A Star Gone: The Passing of Judge Peggy Hora

The world of therapeutic jurisprudence (TJ) has lost a giant. Judge Peggy Hora, a retired California Supreme Court Judge, died on October 31st after a short illness.
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Wellbeing survey of Australia’s judiciary reveals risk of distress and burnout

An Australian-first survey of the wellbeing of judges and magistrates has revealed a judiciary at risk of burnout or trauma from having to constantly deal with high workloads and the harrowing details of serious crimes.
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Mental health courts: Providing access to justice for people with mental illness and cognitive impairments

The number of people with mental illness in Australian prisons is growing. Almost half of prison entrants (49 per cent) in 2015 reported being told at some point by a health professional that they have a mental disorder, an 11 per cent increase since 2012. People with cognitive impairments are also over-represented in Australian prisons.
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‘Not soft on crime’: push for specialist indigenous court

The state’s barristers and police are pushing the NSW government to urgently fund a specific indigenous court in a bid to lower the “spiralling number” of Aboriginal people in jail. In a significant move, the NSW Bar Association and and the Police Association are jointly calling for a trial of a sentencing court- the Walama Court-
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Warakurna welcomes first all-Indigenous police station, aiming to repair a community’s mistrust

Not far from the Northern Territory border, Warakurna in Western Australia is policed by two sworn Aboriginal officers who also cover two other nearby communities. Since they began working there in late 2017, the officers have been making inroads in gaining the respect of residents. Aboriginal elder, Daisy Ward, said the community had not been
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Successful Drug Court graduation marked with traditional Aboriginal dance

Spellbound. The only word which could describe the effect on everyone in the Parramatta Drug Court courtroom this month when a surprise traditional Aboriginal dance broke the hushed tones of the usual proceedings. The successful completion of a proud Aboriginal man’s Drug Court Program was marked with a traditional Aboriginal dance by the community of
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Children’s court judge renews calls for Youth Koori Court for western NSW

A high-profile judge has reignited calls for a specialised Aboriginal court for regional New South Wales to improve reform for indigenous youth caught up in crime. The 2016 Census data revealed more than half of the region’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children aged 15-17 appeared in Walgett Children’s Court. The president of the NSW
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Inside Australia’s Second-Chance Drug Courts

We hear so often about the drug problem fueling crime and tearing families apart, but what we don’t hear about is why. After a year-long consultation process, A Current Affair was given exclusive access behind the scenes in one of Australia’s drug courts, where hardcore addicts plead their case and try to stay out of
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ACT government pays $130,000 for UNSW to design drug and alcohol court

Planning to establish a new drug and alcohol court in the ACT is under way, with the University of New South Wales tasked with detailing how the institution could work. The court forms part of the ACT government’s pledge to slash recidivist offending, with $500,000 set aside in the latest budget to investigate the proposal. Tender documents
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Queensland budget to reveal $22.7 million for new Drug Court

The Drug Court will officially be reincarnated in the Queensland budget, set to be announced on Tuesday. Fairfax Media can reveal there will be new funding of $22.7 million over four years to reinstate the Drug Court in Brisbane, and also for court referral and support services. The drug, Murri and special circumstances courts were scrapped
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Tasmania Law Reform Institute report on recidivist drink drivers proposes specialist problem-solving court

REPEAT drink drivers in Tasmania would be dealt with in a specialist “problem-solving” court under a proposed law reform that would deliver therapy rather than punishment. The Tasmanian Law Reform Institute has proposed the non-traditional court model that, if adopted, would be the first of its type in Australia. Researchers at the institute are seeking
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How big a problem is ice use among Indigenous Australians?

While rates of methamphetamine use in Australia have remained fairly stable at 2.1% over the past ten years, there has been a shift among people who use the lower-grade powdered form of methamphetamine (speed) to using the higher-grade crystal form (ice) in recent times. Ice is much stronger than speed and has the potential to cause greater
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Judge Peggy Hora lays down the law to the ACT

As the ACT’s jail is forced to expand, retired Californian Judge Peggy Hora is calling on the territory to catch up with the rest of Australia by introducing a drug court. She says it would force people into treatment and keep many offenders out of jail. Ms Hora is renowned for her expertise in “problem-solving
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Drug Court gives second chance to addicts in Dandenong

DRUG Court magistrate Anthony Parsons has the voice of a TV newsreader; kindly but authoritative. Mr Parsons genuinely seems to care for the people who come through his court. He welcomes them, asks how they are feeling, explains what they have to do and wishes them good luck, in the manner of a caring father
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Drug court proposal for the ACT has ample merit

In a week when drug trafficking loomed large in the public consciousness and there was renewed discussion about the desirability of countries like Indonesia softening their hardline stance on drugs, it was easy to overlook the reality that such arguments have raged on and off for years. Indeed, since Richard Nixon declared war on drugs in 1971 in
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