A consideration of the merits of specialised homicide offences and defences for battered women

In response to calls for reform, some jurisdictions have introduced specialised offences and defences for battered women who kill their abuser. In 2005, Victoria introduced the offence of ‘defensive homicide’. More recently, in 2010, Queensland introduced a defence titled ‘killing for preservation in an abusive domestic relationship’. If successful these approaches result in a conviction of defensive homicide and manslaughter respectively. While defensive homicide has been explored in a number of cases in Victoria; the Queensland defence has only been considered on a few occasions to date. This article reviews the underlying debates relating to these developments and then examines recent case law to consider the application of these two approaches and their effectiveness in light of what they were designed to achieve. The article concludes that the reforms may have resulted in some unintended consequences

Toward redemption: Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander men’s narratives of desistance from sexual offending

The literature on desistance from crime shows that desisters often engage in a process of rebiographing, crafting life stories–or “redemption scripts”–that make sense of their move away from crime. However, this literature has largely excluded nonwhite offenders and sexual offenders. The current study addresses these gaps by examining the desistance narratives of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander men convicted of sexual offending. Drawing on interviews with these men, it identifies ways in which cultural identity can foster desistant identities among sexual offenders

Gambling among Indigenous men and problem gambling risk factors: an Australian study

This paper aims to analyse the gambling activities and problem gambling risk factors for Indigenous Australian men, a topic which has previously drawn very little research attention. Using quantitative methods, we obtained a convenience sample of 1,259 women and men at Indigenous festivals, online and in several communities. This paper reports only on the responses of all 489 men in this sample. Risk factors significantly associated with problem gambling were being separated, divorced or widowed, working part-time, early gambling onset, using alcohol and/or drugs while gambling and spending high amounts of money on a favourite gambling form. Motivations significantly associated with risks of problem gambling were gambling to relax, because most family members and friends also gamble and self-reported addiction to gambling. However men who gamble to socialise with family and friends were significantly less likely to be problem gamblers. Risk factor identification may facilitate the development of effective preventative measures and risk management plans for Indigenous men