Crime Risk Assessments in New South Wales

Crime prevention through environmental design (CPTED) guidelines have been adopted in numerous jurisdictions around the world. In 2001, guidelines were introduced in New South Wales (Australia) to ensure that proposed developments/redevelopments of the built environment reflected key CPTED principles. The guidelines state that in certain circumstances a crime risk assessment is required for the proposed development and the resulting report forms part of the development application, which is reviewed by the relevant consent authority (a council or state government department depending upon the size of the development). To date, these guidelines have not been evaluated, making it impossible to assess their impact and the utility of the associated crime risk assessment reports. Moreover, much of the academic literature on CPTED has historically tended to focus on the implementation of CPTED strategies and not on the processes adopted pre-development. To partially fill this gap in knowledge, a small number (4) of publicly available crime risk assessment reports have been reviewed here and key issues highlighted. In particular, the relevance of some aspects of these reports is questioned, as is the impact of the relationship between the client (i.e. developer) commissioning the report and the findings of the ‘independent’ consultant. The small sample of risk assessment reports randomly selected for review cannot be considered representative of the larger body of such reports. Nonetheless, the insights generated from this exercise should be of interest to policy makers and practitioners engaged in this work.     

Damages in medical litigation in New South Wales

In the period 2001 to 2003, the New South Wales legislature enacted four Acts that impinge on the assessment of damages in litigation against health professionals. They are the Health Care Liability Act 2001 (NSW), the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) (as originally enacted), the Civil Liability Amendment (Personal Responsibility) Act 2002 (NSW) and the Civil Liability Amendment Act 2003 (NSW). This article considers the principles on which damages are assessed in medical litigation and how those principles have been affected by these four enactments. It points out that each piece of legislation was retrospective in applying to events that occurred both before and after its commencement. However, proceedings already issued before a particular date were excluded in each case from the retrospective operation of the legislation. The article provides details of the relevant dates of operation of each of the statutes.     

Motor accidents and blood samples in New South Wales

In the 12 months to June 2007, more than 26,000 people were injured in motor accidents on New South Wales roads. More than 400 people were killed. Alcohol was an important factor in a significant number of these accidents. The Road Transport (Safety and Traffic Management) Act 1999 (NSW) contains provisions for the mandatory taking of blood samples from drivers who have caused death while driving and who are suspected of having driven under the influence of drugs or alcohol. This article considers the law regarding the requirement of hospital staff to collect blood samples from drivers involved in motor vehicle accidents in New South Wales.     

Studying the correlates of fraud victimization and reporting

Little is known about the correlates of white-collar victimization, and even less is known about white-collar crime reporting. In this article, the extent to which predictors of fraud victimization are the same as the predictors of fraud reporting is examined. Using a national sample of fraud victims, these findings were consistent with prior research in that involvement in risky behaviors and age were found to be important predictors of fraud victimization. Additionally, the specific factors that are influential in predicting fraud victimization appear to vary across offense type. Unfortunately, little was revealed regarding the predictors of the official reporting of fraud victimizations. Future research needs to further unravel the importance of risky behavior in both victimization and reporting, as well as to focus on a broader array of white-collar crimes.     

Water rights and correlative duties in New South Wales

This article discovers how the development of water rights in New South Wales might have been changed. This is important because, one publicly listed company has amassed ownership of water rights, while using no water and owning no land. Some rivers have ceased flowing after the building of privately owned dams. The article identifies five signifant judicial changes to the law, decoupling water rights from correlative duties. Its research paradigm is meta-legal historiography, because it occurs as historical significations, so that the research methodology is legal narrative analysis. Discussion favors a review of industrial priorities in water rights.     

Free Vote Patterns in the New South Wales State Parliament

This research note examines patterns of MPs’ voting behaviour during ‘conscience’ or ‘free’ votes on three ‘morality politics’ issues in the lower house of the New South Wales state parliament in Australia: adoption rights for gay couples; scientists’ use of therapeutic cloning; and the status of the Sydney Medically Supervised Injection Centre. First, the research note reviews the literature on conscience voting and hypothesises that party will be the main predictor of voting patterns, but also establishes that previous studies have almost exclusively focused on national legislatures. Next the research note discusses methodological issues. Third, it presents the analysis of free vote patterns in the New South Wales parliament on the three ‘morality politics’ issues, along four key variables: party; sex; social ideology; and religion. The analysis of voting in the New South Wales parliament challenges existing explanations of free voting, where party is the key predictor of voting patterns. Intra-party unity figures show that party membership is a weaker predictor of voting behaviour in the two main political parties in New South Wales than in either the Australian parliament or in overseas parliaments. It is argued that at the subnational level other factors are more important in explanations of free vote patterns.     

