The Drug Use Monitoring in Australia (DUMA) project provides police, policy-makers, criminal justice practitioners and other professionals with systematic empirical data on illegal drug use among people detained and brought to a police station or watchhouse at seven sites throughout Australia. The report provides an overview of detainees at each site, including self-reported drug use...

Increasing cannabis availability in rural and remote areas has extended a thriving illicit drug trade to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander settlements in some of Australia’s most isolated regions. From little more than a trickle a decade ago, the fl ow of cannabis to outlying settlements is gathering momentum. Even very remote locations now have...

In recent years, legislative reforms have been introduced that seek to restrict the number of weapons in the community. These reforms have centred on knives carried in public places and on firearm ownership and possession. The focus on knives is of particular importance, as according to statistics for both homicides and armed robberies they are...

Specialty courts are a response of the criminal justice system to specific problem behaviours and associated issues, such as drug use or domestic violence. Jason Payne examines the history and development of the specialty court concept in Australia. It shows that the programs, although having the same overall aim of reducing reoffending, have significantly different...

Despite overseas media headlines labelling Australia as an unsafe place to visit, this paper by John Venditto and Jenny Mouzos provides factual information indicating that the risk of homicide victimisation faced by tourists who visit Australia is extremely low. Those most likely to be victims of homicide are young males, reflecting the general profile of...