by the major unrest of May 2024 in the archipelago. The two spaces which host our attention are courtrooms and prisons. A contribution of this article is the reproduction of primary source material gathered by l'Observatoire international des Prisons (the International Prison Monitor, a French NGO) from prisoners and lawyers in New Caledonia. The emphasis is on commonalities at the most basic, everyday level between legal systems siloed by distinct imperial histories.
Each year, hundreds of families in the ACT and NSW face coronial investigations after losing a loved one. For most, this process is unfamiliar and overwhelming. Timely, trauma-informed information is crucial, yet research shows access is inconsistent and confusing, adding to families’ distress. In both jurisdictions, coronial information is scattered across government websites, lacking clarity, consistency, and accessibility. This article shares preliminary findings from a study exploring bereaved families’ experiences in accessing coronial information. Survey respondents reported significant issues with information provision, compounding trauma during an already difficult time and highlighting the urgent need for improved communication and support.
Routine firearm carriage by the New South Wales Police Force is commonly understood to derive from longstanding common law authority. This belief has been reinforced through police education and institutional narratives, yet is rarely interrogated. This article questions how arming became normalised in New South Wales despite the absence of clear statutory or common law authorisation. The article traces how Parliamentary decision-making, operational custom and institutional repetition displaced explicit legal scrutiny. The article advances a provocation: what does it mean for accountability when one of the state’s most coercive powers rests on assumption and belief rather than transparent legal authority?