The New Model Wales

The United Kingdom is currently undergoing a rapid process of fundamental constitutional change. One of the chief developments is a redistribution of law-making and governmental powers to different territories of the Union. It is a programme of devolution, as befits an unwritten constitution characterized by the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty, and not federalism. The case of Wales, historically closely integrated with England,1 presents here its own challenges. The aim of this article is to examine the process of change for Wales, to explicate and critically assess the Welsh scheme of devolution, and to consider possible future development in a broad legal and constitutional setting.     

Colonial origins of land acquisition law in New South Wales and Queensland

F.W. Maitland. G.R. Elton. London. 1985. Weidenfeld and Nicolson. vii &; 118 pp. (incl. Index). £12.95.

Victorian Prison Lives: English Prison Biography (1830–1914). Philip Priest‐ley. London and New York. 1985. Methuen. xiii &; 311 pp. (incl. index). £25.00.

Christopher St German on Chancery and Statute. J.A. Guy. London. 1985. Selden Society Supplementary series vol. 6. x &; 149 pp. (incl. index). £15.

Imprisonment in England and Wales: A Concise History, Christopher Harding, Bill Hines, Richard Ireland and Philip Rawlings, Beck‐enham. Croom Helm. 1985. xiii &; 308 pp. £25.00.

The Evolution of Law. Alan Watson. Oxford. 1985. Basil Blackwell. xi &; 156 pp. (incl. index). £17.50.

Unequal Access: Women Lawyers in a Changing America. Ronald Chester. Massachusetts. 1985. Bergin &; Garvey Publishers, Inc. viii &; 135 pp.(incl. index). £24.95.

Unequal Laws unto a Savage Race: European Legal Traditions in Arkansas, 1686–1836. Morris S. Arnold. Fayetteville. 1985. University of Arkansas Press, xviii &; 234 pp.

Returns of Strangers in the Metropolis 1593, 1627, 1635, 1639: A Study of an Active Minority. Ed. Irene Scouloudi. London. 1985. The Huguenot Society.

’Without the Law’: Administrative Justice and Legal Pluralism in Nineteenth Century England. H.W. Arthurs. Toronto. 1985. University of Toronto Press, xvi + 312 pp. (incl. index). £20.00.     

The effect of social support on fraud victims' reporting behavior: A research note

Little effort has been made to understand white-collar crime victims, and little is known about the factors that influence reporting behavior among these victims. In this paper we use the concept of social support to explain responses to fraud, one form of white-collar crime. Results show that social support in the form of information from others influences whether fraud victims report their victimizations. Fraud victims' responses parallel those of street crime victims in that both types of victims respond according to the direction of social support they receive from family and friends.     

The Impact of Field Court Attendance Notices on Property Crime in New South Wales,Australia

Objectives

This paper investigates the impact of Field Court Attendance Notices (FCANs) on rates of property crime in New South Wales (NSW), Australia. FCANs are used for relatively minor offenses, are issued ‘on the spot’, and provide an alternative to the time consuming process of arresting an alleged offender and taking them to the police station for processing. Despite their use in NSW for over 20 years, this study is the first to evaluate their impact on crime.

Methods

We use data provided by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. We specify a general dynamic panel data model estimated via the Arellano and Bond (Rev Econ Stud 58:277–297, 1991) estimator, specifically the first-differenced twostep generalised method of moments (GMM) estimator.

Results

For property crime as a whole, in both the short- and long-run, we find no significant relationship between the use of FCANS and levels of offending. However, when offending rates are disaggregated into 11 sub-categories, we find that in the short-run an increase in the use of FCANs leads to statistically significant decreases in the rate of crime for five of the sub-categories offenses considered (break and enter dwelling; motor vehicle theft; steal from motor vehicle; steal from retail store and; steal from dwelling). The long-run results are largely consistent with the short-run results in terms of their signs and statistical significance, suggesting that the effects persist.

Conclusions

The empirical analysis presented in this paper suggests that the use of FCANs is an effective and potentially efficient policing strategy for a subset of property offenses, in that offenders can be processed at lower cost and long-run rates of certain crimes reduced.

     

New directions in policing fraud: The emergence of the counter fraud specialist in the United Kingdom

Fraud and corruption in the public sector have become issues of increasing importance for the government in the United Kingdom. Numerous initiatives have emerged ranging from high profile publicity campaigns against benefit fraud and tax evasion to the establishment of specialist bodies, such as the NHS Counter Fraud and Security Management Service (NHSCFSMS). One of the most interesting developments, however, has been the emergence of the ‘counter fraud specialist (CFS)’ across central and local government, as well as the private sector. These are specially trained civilian personnel who are tasked to prevent, investigate and secure sanctions against fraudsters. They undertake common training packages and are accredited by the Counter Fraud Professional Accreditation Board (CFPAB). This paper first outlines the emergence of the CFS; then draws upon the results of recent survey data to discuss some of their characteristics. The paper also considers some of the main issues raised by the growth of the CFS including the possible emergence of an embryonic ‘fraud police’, the indirect ‘load shedding’ of fraud investigation and the governance of this new breed of policing personnel.     

