Australia

OPINION: New research suggests that Australians living in rural areas are more likely to support tougher penalties for crime than those in the cities; Caitlan Davey, Dr Kyle Mulrooney and Dr Sue Watt explain the reasons behind this divide, the implications for policing and the criminal justice system, and what can be done to address it.

FEATURE: A new report into male victim-survivor views on the criminalisation of coercive control in Australia, published by an international team of researchers, has highlighted both the majority support for new legislation, but also concerns about the potential misuse or ineffectiveness of an offence of coercive control, unless there is “whole of system change” across the criminal justice sector, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: With a growing drive in Australia for a co-responder rather than police-first response to those in mental health crisis, University of Melbourne Research Officer Dr Panos Karanikolas, and La Trobe University’s Dr Chris Maylea and Hamilton Kennedy, explore what works better and where, with research suggesting people with lived experience of mental health issues want more than ambulances replacing the police as crisis responders.

ANALYSIS: A unique study in Queensland, Australia, followed more than 80,000 people born in 1983 and 1984 to understand who offended and how their offending patterns changed over time; Griffith University PhD candidate Ayda Kuluk explores the findings from the research, the gender differences in criminal offending, and how this knowledge can be used to improve the targeting of crime prevention programs and interventions.

King's Birthday Honours: We are pleased to publish and recognise New Zealand and Australian policing recipients of the 2025 King's Birthday Honours. The team at Policing Insight offer our congratulations and thank all the recipients for their service.

OPINION: A lawsuit heard in the Supreme Court this month regarding “degrading and humiliating” unlawful strip searches carried out by New South Wales Police has again highlighted the issue of police sexism in Australia; Deakin University Associate Criminology Lecturer Dr Michael Cain argues that forces across the country are failing to learn from previous inquiries into sexism, and suggests that an independent police ombudsman to investigate complaints could be the best solution.

FEATURE: Queensland Police Service has published its response to the review carried out by the Queensland Human Rights Commission (QHRC), with the majority of the QHRC’s recommendations around addressing systemic discrimination being accepted and implemented by the Service, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: Blended or hybrid radical ideologies that comprise seemingly separate beliefs are increasingly impacting younger audiences, and providing motivation for violent extremism; with misogynistic and anti-feminist views often overlapping these ideologies, Astrid Young, research intern at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, warns that Australia needs a targeted policy response to deter young people from extremism.

ANALYSIS: Organised crime groups are defrauding consumers and retail businesses across the US of millions out of dollars through gift card fraud – a crime largely overlooked in many other countries, but which former Deputy Assistant Director for the US Department of Homeland Security Raul Aguilar believes will soon be affecting Australia, New Zealand and the UK, as he told Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons.

FEATURE: A review of the use of body-worn video by New South Wales Police, carried out by the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission, is calling for the activation of cameras to be mandatory rather than discretionary as is currently the case in some situations, with the force also urged to ensure standard operating instructions are clear and consistent to provide more clarity both for officers and complainants, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: Victoria’s Supreme Court recently decided to keep Abdul Nacer Benbrika – Australia’s most notorious terrorist – under an extended supervision order, after police surveillance highlighted his continuing radical intent; but the lack of coverage of the case has prompted warnings from Dr John Coyne, Henry Campbell and Justin Bassi of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), who argue that such successes should help to reassure the public that Australia’s counter-terrorism policy is working well.

ANALYSIS: An independent review of the South Australian domestic violence disclosure scheme (DVDS), delivered in partnership by Domestic and Family Violence Services and South Australia Police, has found applications to the scheme have more than doubled in six years, and it achieved a 99% satisfaction rate from applicants, with reviewers urging other jurisdictions looking to implement DVDS schemes or review existing ones to use the South Australian initiative as their model, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

OPINION: New South Wales Supreme Court recently found a police officer guilty of the manslaughter of a 95-year-old care home resident, who died a week after being Tasered by the officer; Deakin University Criminology Lecturer Dr Emma Ryan believes the case represents a watershed moment in the debates around police use of force, what the public expects of police, and how courts choose to reinforce those expectations.

INTERVIEW: With the continuing advances and availability of 3D printing technology, New Zealand Police National Intelligence Director Dan Wildy spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the importance of the multi-disciplinary approaches being taken by the service in tackling a growing firearms threat favoured by organised crime groups, and the value of international collaboration.

OPINION: The ’ndrangheta – the Calabrian Mafia – has a long history of involvement in cocaine trafficking and other illegal activities in Australia, with networks that also stretch into Europe, North America and Latin America; University of Essex Professor of Criminology Dr Anna Sergi, an expert on the ’ndrangheta, looks at the organisation’s two different operating models, its efforts to integrate and diversify into legitimate business, and what law enforcement and legislators can do to tackle its influence and activities.

OPINION: The discovery of a caravan full of explosives in Sydney had raised serious fears about potential terrorism, but after a series of raids this week the Australian Federal Police described this and 14 antisemitic attacks as a “con job” carried out by organised crime groups; Griffith University Associate Professor Dr Keiran Hardy looks at why – despite generating terror in the community – these incidents have not resulted in terrorism charges, and how lesser charges can still result in justice.

INNOVATION: In the remotest parts of Australia – as in many other countries – using a mobile phone to contact the emergency services via calls or text messages has not been an option; but ahead of this year’s election, the Australian Government has promised to mandate mobile carriers in the country to work with low Earth orbit satellites to provide access to mobile voice, SMS and the Triple Zero (000) service almost everywhere across Australia, as RMIT University Associate Professor Dr Mark A Gregory explains.

FEATURE: A tri-agency response to those in mental health crisis involving members of the police, ambulance and clinical services has been further expanded across Tasmania after implementation of the approach in other parts of the state successfully reduced the need for individuals to be restrained or involuntarily detained in hospital, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

INTERVIEW: Just over two years after taking up her post as the first female officer to lead Tasmania Police, Commissioner Donna Adams spoke to Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons about the innovative changes to recruitment and retention, the dangers of “scope creep” across the service, and the need to learn from the past while looking to the future in order to build trust in the force.

OPINION: With the terrorist threat level in Australia sitting at ‘probable’, former Australian Secretary of Home Affairs Michael Pezzullo warns that the current confusion over responsibility for counter-terrorism in the country is weakening security – particularly in relation to the anti-Semitic terror threat – and sets out 10 steps the government needs to take to address the problem.

ANALYSIS: The Australian Government published a new counter-terrorism (CT) and counter-violent extremism (CVE) strategy last month, with surprisingly little publicity; Henry Campbell of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) believes that the new document is both light on CT policy and lacking in strategy, and fails to meet the new and evolving terrorist threat facing Australia.

FEATURE: A new report by the Queensland Human Rights Commission warns that Queensland Police Service must address issues of “systemic” discrimination and inequality that have become “deeply entrenched” in its culture if the organisation is to recruit and retain the talent it needs to deliver the level of service required in modern policing, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

FEATURE: A new study by the Australian Institute of Criminology exploring the views of victim/survivors of coercive control finds that the overwhelming majority back calls for such actions and manipulation to be criminalised to enable earlier and more effective interventions by police and others in the criminal justice system, despite acknowledging fears over disproportionality, as Policing Insight’s Sarah Gibbons reports.

Australia Day Honours: We are pleased to publish and recognise the policing recipients of the 2025 Australia Day Honours. The team at Policing Insight offer our congratulations and thank all the recipients for their service and contribution to their communities.