Annual report 2005/06

Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology, 2006
ISSN 0311-449X

Output 1.1 : Policy advice and publications

Research Services

Objective

The objective of Research Services is to meet the Minister's expectations regarding the undertaking and dissemination of research on the extent, nature and prevention of crime in Australia in order to provide timely, evidence based, policy relevant information to the Australian Government and other key clients.

Strategic priorities

The strategic priorities of Research Services are to:

• provide information on, and analysis of, the causes, control and prevention of crime, and on the criminal justice system
• develop innovative products and services in the field of criminological research and information to better meet the needs of key clients and stakeholders, including the provision of consultancy services
• anticipate the needs of major stakeholders by conducting proactive research into emerging areas of crime, including maintaining the ability to respond quickly to the needs of government.

Research work programs

During the financial year 2005-06, there were four research programs within Research Services, each with a different focus. They were:

• Crime Monitoring
• Crime Reduction and Review
• Global, Economic and Electronic Crime
• Justice and Crime Analysis.

This section presents a brief summary of each of the research programs, including their objectives and main activities over the past financial year. Immediately following this are highlights of the national monitoring programs and key projects, including significant developments and outputs. A summary for the year of outputs and outcome/impact indicators for all the monitoring programs and projects is provided at the end of the chapter.

The Crime Monitoring Program's main objectives are to enhance and promote knowledge of some of Australia's central crime issues: homicide, armed robbery, firearms, and illicit drug use and crime, through the analysis of longitudinal data, and to undertake studies on violent crime and victimisation.

Within this program, there are four national monitoring programs:

• National Homicide Monitoring Program (NHMP)
• National Firearms Monitoring Program (NFMP)
• National Armed Robbery Monitoring Program (NARMP)
• Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA).

In May 2006, the AIC received funding to establish a firearms theft monitoring program for four years. Funded under the Australian Government's Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, this research will examine the nature and characteristics of firearms theft in Australia, including whether the thefts are opportunistic (i.e. being conducted during a house break-in or burglary), or the firearms are targeted. In addition to the monitoring programs, two major research projects related to firearms were undertaken within the program.

The Crime Reduction and Review Program reflects the AIC's commitment to implement ways to promote research, evaluation and knowledge exchange among crime reduction practitioners and policy makers in Australia. The aim is to assist in improving the evidence base for informing the design and implementation of Australian crime reduction and prevention programs. It does this by contributing to organisational capacity building through strategies such as collaborative projects and undertaking specific crime reduction research and evaluation studies.

Major research projects within this program conducted or finalised during 2005-06 included:

• collaborative research and development projects with the WA Office of Crime Prevention (OCP); the Crime Prevention Division of the NSW Attorney General's department; and for the National Community Crime Prevention Programme, managed by the Attorney-General's Department
• an evaluation of north Queensland drug courts
• a national review of specialty courts
• a study of performance measurement in drug law enforcement
• a study of policing implications of illicit drug use in rural and remote Indigenous communities.

The aim of the Global, Economic and Electronic Crime Program is to provide information on and analysis of the causes, extent, prevention and control of transnational criminal activity, economic crime, high tech crime and other complex and sophisticated criminal activity, including the identification of emerging criminal threats and response strategies.

Major research projects in 2005-06 included:

• transnational organised crime
• serious taxation fraud
• crime in Australian fisheries
• collaborative research with the Australian High Tech Crime Centre (AHTCC).

The main objectives of the Justice and Crime Analysis Program are to identify the nature and extent of particular crimes within the community, to identify the number and characteristics of people detained in custody and to identify trends in crime across time.

The three national monitoring programs under this research program are:

• National Deaths in Custody Program (NDCP)
• National Police Custody Survey (NPCS)
• National Juveniles in Detention Monitoring Program (NJDMP).

Major research projects in 2005-06 included:

• investigating the impact of video and CCTV sexual assault victim testimony on jury decision making
• criminal justice responses to sexual assault in Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse communities
• community attitudes toward violence against women
• analysis of ACT family violence data
• reintegration of male Indigenous prisoners
• responding to substance use and offending in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
• bushfire arson.

Research activities within the Institute fall into two main categories: national monitoring programs, and crime and justice projects.

National monitoring programs

Monitoring programs are core research activities of the Institute. The AIC is a leader in the field of crime and justice monitoring, administering highly productive national monitoring programs. These programs collect specialised data not available elsewhere to facilitate the production of annual reports, conference papers and publications on trends and topical issues. Developing and maintaining monitoring programs relies on extensive in kind assistance and support from all jurisdictions.

National Homicide Monitoring Program

The NHMP was established in 1990 following a recommendation from the National Committee on Violence. The program collects and analyses information on all homicides (murder and manslaughter, but excluding driving causing death) in Australia. In its sixteenth year of operation, the NHMP continues to provide strategic policy and operational information on homicide in Australia.