Work release and periodic detention in New South Wales: The custodial model and role experimentation

The custodial model is singled out from among the possible alternative models for work-release programs. Although custody-oriented staff typically are conservative and oppose change, work release programs press them into unfamiliar relationships with residents and with members of the free community. Without formal guidance, personnel engage in role experimentation that holds potential as a prelude to significant penal reform. Implications are suggested through analysis of periodic detention and work release as different schemes followed in New South Wales.     

Dating hot spot to fraud hot spot: Targeting the social characteristics of romance fraud victims in England and Wales

Research Summary

We found that romance fraud was rising year-on-year across every region in England and Wales, increasing 55% during the 3 years between October 2018 and October 2021. Fifty percent of all the romance fraud victims in the period resided in 17% of the places where romance fraud had occurred. A total of 439 locations (outward postcode areas) were identified as the “power few” in the first year of the data set. Of these 439 locations, 162 of them recurred in both of the following years, becoming chronic “hot spot” locations containing more than one in six of all reported romance fraud victims. The demography of victims in repeat locations differed considerably, but hot spots were more frequently predominantly populated by less affluent populations.

Policy Implications

We conclude that the current national one-size-fits-all fraud prevention approach may not be the most efficient or effective way to reach those victims who most require crime prevention advice. The National Fraud Intelligence Bureau, based in the City of London Police, could adopt a tailored approach to providing preventative information to local police forces based on the year-to-year patterns in crime and the associated intelligence provided by sociodemographic data sources such as Acorn.     

Policing serious fraud in New Zealand

The discovery of a serious fraud problem in New Zealand is very recent. Prior to the 1980s, there had been only three prosecutions for serious fraud in the history of the country, and penalties for those convicted were small. But a corporate boom in the 1980s, followed by the sharemarket crash of 1987, revealed extensive serious fraud. Initial attempts to combat the problem through the Commercial Affairs division of the Department of Justice failed. But in 1990 a Serious Fraud Office was established, with powers greater than those ever given before to a New Zealand law-enforcement agency. Three years later, the SFO had been notified of possible frauds totalling $ 2.5 billion. This represents many times what is reported stolen in all other property crime, but the SFO budget is only 1% of that devoted to ordinary policing. Since 1990, only one prosecution out of the seventeen completed has failed. Prison sentences of up to seven years and averaging almost four years, have been awarded. As the SFO nears the end of its third year, and its net gradually widens, its influence on illegal business activity continues to grow.Adapted from a paper presented at the 44th annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, New Orleans, 4–7 November 1992.     

Regulating for Fair Dealing in Work Contracts: A New South Wales Approach

From 1959 till 2006, all workers in New South Wales had recourseto review of contracts ‘and arrangements’ underwhich work is performed on the grounds of ‘unfairness’.This jurisdiction—initially instigated to capture schemesand subterfuges by which employers escaped industrial awardsby contracting out to dependent contractors—has been expandedover the years to allow review of all sorts of arrangementsunder which work is performed. This article will review thatjurisdiction to demonstrate the potential of statutory unfaircontracts review to meet some of the challenges that changesin labour market structures have presented for the protectiveagenda of labour law.     

The decline in sexual assaults in men's prisons in New South Wales: a "systems" approach

Male prison rape and sexual assaults remains a serious and sensitive issue in many countries. Human rights groups claim that sexual assaults among male prisoners have reached pandemic proportions and need to be stopped. Researchers for many years have studied the causes of male sexual assault in prison and offered numerous recommendations on its prevention. Few, however, have presented evidence for a decline in male prisoner sexual assaults and investigated the reasons for the decline. This article provides evidence from population-based surveys of a steady decrease in male prisoner sexual assaults in New South Wales (NSW) between 1996 and 2009. The authors conducted in-depth interviews with former and current inmates, and using a "systems" approach they discuss the complexity of sexual assaults in prison, incorporating a multiplicity of perspectives. In particular, they bring together different sources of data and discuss this in relation to changes in power structures and control in a modern prison, the attitudes of older and younger prisoners, the concept of "duty of care," introduction of prison drug programs, and prisoner attitudes toward gender and sexuality. In anthropology, the term "system" is used widely for describing sociocultural phenomena of a given society in a holistic manner without reducing the complexity of a given community.     

当前金融票据诈骗犯罪的新现象

近年来,我国金融业处于一个新的转型和发展的时期.然而,伴随着我国金融业改革的推进以及金融职能的扩大,金融犯罪也更趋严重,出现了许多新的情况.日前上海市人民检察院第二分院审理的一系列利用银行承兑汇票实施票据诈骗,犯罪金额高达三亿余元的重特大案件,十分典型地反映出近期金融诈骗犯罪的一些新特点,反映出司法机关打击犯罪和金融机构防范金融风险工作面临的新挑战.