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It is now generally accepted that crimes which are reported to the police may under-represent levels and patterns of crime occurring in the community. Many crimes go unreported to the police, meaning that not only is an accurate description of crime difficult to obtain, but the overall picture of crime that we do obtain may be biased. This is particularly a problem for police and government agencies that must use valuable resources to combat crime problems based on their understanding of where crime is occurring and the types of crime that occur.

Foreword | The Australian Institute of Criminology has spent a number of years working with crime prevention agencies across Australia reviewing large-scale programs that involve the delivery of varying activities directed at the prevention of crime. Taken as a whole, this experience has shown that, despite good intentions and aspirations to evidence-based practice, both the level and quality of evaluations have been limited by several practical challenges.

Foreword | In 2006, the Australian Government introduced the Anti-money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act 2006 (Cth) which increased regulatory controls over businesses potentially able to facilitate organised criminal activities such as money laundering. The implementation of tougher legislation and associated law enforcement interventions may result in criminal organisations adjusting their tactics in order to continue their activities without detection.

Foreword | Crime victimisation surveys have emerged over the past few decades as an important research tool to help provide a picture of crime that is independent of police statistics. In 2004 the Australian Institute of Criminology managed the Australian component of the International Crime Victimisation Survey (ICVS) which interviewed 7,000 people about their experience and perceptions of crime and the criminal justice system.

Foreword | Research from Australia and overseas consistently demonstrates that the effectiveness of many crime prevention initiatives is reduced by a continual lack of access to adequate crime prevention knowledge and technical skills. In particular, the internationalisation of crime has highlighted the need for renewed effort aimed at increasing the efficiency of knowledge transfer, skills development, project and program management ability, and performance measurement and evaluation capacity.

Foreword | Public concern about crime victimisation is one of a range of factors that policymakers take into account when creating new criminal offences, setting penalties and allocating resources for policing and prosecution. The level of public concern about rising crime can also determine the extent to which people engage in certain daily activities, sometimes restricting behaviour unnecessarily.

Contents

• Introduction
• The ageing of the Australian population
• Crime prevention in theory
• Crime prevention in practice
• Fear reduction
• Elder abuse
• Older people as the focus of policy attention

Foreword | Farm crime has a significant effect on the farming industry and community as a whole, especially in times of hardship such as drought. In order to understand how significant farm crime is in Australia, the Australian Institute of Criminology is conducting three annual surveys on farm crime. This paper summarises the results from the second National Farm Crime Survey (NFCS). A total of 1309 broadacre and dairy farms were surveyed about their experiences of crime between 1 July 2001 and 30 June 2002.

Foreword

In the past a rather gloomy picture of close-knit migrant communities, particularly in urban or industrial areas, has been painted. Biased media reporting and prejudice in wider society have depicted minority group enclaves as suffering from crime, disorder and inter-cultural conflict.

Foreword | In Australia, crime prevention is primarily the responsibility of state and territory governments. What is less well understood is the significant role of local government in developing and delivering crime prevention at the community level, although councils have long been involved in helping to create safer communities.

Foreword | Problem solving methodology is at the heart of crime prevention strategies used by law enforcement agencies across Australia and around the world. The technique typically involves a systematic use of solid data and extensive progress evaluation, with an emphasis on theory, contextuality, and implementation. This paper uses existing literature to highlight the place of problem solving in crime prevention, and the need for flexibility, responsiveness, and the need for an understanding of context in using problem solving techniques.

Foreword | Crime Stoppers Victoria (CSV) commenced in 1987 and is "a community-based initiative which encourages members of the public to provide information on unsolved crimes, wanted people and people they know are involved in criminal activity"(www.vic.crimestoppers.com.au). It is one of over 1000 Crime Stoppers programs around the world all of which provide a mechanism for citizens to pass information anonymously to the police by phone.

A popular urban view of rural life is that it represents an escape from much of what makes life in the cities seem so unpleasant and difficult. This includes crime. Unfortunately, as is so often the case with popular beliefs, the reality is somewhat different. Until recently, there has been little empirical evidence to document the extent of farm crime in Australia.

Foreword | As part of their community-oriented policing strategy, the Queensland police service has implemented 49 police beat shopfronts in shopping centres and central business districts across Queensland. While several evaluations of police beats have previously been conducted, findings on the effectiveness of police shopfronts in reducing crime have not been conclusive. It is argued that a reliance on changes in official reporting to police may not be an adequate measure of the impact of police shopfronts on crime.