As a data source it is recognised nationally and internationally as one of the pre-eminent homicide data collection programs. It is due to the ongoing support of all state and territory police services that the NHMP is able to maintain its position as an exemplary data collection program.

National Firearms Monitoring Program

The NFMP was established in 1997 in response to an Australian Police Ministers Council (APMC) resolution tasking the AIC with the responsibility of monitoring the effects of the firearms controls introduced by the Australian Government in 1996. The key objectives of the NFMP are to monitor trends and patterns in selected firearm related offences in Australia and to provide this information to the APMC for the timely identification and review of policy issues as they arise. The success of the NFMP is dependent upon the collaboration and assistance of police authorities from every Australian jurisdiction, the AGD and providers of information and statistics such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

During 2005-06, the AIC received additional funding from the AGD to conduct further research on firearms to seek a greater understanding of compliance with firearms legislation.

National Armed Robbery Monitoring Program

The NARMP was established as the result of a resolution by the APMC to monitor armed robbery in Australia. The main aim of the program is to examine weapon use in armed robbery, and to monitor trends and patterns over time in the commission of the offence.

This program began in 2001 following consultations with key stakeholders in the area. Since 2003, state and territory police services have forwarded armed robbery data on agreed variables to the AIC for analysis and reporting. Annual reports and occasional research reports are published, based on the data collection. In addition, biannual reports containing sensitive and/or jurisdictional based information are available to key law enforcement stakeholders on a secure AIC website.

Drug Use Monitoring in Australia

Established in 1999, DUMA currently collects quarterly drug use information from police detainees at seven sites across Australia: Southport and Brisbane (Queensland), East Perth (Western Australia), Bankstown and Parramatta (New South Wales) and Elizabeth and Adelaide City (South Australia). As a result of funding received from the Australian Government under Proceeds of Crime legislation, DUMA was able to expand to nine sites in January 2006, with the addition of sites in Melbourne and Darwin for one year.

The central objectives of DUMA include the examination of the relationship between drugs and crime and the monitoring of local drug markets and of drug use patterns by detainees across time. Funded under the Australian Government's National Illicit Drug Strategy until 2008, the success of DUMA is dependent upon the in kind assistance and continued support of the state police services involved. Funding for the Elizabeth site from the South Australian Attorney-General's Department has been confirmed until 2007.

DUMA is the only drug monitoring program in Australia that validates self report data with urine testing. The quarterly data collection provides an opportunity for policy makers and law enforcement agencies to respond to early warning indicators and emerging issues in a timely fashion.

DUMA data are disseminated to key stakeholders through newsletters, the AIC website, publications, technical workshops and presentations at conferences and police training. On the AIC website, secure web pages provide stakeholders with access to their state's data files, urine results, new drug lists, drug market charts and other relevant information.

National Deaths in Custody Program

The NDCP commenced in 1992 and produces and disseminates regular reports on the number of deaths in custody in Australia, and the patterns and trends observed in those deaths. The program examines the circumstances of deaths in prison, police custody and juvenile detention around Australia on an ongoing basis. The program is part of the Australian Government's commitment to implementing the recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC). More detail on NDCP is provided in Box 1.

National Juveniles in Detention Monitoring Program

The NJDMP provides a comprehensive annual overview of juvenile detention statistics across Australia, dating from 1981. The statistics are derived from quarterly reports on juvenile detention submitted to the AIC by the relevant juvenile justice authorities in each Australian jurisdiction. The data provided by each of these authorities contain information on the number of young people in the custody of the juvenile justice agency on the last day of each quarter in the year. Details include gender and age of juvenile, whether they are on remand or sentenced, and Indigenous status.

Crime and justice projects

The AIC conducts a range of research projects in addition to the monitoring programs. For the purposes of this annual report, the projects are grouped into the following six categories:

• offenders and offences
• victims and victimisation
• criminal justice responses
• transnational and organised crime
• economic and high tech crime
• capacity building.

The following section details key projects during 2005-06.

Offenders and offences

A major focus of the Institute's research is on offenders and specific offence types. To improve understanding of the criminal justice system it is vital to know something about the characteristics of offenders and why they commit crime. Two reports on federal offenders were completed for the Australian Law Reform Commission. Over the 12-month period a number of publications have been released resulting from research on drug use and offending histories of incarcerated offenders, and violence associated with motor vehicle use. Research has continued on bushfire arson and fisheries crime, with new projects commenced on the reintegration of Indigenous male prisoners and on the remediation of clandestine drug laboratories.

