Benchmarking the use of audiovisual link technologies in Australian criminal courts before the pandemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Russell Smith ◽  
Rebecca Savage
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Research Program ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Cases

This report is the second published by the AIC arising from its national video courts research program (the AVL Project) and documents the development and implementation of AVL (audiovisual link) technologies in the criminal courts in Australia, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2019. An accompanying report assesses the practical and legal considerations that need to be taken into account when adopting AVL technologies in the criminal courts (Smith, Savage & Emami 2021). In 2017, 196 criminal cases in the largest states were observed by AIC researchers in person for the purposes of documenting the operation of systems in practice. Although there is some variability in the maturity of AVL systems in different jurisdictions, it is clear that they now occupy a central role in the administration of criminal justice throughout Australia—particularly since the onset of the pandemic. This report identifies a number of advantages and limitations of the technologies used and offers some practical solutions that could help to make systems more efficient and fairer for all involved.

scholarly journals Understanding the Burden of Legal Financial Obligations on Indigent Washingtonians

2022 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Maria Katarina E. Rafael ◽  
Chris Mai
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Public Defender ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
Financial Obligations ◽  
Collection Practices ◽  
Disproportionate Burden ◽  
Do So

In criminal courts across the country, judges assess a variety of fines, fees and other legal financial obligations (LFOs) that many defendants struggle to pay. This paper examines the disproportionate burden that fine and fee assessment and collection practices impose on low-income, system-involved individuals, using administrative court data for criminal cases filed in Washington’s courts of limited jurisdiction between 2015 and 2020. The authors find that the majority of defendants do not or only partially pay their LFOs, but that these observations are more pronounced for indigent defendants. The authors also find that, of defendants who fully pay off their fines and fees, individuals with a public defender satisfy their debt after a greater number of days, as compared to individuals with private counsel. This is all in spite of public defender defendants generally being assessed smaller amounts in fines and fees at the outset. Additionally, the authors uncover that when defendants do pay off all of their fines and fees, they tend to do so on the day of assessment, with the likelihood of satisfying full payment generally decreasing as time goes on. These findings suggest that many people struggle with criminal justice debt, but that this problem disproportionately impacts indigent Washingtonians, subjecting them to a greater possibility of harm through the various methods of collections enforcement.

scholarly journals Penegakan Hukum Pidana Terhadap Anak Yang Terjerat Perkara Pidana Melalui Diversi (Studi Di Polrestabes Medan)

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-84
Author(s):  
Akalafikta Jaya ◽  
Triono Eddy ◽  
Alpi Sahari
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Juvenile Justice System ◽  
Criminal Liability ◽  
Criminal Case ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
Criminal Convictions ◽  
Criminal Offenses ◽  
The Law

In the past, the punishment of children was the same as the punishment of adults. This causes the psychological condition of children ranging from investigation, investigation and trial to be disturbed because it is often intimidated by law enforcement agencies. Under these conditions, Law No. 11 of 2012 concerning the Juvenile Justice System was born. One of the reforms in the Child Criminal Justice System Law requires the settlement of a child criminal case by diversion. Based on the results of research that the conception of criminal offenses against children in conflict with the law in Indonesia is different from criminal convictions to adults. Children are given the lightest possible punishment and half of the criminal convictions of adult criminal offenses. That criminal liability for children who are ensnared in a criminal case according to the Law on the Criminal Justice System for Children is still carried out but with different legal sanctions from adults. Criminal imprisonment against children is an ultimumremedium effort, meaning that criminal imprisonment against children is the last legal remedy after there are no other legal remedies that benefit the child. That the concept of enforcement of criminal law against children caught in criminal cases through diversion is in fact not all have applied it. Some criminal cases involving children as the culprit, in court proceedings there are still judges who impose prison sentences on children who are dealing with the law.

scholarly journals Neurolaw in Australia: The use of neuroscience in Australian criminal proceedings

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armin Alimardani ◽  
Jason Chin
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Common Sense ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Criminal Proceedings ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
Fitness To Stand Trial ◽  
Objective Evidence ◽  
The Mind

Recent research has detailed the use of neuroscience in several jurisdictions, but Australia remains a notable omission. To fill this substantial void we performed a systematic review of neuroscience in Australian criminal cases. The first section of this article reports the results of our review by detailing the purposes for which neuroscience is admitted into Australian criminal courts. We found that neuroscience is being admitted pre-trial (as evidence of fitness to stand trial), at trial (to support the defence of insanity and substantial impairment of the mind), and during sentencing. In the second section, we evaluate these applications. We generally found that courts admit neuroscience cautiously, and to supplement more well-established forms of evidence. Still, we found some instances in which the court seemed to misunderstand the neuroscience. These cases ranged from interpreting neuroscience as “objective” evidence to admitting neuroscience when the same non-neuroscientific psychiatric evidence would be inadmissible for being common sense. Furthermore, in some cases, neuroscientific evidence presents a double-edged sword; it may serve to either aggravate or mitigate a sentence. Thus, the decision about whether or not to tender this evidence is risky.

The readiness of various communities for the implementation of restorative justice in the community setting: A perspective of community organization

2018 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 386-398
Author(s):  
Taufik Mohammad
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Restorative Justice ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Community Organization ◽  
Community Setting ◽  
Offender Rehabilitation ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Criminal Cases

The method of community organization can be used to implement restorative justice within the community. This study aimed at understanding whether members from seven communities in Malaysia would assume responsibility for restorative justice initiatives, accept various elements of restorative justice, and welcome offenders back into the community. The findings are mixed. Some community members believed that the community setting may offer resources for offender rehabilitation that the criminal justice system does not have; others raised concerns over various limitations such that communities may not be equipped to deal with criminal cases.

