Search

References

Download paper: Alcohol and disorder in the Australian community: part I - victims

Foreword | To date, research on stalking has focused almost exclusively on adults. This paper examines the nature of stalking among adolescents to determine the characteristics of stalkers and their victims and the utility of intervention orders for managing this behaviour. Its findings indicate that a majority of perpetrators are male and almost all victims know their stalker, with prior relationships including ex-school peers, family members, ex-intimate partners and former friends.

A new report by the Australian Institute of Criminology (Taylor 2007) examines the juror beliefs and attitudes that often shape the outcome of sexual assault trials. As illustrated below, the report shows that sexual assault trials are more likely to result in an acquittal than in a guilty verdict in the higher courts; this occurs in more than half of the cases brought to the higher courts. The figure also shows that acquittals have been more common in sexual assault cases than in all other serious offences in the past three years.

Foreword | International research suggests alcohol consumption increases the number of homicides and that homicides involving alcohol differ significantly to non alcohol-related homicides. The current study sought to build on the limited Australian research on alcohol-related homicide by examining solved homicides recorded in the National Homicide Monitoring Program over a six year period.

There have been no published studies in Australia focusing on the offending history of arsonists, but a number of international studies have looked at arson and repeat offending. These studies have relied on samples of convicted arsonists, including those in prison and those receiving treatment in hospitals. However, many arsonists are not caught, and those who are may not necessarily face court or be sent to prison. This means that arsonists who are studied in prison or hospitals may not be representative of all arsonists.

Foreword | Problem-oriented justice seeks to incorporate innovative court practices to tackle offenders' behaviour and problems associated with offending. Over the last decade, the primary means of implementing such practices has been through the development of specialty courts. This paper presents an overview of the challenges associated with implementing aspects of specialty courts in the mainstream criminal justice system. The key issues explored are the need to promote equity of access, resourcing and the role of the judicial officer.