The drug use careers of offenders (DUCO) project, funded by the National Illicit Drugs Strategy through the AGD was a survey based study of incarcerated people that examined the relationship between their lifetime use of drugs and criminality. The three stages of the DUCO project covered incarcerated males, females and juveniles. All three stages have now been completed with the main report on the adult male prisoners survey released in 2003, the main report on the adult female prisoners survey released in 2004 and the main report on the juvenile survey released in 2005. The DUCO surveys are the largest ever undertaken of incarcerated adults and young people across jurisdictions in Australia.

The AIC, in partnership with the ACT Department of Justice and Community Safety and with funding from the Bushfire Cooperative Research Centre, has completed the first two years of a three-year project on bushfire arson. The project aims to develop a greater understanding of the deliberate and malicious ignition of fires in Australian bushland settings and provide an understanding of the motives, methods and circumstances of the people setting these fires. Outputs during the year included regular bushfire arson bulletins, roundtables, and conference presentations.

In 2005 the Corrective Services Administrators Conference commissioned the AIC to conduct research into the reintegration of Indigenous male prisoners that aims to identify interventions and programs in custody and upon release that may reduce the likelihood of reoffending. The project is due to be completed in 2007.

There is increasing and widespread concern about the extent and scope of illegal activity in Australia's fishing industry. The AIC was funded by the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) to examine the nature and extent of crime in Australia's fishing industry. In the first stage of the project, consultations with key stakeholders were held Australia-wide and a review was undertaken of all state, territory and Commonwealth fisheries related legislation. During 2005-06 the second phase involved a literature review and analyses of reported fisheries offences and their outcomes in selected Australian jurisdictions and of prosecution rates, and a national survey of fisheries officers.

During the year the AGD commissioned research into the remediation of clandestine laboratory sites used for illicit drug manufacture. The aim of the project is to identify current practices and processes across jurisdictions, to highlight gaps in the regulatory environment and to recommend ways to address these gaps to ensure a consistent and effective approach across Australia. The research has involved a literature and legislative review, stakeholder consultations and a national survey of key stakeholders, with the project due for completion by the end of 2006.

Victims and victimisation

To obtain a better picture of the causes and impact of crime, it is important to understand types of crime and their victims, and the risk factors surrounding victimisation. The AIC continues to report findings from international surveys of crime victimisation.

In 2005 the AIC, in collaboration with the Social Research Centre, was commissioned by VicHealth to conduct a general community survey in Victoria investigating community attitudes toward violence against women. The survey results and qualitative research will inform the development and targeting of programs and educational awareness campaigns, under VicHealth's broad policy agenda to understand and improve community attitudes relating to violence against women.

Criminal justice responses

The effectiveness of the criminal justice system and the impact of changes over time are significant areas for research from a policy and practice perspective. The AIC continues to add to the evidence base on how well the system is operating through research, evaluations and national reviews. In particular, it has been involved in a major research project over the past three years into criminal justice system responses to adult sexual assault.

In 2002, the AIC was commissioned by the then Australian Government Office of the Status of Women to conduct research into criminal justice responses to adult sexual assault. The overarching aim of the project was to inform the evidence base that underpins the Australian Government's Women's Safety Agenda. In 2005 additional funding was provided for 2005-2008. The first year of this second round of funding has focused on the criminal justice response to Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse victims of sexual assault. This has involved interviews and focus group discussions with victims as well as an online survey with service providers and support agencies.

The New South Wales Attorney General's Department commissioned the AIC in 2005 to investigate whether the impact of adult sexual assault complainant testimony on juror perceptions and decisions differs if presented via closed circuit television (CCTV), pre-recorded videotape or face-to-face in the courtroom. Prosecuting cases of sexual assault is generally difficult, and the need for victims to sometimes have to reappear in court to give the same evidence can discourage them from proceeding. This project aimed to investigate how evidence which is given via a television monitor impacts on jury decision making. Eighteen mock trials were held in a mock courtroom in which 210 members of the public participated as jurors. The findings were published in November 2005 (see Box 2).

In 2005-06 the AIC continued to evaluate drug courts in Queensland, and a report on the review of specialty courts within Australia was released. The findings of the evaluation were a significant factor in the Queensland Government's decision to move from a pilot phase to mainstreaming drug courts as part of the Queensland court system.

Policing is a crucial component at the front end of the criminal justice system, and during the year the AIC finalised two major projects on drug law enforcement. Funded by the National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund (NDLERF), the project on performance measurement in drug law enforcement aimed to strengthen current Australian approaches at the national, state and territory level. Part of this project involved testing a proposed set of enhancements at the national, state and territory level. The second project, undertaken jointly with the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, examined the policing implications of illicit drug use in rural and remote Indigenous communities and identified good policing practice to prevent and minimise harms associated with such use. The reports from these studies will be released later in 2006.

