Criminality among substance users with comorbid posttraumatic stress disorder

Substance use disorders (SUD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have independently been associated with high rates of criminal involvement. It is possible that the combination of SUD and PTSD symptoms in individuals with this comorbidity may increase susceptibility to criminal involvement. Very little research has been conducted examining the validity of this claim. The current project investigates criminality among participants involved in a nation-wide randomised controlled trial of the efficacy of an intervention for PTSD among illicit drug users.

The role of expert medical testimony (EMT) and gender stereotypes in criminal trials for multiple intra-family infanticide

A series of experimental studies are being conducted contrasting EMT type (clinical vs. research expert), infanticide type (SIDS vs. Shaken Baby Syndrome) in a written simulated trial format. The Elaboration Likelihood Model of persuasion is the core theoretical framework for investigating the effects of EMT, case type, and pre-existing stereotypes in mock juror individual decision making in these criminal trials.

Garland argues that victim participation in sentencing by way of victim impact statements (VIS) is part of the general reactionary movement of the 'discovery' of the victim as a political subject and concomitant attempts to appease victims are part of the 'culture of control'. In his view a political projection of the victim has been used by governments to serve punitive policies and procedural measures such as VIS derogate from the rights of the offender to a fair trial and detract from the administration of justice. VIS have led us into unfamilar territory where the ideological lines are far from clear and traditional assumptions an unreliable guide. Our sense of how things work needs to be revised and the point of my research is go examine how victim participation works in the sentencing of homicide offenders in NSW. I aim to test Garland's argument at an empirical level by: Interviewing family victims about their experiences of the sentencing process and observing the submission of VIS in the sentencing of homicide offenders in the NSW Supreme Court.

Law

The Relationship between Sentencing, Risk and Correctional Administration: Serious Offenders and Barriers to Redemption.

This project seeks to identify and document the relationship between the remarks and recommendations made at sentencing with the subsequent progress of the inmate through the correctional system, with a focus on the risk assessment process and the place of rehabilitation in the sentencing regime.

The cross-race effect (CRE) refers to the tendency for people to be worse at recognising cross-race faces compared to same-race faces (the “they all look the same to me” effect), and it has attracted a lot of research attention due to its implications for cross-race eyewitness identifications. Much of this research adopts a ‘perceptual-expertise’ perspective of the CRE, which emphasises the ability of people to properly attend to and encode the features of cross-race faces. My research however has adopted a more social-cognitive approach. Specifically, I am investigating how stereotypes and expectations can influence the subsequent processing (and later recognition) of own-race and cross-race faces. It is hoped that with a better understanding of this neglected area we can devise more effective strategies that minimise the CRE and its negative effects on cross-racial interactions.

Women in prison: an increasing population.
A study of the contributions of gender, crime and mental illness

Over the last 25 years, across western countries, there has been a marked growth in prison populations accompanied by a climbing numbers of people incarcerated with mental health disorders and cognitive deficits. A related phenomenon is the particularly significant increase in the rate of incarceration of women. Within the population identified as having mental health disorders, women are over-represented and the severity of their mental health disorders is greater. There are two stages to this research: a quantitative approach using data linkage of client records across the criminal justice, social support and health systems to analyse the pathways of an identified cohort of women and men into and out of prison; and narrative interviews with people currently in custody who have been diagnosed with mental health disorders. The study proposes to examine the impact of labelling and stigmatisation upon women in the criminal justice system and in particular the extent that their subjective reactions to imprisonment and diagnosis explain variation in subsequent offending and return to prison. 

This project is an exploratory qualitative inquiry into the life histories of adults who survived child sexually abuse committed by multiple adults alongside multiple children. The project will analyse the social, familial and subcultural structures and processes of organised abuse as they emerge in the recounted biographies of participants. The analysis will consider the social and sexual practices that constitute organised abuse and explore the contexts in which children may be at risk of organised abuse.

Sentencing Appeals in NSW

The thesis examines the theory and practice of Crown appeals against inadequacy of sentence since its introduction in NSW in 1924 to the modern day, including an analysis of the rise of Crown appeals and continued strong success rates for this type of appeal in the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal despite the (until now) orthodox judicial view that such appeals "should be a rarity".  The enactment of the legislation, against the backdrop of a discredited mandatory minimum sentencing scheme in NSW introduced in the 1880s, and a large "spike" in Crown appeals in the mid-1970s under the Government of Sir Robert Askin, are discussed and contrasted to the modern day environment of complex sentencing legislation, an independent DPP with responsibility for launching Crown appeals and a visible victims' movement supported by State politicians and the media.

