Justice System
Two months ago, NSW Attorney General Greg Smith promised to keep 14 high risk violent offenders behind bars beyond their sentences. Today, The Daily Telegraph revealed that half of them have already been released.
Announcements like this may grab headlines (and did) and evoke emphatic nods from the public, but locking away inmates indefinitely is not based on any sense. Just speak to anyone who spends their days and nights helping a sex offender find a place to live and a job.
Longer sentences are a proven vote winner, but they do not address the key issue of what to do with ex-prisoners. If Corrective Services NSW and similar departments in other states were really interested in reducing re-offending, they would spend more time and resources on rehabilitation and reintegration policies.
Continue reading "Longer jail terms make harder criminals" »
Australian leaders like to claim, disingenuously, that a characteristic of the alliance with America is that Australia reserves the right to object, in a friendly if forceful way, with US policy or decisions.
No such objections have ever been publically expressed. It is time to test it.
An Australian citizen is in real trouble abroad. Julian Assange faces decades in prison in the US, which has an atrocious record for grabbing foreign suspects and holding them long years without trial.
Continue reading "Assange is no hero, but he deserves better from our govt" »
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Paul Toohey says:
Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, stands accused of the rape and sexual assault of one woman and the sexual assault of another, in Sweden in August 2010. The most serious allegation is that Assange attempted to have sex with one of the women while she was sleeping. That she was… Read more »
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renold says:
Perhaps you should have a look into the two who brought those accusations, then ask why his case was dismissed and then ask why he suddenly was wanted for questioning and by whom. Read more »
Kat Armstrong was a heroin addict, disowned by her only daughter and serving a prison sentence of ten years.
Vulnerable to relapse, with no support, no money, no home and no skills, her biggest challenge was returning to the real world.
Clean for eight years, reunited with her daughter and mentoring other women inmates all over NSW, Armstrong’s journey is exceptional. The fact that she’s still alive is amazing.
Continue reading "Do the crime, do the time. So where’s the long-term fix?" »
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Carolyn says:
Yours are good suggestions. If you’re interested in prisoners and what might make a positive impact on them, you might be interested in The 4th Annual National Prisoner’s Family Conference, to be held in Albuquerque next February, See http://www.solutionsforelpaso.org or check Prisoners Family Conference on Facebook for details. Read more »
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Primy says:
By my count Bob 66, that’s eleven people who have been reached by you. You may never know it, probably won’t, but there may be ripples running out of your story/life that reaches other people and makes a difference. We have read your thoughts, and we have been moved enough… Read more »
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