New work in 2005-06 included a project to examine criminal justice responses to substance use and offending in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.

Transnational and organised crime

In recognition of how globalisation and new technologies are influencing the nature and extent of criminal activity, since 2003 the AIC has focused some of its resources on transnational and organised crime research. The AIC has continued to provide policy-relevant assistance to other government agencies, particularly on the risks arising from money laundering. Presentations have been given and roundtables convened on a number of key issues, including people trafficking, transnational crime in the Pacific, and Russian organised crime. AIC staff have also attended a number of overseas meetings and conferences, and contributed to briefings for United Nations meetings, notably in relation to people trafficking.

The Institute has worked in collaboration with a number of law enforcement and intelligence agencies within Australia including the Australian Crime Commission (ACC), the Australian Federal Police (AFP), the AGD, Customs, the Office of National Assessments and the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC). The nature of that collaboration has included the provision of briefings on transnational crime types, the evaluation of crime and trend assessments and presentations and workshops on key issues.

Economic and high tech crime

The AIC has continued its innovative research into economic and high tech crime. Staff have delivered presentations on a variety of fraud and financial crime topics throughout the year in Australia and overseas. A project funded by the Australian Taxation Office, on serious taxation fraud prosecutions is continuing and will be completed in 2006. As part of its collaborative research, and in close cooperation with the AHTCC, the AIC provides reports and analysis for the AHTCC on issues related to fighting high tech crime in Australia. The outcomes of this research are published in a series of jointly-badged AIC/AHTCC publications, including High tech crime briefs and Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice papers, as well as various public and in-house presentations. A major body of work commenced in 2005-06 to examine future directions in high tech crime. Resource material is also being developed for prosecutors and the judiciary on high tech crime, forensic and evidentiary issues.

A book co-authored by two members of this program, Drs Russell Smith and Greg Urbas, together with Dr Peter Grabosky, entitled Cyber criminals on trial won the American Society of Criminology, Division of International Criminology's Distinguished Book Award for 2005.

Capacity building

Under the Crime Reduction and Review research program, the AIC continued to help key stakeholders build capacity to prevent and reduce crime. In addition to several studies already mentioned in the section on criminal justice responses, specific program reviews included an evaluation of the effectiveness and efficiency of the WA Government's Responsible Parenting Initiative.

Capacity building initiatives range from the establishment of collaborative research and development arrangements with partner organisations to formal workshop and conference presentations. In 2005-06 the AIC continued its collaborative research and development project with the WA OCP. The project is designed to develop processes for better linking crime prevention and community safety research to strategic policy, program implementation and evaluation functions, as well as delivering professional development opportunities for both agencies.

The AIC also continued its collaborative project with the Crime Prevention Division of the NSW Attorney General's Department to develop an improved crime prevention program management model. This project will develop a new policy-program framework that can be used to better connect research and evaluation evidence to crime prevention policy development and program delivery.

Collaborative capacity building underpins a three year agreement with the AGD, to assist with the National Community Crime Prevention Programme (NCCPP). The focus is on improving the quality of project design, evaluation and monitoring of local community initiatives. During the year the AIC was involved in conducting community workshops (see Box 3), drafting tip sheets on aspects of crime prevention and community safety, and providing input into evaluative frameworks and assessment of locally based proposals.

Building on these collaborative activities the AIC initiated a national project, in partnership with the Australian and New Zealand Crime Prevention Senior Officers Group, to establish a web based network for the exchange of crime prevention knowledge, skills and advice among professionals and practitioners. The project involves developing a register of significant crime prevention projects and a discussion forum.

The web based network will contribute to the important role played by the AIC in disseminating crime reduction information. The AICrime reduction matters series of monthly fact sheets continues to address important ideas and issues relevant to enhancing the effectiveness of crime reduction and prevention policies and programs.

During 2005-06 the Institute also continued to provide assistance to the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) on several fronts, including assessment of a range of community and business crime and justice surveys in Papua New Guinea, and on a project proposal for the south-east Asian region.

Table 4 : Summary table of 2005-06 research outputs : national monitoring programs and research projects

