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People detained by police are more likely to test positive to drugs if they have previously been arrested or in prison, according to a report released by the Australian Institute of Criminology. Figures show that of the detainees who tested positive to any drug (including cannabis, amphetamines, benzodiazepines, opiates, methadone and MDMA), 63 per cent had been arrested in the past 12 months, compared with 40 per cent of detainees who did not test positive to drugs.

Key findings

• The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) interviewed 842 detainees about their first experience of drug use as part of the AIC’s Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) program. Detainees were asked to recount the reasons why they first tried drugs, as well as why they continued to use them. Those detainees who had abstained were asked to nominate the factors that were important in their decision to not use drugs.

In partnership with the Minister for Home Affairs, the Hon Karen Andrews MP, and state and territory police commissioners, the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) today awarded 12 Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards to police and community-led projects across the nation in a virtual ceremony.

Between 1999 and 2006, a total of 24,936 police detainees were surveyed as part of the Australian Institute of Criminology's Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) program. Of these, 1,689 detainees (7%) reported living on the street, having no fixed address or living in crisis accommodation at the time of their apprehension.

Foreword | Technology has both facilitated and impeded the investigation of crime, particularly high tech crime involving computing and communications technologies. On the one hand, computers have enabled vast amounts of data to be searched and analysed quickly, and have permitted documents and files to be scanned and transmitted across the globe in seconds.

The Blue Rose Project today received a silver award in the police-led category of the 2023 Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards (ACVPAs).

The ACVPAs recognise best practice in the prevention or reduction of violence and other types of crime in Australia and play a vital role in highlighting effective community-based initiatives to prevent crime and violence before it occurs.

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 | The Australian heavy vehicle industry is critical to the movement of people, freight, livestock and other goods. However, every year there are deaths and serious injuries on Australian roads, some of which are caused by speeding heavy vehicles.

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.

The winners of the 2007 Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Awards were announced on 23 October. The annual awards are sponsored by the heads of Australian governments and members of the Ministerial Council for Police and Emergency Management - Police (MCPEMP) to recognise outstanding work in the prevention or reduction of violence and other types of crime. The awards encourage public crime reduction initiatives and assist governments in developing practical projects to reduce crime in Australian communities. The 2007 national award category winners were:

This quarterly news magazine of the Australian Institute of Criminology replaced the Institute's Newsletter.

Vol. 1 No. 1 1979 - Vol. 8 No. 4 1987

The following documents are available only in PDF format.

Volume 8 Number 4 : December 1987

29 April-10 May 1974

Contents

Papers of the seminar

• Training for crime control personnel
  Harold G. Weir
• Account of the United Nations Asia and Far East Institute involvement
  V.N. Pillai
• Police training for tomorrow
  R.A. Wilson
• The significance of diversion from the traditional criminal justice process
  Benedict S. Alper
• Law training for correctional personnel?
  Mary W. Daunton-Fear
• Some aspects of the effectiveness of training for correctional personnel
  V.N. Pillai

Contents

• Acknowledgements
• Acronyms and abbreviations
• Introduction
• Deaths in prison custody
• Deaths in police custody and custody-related operations
• References
• Appendix A: Methodology
• Appendix B: Deaths in custody 2015-16 key findings: Data tables
• Appendix C: Data tables