The Politics of the Judiciary

2020 ◽  
pp. 206-228
Author(s):  
Mike McConville ◽  
Luke Marsh
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Empirical Data ◽  
Political Influence ◽  
Judicial Independence ◽  
The Political ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
Political Character ◽  
Held Back

A foundational theme of this chapter is the refutation of the generalized claim that judges are ‘independent’ and free from political influence. In reconsidering the institutional realities of judicial independence, it contests the views and theories advanced by leading commentators whom have sought to show that judges are ‘political’, not least Professor J A G Griffith in his seminal, The Politics of the Judiciary. Other theorists considered include Alan Paterson, Robert Stevens, David Robertson, and Harry Annison. The chapter critically reviews the strengths and weaknesses of such theories and demonstrates instead how the ‘political’ character of judges may be explicated by empirical data drawn from internal governmental files rather than previously favoured methodologies. Contrary to these widely adopted accounts, this chapter posits that throughout the last century, a cadre of senior judges in criminal cases have been overtly political in a way previously not understood. Senior judges, it is argued, have had a dynamic involvement in building state institutions and state ideology: working in secret with the executive in formulating policing policies, initiating far-reaching change in the political economy of criminal justice, and setting the agenda for successive legislative interventions, underpinned by a state bias, having held back rights for suspects and defendants and commandeered the process of subjugating the Bar.

Institutional Expression

2020 ◽  
pp. 165-249
Author(s):  
Carsten Stahn
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
International Criminal ◽  
Speech Act ◽  
Speech Act Theory ◽  
Community Relations ◽  
International Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Courts ◽  
Mutual Learning ◽  
Expressive Meaning ◽  
Institutional Action

The chapter demonstrates that the very act of reacting to atrocities, and institutionalization itself, has expressive meaning. Institutions rely on symbolism, rituals, and mimetic practices in order to ensure their own survival. This also applies to international criminal courts and tribunals. Sometimes the ‘medium is the message’. Throughout history, the establishment of institutions has sent different signals, such as memory and remembrance, shame and apology, renewal of community relations, hope and belief or protest. International criminal justice relies on action. Speech act theory is helpful to understand the various meanings of institutional action. Acts, such as jurisdictional determinations (e.g. complementarity), preliminary examinations or investigations, arrests, or cooperation create new narrative subjects, entail commands or incentives for action, or convey attitudes. Outreach and legacy strategies involve strong didactic rationales. They are often more geared towards one-sided expression rather than two-way communication or mutual learning

12. Hearsay in criminal cases

2020 ◽  
pp. 349-411
Author(s):  
Adrian Keane ◽  
Paul McKeown
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
European Convention ◽  
Criminal Proceedings ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Relationship

This chapter discusses the meaning of hearsay in criminal proceedings and the categories of hearsay admissible by statute in such proceedings. It considers the relationship between the hearsay provisions of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 (the 2003 Act) and Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights as it relates to hearsay; the definition of hearsay and its admissibility under the 2003 Act, including admissibility under an inclusionary discretion (section 114(1)(d)); and safeguards including provisions relating to the capability and credibility of absent witnesses, the power to stop a case and the discretion to exclude. Also considered in this chapter are: expert reports; written statements under section 9 of the Criminal Justice Act 1967; and depositions of children and young persons under section 43 of the Children and Young Persons Act 1933.

5. The criminal justice system

2019 ◽  
pp. 91-155
Author(s):  
Martin Partington
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Current System ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
System P ◽  
Social Theories ◽  
Sentencing Policy ◽  
Post Trial

This chapter focuses on the criminal justice system. It contains summaries of the different social theories that underpin both the criminal justice system and the fundamental principles relating to sentencing policy. The system is examined in three segments: pre-trial stages, trial stage, and post-trial stages. Each is discussed in turn. This chapter emphasizes the holistic approach by looking not only at what happens in courts, but also the police station and in post-trial contexts such as parole and criminal cases review. The place of the victim in the system is also considered. Particular emphasis is placed on how the current system is changing in the quest for improved efficiency.

18. Hearsay Evidence

2019 ◽  
pp. 337-354
Author(s):  
Martin Hannibal ◽  
Lisa Mountford
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Common Law ◽  
General Rule ◽  
European Convention ◽  
Personal Knowledge ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
Hearsay Rule ◽  
Oral Evidence ◽  
Hearsay Evidence

Hearsay evidence in criminal cases most often arises in two situations: if a witness testifies about facts of which he has no personal knowledge because the facts were communicated to the witness by another person who is not in court; and where a witness’ written statement is put before the court because the witness is unable to attend court to give oral evidence. This chapter discusses the general rule of hearsay evidence; identifying hearsay evidence; statutory exceptions to the hearsay rule; hearsay evidence under the Criminal Justice Act (CJA) 2003; hearsay admissible under the preserved common law rules; procedure for admitting hearsay evidence; and hearsay evidence and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) 1950.

9 Criminal Justice

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dickson Brice
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Supreme Court ◽  
Final Section ◽  
Common Law ◽  
Criminal Court ◽  
Criminal Cases ◽  
The Supreme Court ◽  
The Right

This chapter selects five issues within the sphere of criminal justice to exemplify how the Irish Supreme Court has made its mark in the field. It looks first at the Court’s approach to the principle that prosecutions should be ended if they are unfair to the defendant and then moves to related issues surrounding use of the Special Criminal Court. It considers whether the Supreme Court has done enough to police the Special Criminal Court and whether reforms are necessary in that domain. In examining the Supreme Court’s views on the right to bail and on the admissibility of evidence which has been obtained unconstitutionally or otherwise illegally (with particular reference to the Damache and JC cases), comparisons are made with other common law jurisdictions. A final section looks at the Supreme Court’s position regarding the retrospectivity of declarations of incompatibility in criminal cases.

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