National monitoring programs
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
National Homicide Monitoring Program (NHMP)	1 annual report in Research and public policy series 1 journal article 3 presentations 1 Trends & issues paper	An indicator of overall levels of violence in the community An indicator of firearms related homicide An indicator of national efforts to overcome Indigenous disadvantage
National Firearms Monitoring Program (NFMP)	1 Technical and background report 3 presentations	Informs the deliberations of the APMC firearms policy working group
National Armed Robbery Monitoring Program (NARMP)	1 roundtable Annual report presented to stakeholders	Increased awareness among key stakeholders of armed robbery characteristics and trends
Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA)	1 Trends & issues paper 4 newsletters 1 technical workshop 4 presentations Maintenance of website Annual report presented to stakeholders Quarterly updates to stakeholders	Increased awareness of drug use, drug markets and links between drug use and crime in stakeholder community Data cited in numerous international and national reports including the International Narcotics Control Board report Recognition of research expertise in drugs and crime through membership in national drug advisory committees
National Deaths in Custody Program (NDICP)	1 annual report 1 Trends & issues paper	An indicator of national efforts to overcome Indigenous disadvantage Monitoring implementation and impact of various RCIADIC recommendations
National Juveniles in Detention Monitoring Program (NJDMP)	1 Technical and background report 1 presentation	Annual report on government services by the Steering Committee on Government Services uses and presents program data Used in Commonwealth Grants Commission funding process An indicator of national efforts to overcome Indigenous disadvantage
Offenders and offences
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
Drug Use Careers of Offenders (DUCO)	1 major report in Research and public policy series 1 Trends & issues paper 2 presentations	Results used to inform juvenile justice, corrections and drug policy
Violence associated with motor vehicle use	1 Trends & issues paper	Increased public and key stakeholder awareness of research challenges
Bushfire arson	15 Bushfire arson bulletins 6 presentations	Stakeholder awareness of issues increased through products
Crime in the Australian fishing industry	2 presentations Progress and final draft reports provided to DAFF	Informed legislative reviews and policy debate on compliance
Reintegration and recidivism of male Indigenous prisoners	1 roundtable	Stakeholder involvement in development of research proposal
Clandestine laboratory site remediation	1 roundtable	Increased stakeholder awareness of issues
Federal offenders	2 reports	Inform legislative review and policy developments
Victims and victimisation
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
International Crime Victimisation Survey (ICVS) - Australian component	1 Technical and background report 1 Trends & issues paper	Informing policy and practice with most up to date national information on victimisation risks and on levels of reporting to police
Drink spiking	1 presentation	Informed legislative reviews and policy deliberations in health and policing sectors Informed the Model Criminal Code Officers' Committee discussion paper on drink spiking
Criminal justice responses
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
Criminal justice responses to sexual assault in culturally and linguistically diverse communities	3 roundtables 2 presentations	Informing policy and practice reforms in the criminal justice sector and amongst key support services Increased capacity amongst key communities/service providers via involvement in research
Queensland drug courts	1 Technical and background report	Informed policy deliberations on the continuation of the drug courts, leading to permanent establishment of drug courts
Specialty courts	1 Trends & issues paper	Informed policy deliberations on the continuation of specialty courts
Policing implications of illicit drug use in rural and remote Indigenous communities	Report submitted to NDLERF Board 1 presentation
Performance measurement in drug law enforcement	Report submitted to NDLERF Board
Analysis of ACT family violence intervention program data	1 roundtable Report submitted to ACT Department of Justice and Community Safety
Use of video/CCTV to present evidence of adult sexual assault victims	1 major report in Research and public policy series	Informed policy debate and legislative reform on the use of video/CCTV
Criminal trials: outcomes of initial listing	1 roundtable
Transnational and organised crime
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
Transnational and organised crime	2 Trends & issues papers 3 roundtables 4 journal articles 15 presentations	Facilitated collaboration between key stakeholders Increased awareness among key stakeholders of TOC issues Informed law enforcement training
Economic and high tech crime
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
Economic crime	1 Trends & issues paper 1 roundtable 8 presentations 3 journal articles	Facilitated collaboration between key stakeholders Increased awareness among key stakeholders of fraud and identity theft
High tech crime	2 Trends & issues papers 2 roundtables 1 workshop 3 journal articles 1 book chapter 21 presentations	Facilitated collaboration between key stakeholders Increased awareness amongst key stakeholders of high tech crime issues Informed law enforcement training Raised public awareness of online child pornography
Capacity building
Programs/projects	Key outputs	Outcome/impact indicators
Evaluation of the WA Responsible Parenting Initiative	Reports provided to WA Premier's Department
Collaborative research and development project with WA Office of Crime Prevention (OCP)	Evaluation material provided to WA OCP	Improved planning and project frameworks by WA OCP
National Community Crime Prevention Programme (NCCPP) research collaboration	3 community workshops Crime prevention tip sheets Evaluation framework	Improved community based crime prevention design and implementation Increased awareness among key sectors of grants program
Juvenile remand in detention, Tasmania	Report provided to the Tasmanian Commissioner for Children	Informed policy debate on juvenile remand and related issues
AusAID community crime and justice survey in PNG	Advice to AUSAID	Improved research instrument

Public Affairs

Objectives

The primary objectives of Public Affairs are to:

• publish, disseminate and promote the Institute's research, products and capabilities
• conduct cost-effective conferences, roundtables and seminars.

