You will be required to produce an academically informed research brief to inform busy Ministers about a topical criminal justice issue. You may choose one topic from the following list of three choices:
– The frequent contact of young people (under 18) with police in Australia.
– Concerns from
– The use of potentially unreliable testimony by ‘experts’ in Australian Courts.
Your report should review and discuss the literature about:
– The extent of this problem
– At least one contemporary approach being developed/implemented to address it, and;
– The effectiveness of said measures to improve the situation
– Make at least one recommendation (about the approach you evaluate) based on the evidence
– Your report will also need to develop (and state) an argument that shapes this discussion.
The brief must be properly referenced and scholarly (to convince them that it is reliable). You therefore must read and review the latest and best research evidence on the topic (at least 10 relevant sources). It might be Australian, but it might not. Your essay must draw upon empirical work – it is not an opinion piece.