The New Scientific Eyewitness: The role of DNA profiling in shaping criminal justice

Like a number of forensic identification techniques, forensic deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) profiling has had a substantial impact on the process of criminal justice. Since its first use in criminal investigations in 1985, DNA profiling has become the new 'gold standard' for investigations and prosecutions, and has consequently transformed a number of processes within the criminal justice system. This dissertation focuses on the wider impacts of DNA profiling and how the technology has changed the processes involved in investigating and prosecuting criminal offences. It provides a comparative study of two distinct criminal justice systems: New South Wales in Australia and the Thames Valley in the United Kingdom.

Aboriginal Art and Law

The thesis involves research into the use of Australian Aboriginal art as a legal document.  Aboriginal art can be utilised as a legal proof of evidence in legal claims in the context of English Common Law.  It is of particular interest in Aboriginal land claims, as proof of native title and in demonstrating the requisite connection with the land. Accordingly, the question is what constitutes legal evidence?

Prosecutions for Domestic Violence in Cases of Afro-Brazilian Women

This thesis presents the findings from research undertaken into domestic violence against Afro-descendant. This study focuses on domestic violence against women by analysing the intersection of race, class (poverty), and gender. Although a considerable literature exists on the imbalance of power (between men and women), very little has been done in making an effort to explain how it reflects in the inter-relation between gender, race and class, with respect to theaccess of justice. This thesis will attempt to correct this deficiency. Even though this group of women experience greater level of domestic violence than other groups, they are much less able, due to intersections of discrimination, to access institutions for their protection, in particular, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution.

Law

The law of equality and justice- Evaluating Family Violence and Domestic Violence outcomes for Aboriginal women in NSW

Aboriginal women face countless difficulties as victims of violence. They often have to contend with both racist and sexist attitudes held by members of the police force and the judiciary. Historically negative experiences and the lack of culturally specific services available exacerbate this. An Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) is the only option the judicial system offers to protect victims of violence. This thesis intends to examine the effectiveness of the current NSW AVO system in relation to Aboriginal women.

'This project aims to investigate the relationship between many variables such as level of disclosure provided by participants of the NSW Pre-Trial Diversion of Offenders program (Cedar Cottage), relationship between offender and victim, marital status and reunification of offenders with the family.  Anecdotal clinical evidence suggests that throughout the course of the treatment program participants reveal more information about their abusive conduct than initially stated, and it is expected that this disclosure reaches a level beyond that initially described by the victim.  This study aims to provide empirical investigation of the impact of this trend on non-offending parents and victims wishes of reunification.From a research standpoint, investigation of such issues has important implications for restorative justice and victim oriented treatment approaches”

An examination of the trajectories and drift of children in care to the criminal justice system in New South Wales

People who have been in the care of the State as children historically make up from 0.1% to 0.2% of the general population. Yet they make up 1:5 non-Indigenous prisoners and 1:3 Indigenous prisoners, comprising approximately 38% of all prisoners in NSW. The thesis analyses the reasons for the involvement in the NSW criminal justice system of children in out of home care.

Impediments to successful mediation: The effects of motivation, confidence and role on mediation outcomes.

Litigation is a lengthy, stressful and expensive process. Mediation is widely recognised as a less costly alternative to dispute resolution because it provides the potential for parties to come to mutually acceptable solutions and to address the underlying issues that gave rise to the conflict. However, there is little research on what makes mediation successful, or what the impediments to successful mediation may be. The current study considered the effects of participant motivation (i.e keenness to take part in a mandatory mediation) and overconfidence (about achieving their stated goals) on mediation outcomes in the context of Strata disputes processed by the New South Wales Department of Fair Trading Mediation Services Unit. In addition, the effect of role (being an applicant or a respondent) on mediation outcomes was investigated for the first time. This novel aspect of the research yielded the most interesting results. Although mediation was mandatory, applicants were significantly more eager to mediate and were more confident about achieving their goals, but it was respondents who obtained better outcomes and were more satisfied with the mediation. The findings suggest that applicants’ overconfidence may dispose them to disappointment.  Implications for government policy, practical applications and further research on mediation are discussed.