Specific activities include:

• publishing
• dissemination and promotion of AIC work
• media liaison
• seminars, roundtable discussions and conferences
• administration of the Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards
• provision of administrative support to the Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards
• administering AIC internships.

Publishing

The Institute meets the Minister's expectations on the dissemination of research findings through a variety of approaches, including presentations, conferences and, most significantly, publications. The AIC has a number of publication series, each in a different format, from the fortnightly, single page Crime facts info sheets to the longer, in-depth Research and public policy series. The goal of these activities is to ensure that the research findings produced by AIC researchers are disseminated to key stakeholders and the public in the most efficient and effective fashion.

During the 2005-06 financial year, the AIC continued to produce quality relevant publications in a timely fashion including:

• Australian crime: facts and figures 2005
• 27 reports
• 53 fact sheets
• 3 newsletters
• the 2004-05 annual reports of the AIC and of the Criminology Research Council.

The AIC also produces reports to clients on a consulting basis. A full list of AIC publications is provided in Appendix 1. Articles and papers by staff in non-AIC publications are listed in Appendix 2.

Print versions of AIC publications are available for sale from the AIC. Electronic versions of all publications are available on the AIC's website at: http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/

Publication and review process

All publications are subject to a rigorous refereeing process before they are accepted for publication. Drafts are reviewed by AIC staff including the Director and senior analysts; some are also sent to external reviewers. The AIC has been accepted by the Department of Education, Science and Training as an accredited publisher for purposes of university funding under the higher education research data collection requirements. This accreditation covers the peer reviewed, and commercially published Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice and Research and public policy series.

Dissemination and promotion of AIC work

The AIC has continued to hold relevant conferences, occasional seminars and roundtables. These are attended by groups including researchers, law enforcement agencies, policy makers and practitioners.

In addition to the more structured roundtables and conferences, the Director and staff have disseminated AIC work in the form of presentations to meetings of criminal justice practitioners, government agencies, academics, politicians and other interested parties. These presentations are listed in Appendix 3.

AIC material is also disseminated through the AIC's email alerting service. Subscribers to this service receive all fact sheets and notifications of any new AIC releases or events.

Conferences

The main AIC conference during the year was Delivering crime prevention: making the evidence work, 21-22 November 2005, Sydney. This conference was organised by the AIC in conjunction with the Crime Prevention Division of the New South Wales Attorney General's Department. It examined the role of evidence based policy (EBP) approaches in the development and delivery of crime prevention policies and programs in Australia today. The different models for EBP programs were critically assessed in terms of their appropriateness and effectiveness in informing and improving practical crime prevention policy. Barriers to the successful implementation of evidence based initiatives were reviewed and possible solutions explored.

Keynote addresses were given by the University of St Andrews' Sandra Nutley, Brendan Thomas of the Attorney General's Department of New South Wales, Dr Don Weatherburn of the New South Wales Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, Griffith University's Professor Ross Homel, and the Australian National University's Dr Peter Grabosky.

The AIC was also a partner in three other conferences during the year.

Understanding and responding to chronic youth offending, 27 October 2005, Adelaide. Convened by the SA Office of Crime Statistics and Research, the conference aimed to develop a better understanding of chronic offenders and what works in responding to their particular needs.

Australian Institute of Judicial Administration family violence conference, 23-24 February 2006, Adelaide. Organised by the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration this conference examined the conduct of court proceedings in family violence matters including the examination of witnesses, the ability of the justice system to deal with such matters and the needs of the victims of family violence.

Court drug diversion initiatives conference 25-26 May 2006, Brisbane. This conference was held by the Queensland Department of Justice and Attorney-General. It examined court sentencing options such as court diversion (for minor possession), MERIT (a mid range intervention response) and drug court (intensive intervention) and investigated the concept of therapeutic jurisprudence.

Papers from these conferences are on the AIC's website at http://www.aic.gov.au/conferences

Roundtable discussions

Roundtable discussions are workshops designed to facilitate exploration of contemporary issues related to public policy by experts and stakeholders. The AIC organises these discussions to develop and maintain a common and current knowledge base relating to significant issues and to encourage strategic information sharing between policy and program agencies and practitioners.

Fifteen roundtables were held this financial year.

'Russian' organised crime, 22 July 2005. The AIC hosted this roundtable which drew together those law enforcement agencies for which so-called 'Russian' organised crime might be, or might become, an issue of interest. The aims of the roundtable included determining the current state of knowledge, considering the various alternative definitions of 'Russian' organised crime (including Eurasian, East-European and Former Soviet Union organised crime) and establishing its potential threats to Australia and the Asia-Pacific region.

Pacific crime and justice, 9 August 2005. This roundtable involved representatives from a number of government agencies concerned with the issues of law and justice in the Pacific Islands. Participants identified research undertaken in the region and strategies to build capacity.

Illegal drugs and development: critical issues for Asia and the Pacific policy, 17 August 2005. Hosted by the Development Studies Network (ANU) with support and contributions from the AIC, this roundtable began with a number of short presentations on key issues from countries and included country and regional perspectives on key themes including the linkages between poverty and drug use/production, drugs, human and sex trades, and economic development and the drugs trade. The roundtable discussion highlighted incorporation of developmental issues into policies for addressing drugs, and the need for cross-jurisdictional cooperation and legislative strategies and the development of a best practice model for the region.

Australian Consumer Fraud Taskforce private sector, 25 August 2005. In conjunction with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the AIC hosted a roundtable discussion with private sector stakeholders on behalf of the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce. The taskforce is a recently established network of government agencies, at national and state/territory level, with an interest in enhancing the role of government and the private sector in reducing the impact of consumer related fraud and scams in Australia and New Zealand. Private sector organisations were invited to the roundtable as they have a key financial interest in minimising fraud perpetrated against their customers.

Criminal trials and case management, 27 September 2005. This roundtable involved criminal justice representatives from every Australian state and territory. At the conclusion of the roundtable the state and territory delegates approved a two stage research agenda including the collection of data from existing criminal court databases and a consultation schedule including key stakeholders from all jurisdictions.

Justice, equity and diversity: the criminal justice response to sexual violence in diverse communities, 25-26 October 2005. Two consecutive roundtables were held to discuss the criminal justice response to sexual violence in diverse communities. The first roundtable focused on an effective criminal justice response to adult female victims/survivors of sexual violence from Indigenous communities and the second explored the criminal justice response to victims/survivors from culturally and linguistically diverse communities.

DUMA technical meeting, 10-11 November 2005. The AIC once again hosted this roundtable, which functions as the annual technical meeting for the DUMA project. The first day consisted of an overview and discussion of developments in the DUMA dataset and questionnaire with data collectors and the DUMA team. The second day included presentations by participants involved in government, research and police services, highlighting the different needs and uses of the DUMA data for these stakeholders.

NARMP, 31 March 2006. The AIC held this roundtable discussion to gather stakeholder feedback on the National Armed Robbery Program, specifically regarding information on the AIC secure website and a draft annual report, to ensure the program was meeting stakeholder requirements.

Clandestine laboratory site remediation, 31 March 2006. At this roundtable, it was agreed that Phase 2 of the project would involve detailed jurisdictional based research and consultation in three states (WA, Victoria and Tasmania) to ensure that the research would cover variations in size of jurisdiction and the number and type of clandestine laboratories seized.

Reintegration of Indigenous offenders, 28 April 2006. The purpose of this roundtable was to provide information to correctional service representatives (state, territory and New Zealand) on the project proposal, gather feedback, garner support for conducting the research and determine how the AIC could gain access for interviews and data from their jurisdictions.

Evidentiary issues in high tech crime, 19 May 2006. As part of its work for the AHTCC, the AIC hosted this workshop. The workshop examined, analysed and discussed a number of issues which may have an impact upon the success of technology-enabled crime prosecutions.

Police and DPP criminal justice responses to sexual violence in diverse communities, 23 May 2006. This roundtable was held to discuss key issues that characterise cultural competence and good practice on the part of police services and offices of the Directors of Public Prosecutions (DPPs) in relation to victims/survivors of sexual violence from diverse communities. The AIC presented an overview of the results of the cultural competence questionnaires sent out to all police services and DPPs. This presentation generated discussion among participants and led into a broader consideration of good and culturally competent practices.

Courts' responses to Indigenous and CALD victims/survivors of sexual violence, 29 May 2006. The aim of this roundtable was to promote effective court responses to adult female victims/survivors of sexual violence from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) and Indigenous communities. It involved considering how the current practices could be improved and the barriers and challenges that need to be overcome.

Future directions in high tech crime, 26 May 2006. A number of organisations provided their perspectives on the impact of high tech crime within their spheres of operation. Discussion was held on the future digital environment (including consideration of technology and m- and e-commerce), digital security (including the corporate, private and critical infrastructure contexts), the likely characteristics and extent of high tech crime (including consideration of organised high tech crime), evidentiary issues (including the difficulties of detection, retrieval, analysis and pursuing prosecutions) and organisational issues (including capacity and inherent operational pathologies).

Family violence intervention project, 2 June 2006. As a member of the ACT FVIP Consultative Committee, the AIC hosted this roundtable on behalf of the Office of the Victims of Crime Co-ordinator. The roundtable provided a statistical overview from the AFP and the other program contributors. Agreement on the research priorities was reached, with those priorities being evaluating effectiveness; determining recidivism and risk; determining victim views and experiences.

Seminars

Occasional seminars are held at the Institute on a variety of topics. Speakers are generally visiting Canberra and are invited to make a short presentation to AIC staff and invited participants on their areas of expertise. Appendix 4 lists public seminars hosted by the AIC this financial year. Details of AIC seminars can be found at http://www.aic.gov.au/conferences/occasional. The AIC also held a number of in-house seminars over the past 12 months where staff presented findings from their research or papers to be delivered to other meetings.

Media liaison

The AIC continues to be consulted on a wide range of criminological issues by the media. This contact involves the media seeking comment on AIC work, other agencies' work and general background information and statistics on crime within Australia. Table 5 shows the extent of this contact.

Table 5 : Media liaison

Number of media requests	279
Number of media interviews	52
Number of media releases	12
Number of releases of AIC products by the Minister/other Ministers	3

Copies of all media releases are on the AIC's website at http://www.aic.gov.au/media

Considerable media attention focused on AIC work, with the most media queries received relating to firearms, homicide, identity fraud, drink spiking and bushfire arson. Apart from assisting the media more broadly with background information, staff gave 52 media interviews on subjects including firearms, homicide, bushfire arson, identity fraud, DUCO, farm crime and the mock jury trials.

Newspaper articles during the year covered a wide range of AIC work and publications, including juveniles in the criminal justice system, homicide, the mock jury trials, firearms, identity theft, missing persons, illegal fishing and road violence, among others.

Over the financial year 2005-06, the AIC was mentioned substantively 19 times in Hansard, the record of Australian parliamentary proceedings. The topics relating to AIC work which appear in Hansard for this period include illegal fishing, violence against women, firearms, cost of crime, and the AIC-run NARMP and DUCO programs.

Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards

The annual Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards are designed to reward good practice in the prevention or reduction of violence and other types of crimes in Australia, to encourage public initiatives and to assist governments identify and develop practical projects that will reduce violence and other types of crime in the community. The annual awards are sponsored by the heads of Australian Governments and members of the Australian and New Zealand Crime Prevention Ministerial Forum as a joint Australian Government, state and territory initiative. They include monetary awards totalling $129,000.

The 2005 Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards were presented to the winners by Senator the Hon. Chris Ellison, Minister for Justice and Customs and Senator for Western Australia, on Thursday 10 November 2005. Three projects were selected as national winners:

Circle Sentencing Nowra (New South Wales)

Rather than a magistrate sitting alone, respected members of the Aboriginal community who have a close association or kinship with the offender sit in a circle in a community setting to discuss the underlying causes of the offender's behaviour. Offenders who participate in the program must discuss the circumstances surrounding the offences they have committed. Victims are invited to participate in the process but their involvement is not mandatory. As with a standard sentencing, court legal representation for the offender remains as do police prosecutor and other agencies relevant to the sentencing process.

Shepparton Koori Court (Victoria)

The Koori Court operates as a special sentencing court within the Shepparton Magistrate's Court to create an informal atmosphere and allow greater participation by the Koori community through a Koori elder and respected person, an Aboriginal justice worker, Koori offenders and their families. It aims to reduce perceptions of cultural alienation and tailor sentences to the cultural needs of Koori offenders and operates by encouraging as many service providers as possible, as well as members of both the Koori and wider community to be involved in both the sentencing process and support assistance programs. The court identifies the causal issues facing an offender and includes the offender in that identification. It encourages offenders to take ownership of their underlying difficulties and work in partnership with the relevant service providers to address the issues concerned.

Operation Burglary Countdown (Western Australia)

This project was a burglary reduction pilot project which was conducted in two hotspot locations for 12 months. The objectives were to reduce the incidence of burglary and repeat burglary overall in the pilot sites, improve the response to burglary by state, territory and local governments and the community, improve community understanding of burglary and the importance of accurate and timely reporting of crime to police. It was based on a multi-agency partnership approach to crime prevention and specifically sought to make a greater impact on the wider community through a series of processes aimed at reducing offenders' confidence in conducting a successful burglary, making the crime more difficult to commit and making apprehension and conviction more likely.

Internships

Summer interns are selected from students at Australian universities in their last or second last year of study. Internships are intended to provide the students with a working knowledge of the AIC. This year, the AIC appointed six work experience interns, who undertook a range of tasks relating to crime prevention initiatives and their effectiveness in working with at risk youth and young offenders; armed robbery; intelligence, terrorism and organised crime; taxation fraud prosecutions; and sexual assault. One intern assisted with the development of a crime reduction website.

Through the Australian National Internships Program, a student from the Australian National University was hosted and supervised at the AIC in the first half of 2006. This placement produced an 8,000 word essay on the use of pharmacotherapies with offenders.

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