By Peta Malins and Lauren Caulfield

Harm in the Name of Safety is a damning research report into the harms enacted in the course of  family violence policing, released today by the Beyond Survival Project, Flat Out and RMIT University.

The research documents evidence from 225 Victorian frontline workers about their experiences of police responses to family violence. It finds that harmful family violence policing practices are extremely frequent and widespread across the state, and that alternative community-based response pathways for victim-survivors are urgently needed.

The report details extensive examples of police minimising and dismissing family violence, engaging in racially targeted, sexist and discriminatory police practices, colluding with perpetrators in ways that extend violence and abuse, and misidentifying victim-survivors as perpetrators.

Melbourne: Flat Out Inc.2025. 111p.

By Isabella Voce Anthony Morgan

The Australian Institute of Criminology has released the Cybercrime in Australia 2024 Statistical Report. This latest report outlines the results from the second annual Australian Cybercrime Survey, which is the largest regular survey of the Australian community about different forms of cybercrime and provides important data on cybercrime victimisation, help-seeking and harms among Australian computer users.Nearly half of all respondents to the survey were a victim of at least one type of cybercrime in the 12 months prior to the survey. Twenty-seven percent of respondents had been a victim of online abuse and harassment, 20.6 percent had been a victim of malware, 21.9 percent had been a victim of identity crime and misuse, and 9.5 percent had been a victim of fraud and scams.The prevalence of online abuse and harassment, malware and fraud and scams victimisation was lower among 2024 respondents than in the previous survey. There was also a significant decrease in data breaches. Respondents were less likely in 2024 than in 2023 to say they were using various online safety strategies, and there was little change in the prevalence of high-risk online behaviours. And more victims were negatively impacted by cybercrime, particularly for social and health related harms. The report provides important evidence of the scale and impact of cybercrime on Australian computer users and where to target efforts to help build community resilience to cybercrime. 

 Statistical Report no. 53. Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. 2025. 118p

By Emma Ziersch, Shawn Sowerbutts, Yilma Woldgabreal, Sophie Ransom

The Violence Risk Scale (VRS) is a risk assessment tool designed to assess and predict risk of future offending, inform decisions around therapeutic intervention and measure changes in violence risk as a result of treatment. While the tool has been used extensively both internationally and in Australia, its applicability to our Australian population is unclear.This study investigated the discriminative and predictive validity of the VRS for Australian Aboriginal and non-Indigenous males convicted of violent offending in multiple jurisdictions. The VRS total score had moderate discriminative accuracy for violent reoffending at five-year follow-up. However, Aboriginal males were significantly more likely to be categorised as high risk, and additional discrimination measures revealed variation in performance between Aboriginal and non-Indigenous males. Implications of the findings for correctional practice and recommendations to reduce bias in the assessment of Aboriginal offenders are discussed.

Research Report no. 34.  Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology. 2025. 66p

By Reena Sarkar, Maaike Moller, and Lyndal Bugeja

This Australian study examined the frequency and clinical signs of neck injury among domestic and family violence (DFV) patients reporting strangulation in Victorian police regions and the forensic service response during a physical and/or sexual assault. The study compared the characteristics between patients with/without clinical signs of neck injury and between physical and sexual assault where a forensic practitioner performed a medical examination. Of 522 eligible patients of physical and/or sexual assault, 84 (16 %) self-reported strangulation. Amongst the 84 patients, 63 had complete forensic examination data. Of the 63 examinations, 38 were for physical assaults and 25 for sexual assaults. Observable neck injury was reported in 75 %. About half of the patients undergoing forensic examinations displayed neck injuries specific to non-fatal strangulation. Danger-to-life assessment, substance abuse, comorbidities, and previous domestic violence were comprehensively reported. This study suggests that observable neck injuries are associated with self-reported strangulation. The findings will inform policy, and response services, about the features of nonfatal strangulation in DFV in Victoria.

Forensic Science International Volume 374, September 2025, 112533  

By  The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission

Report 24 of the National Wastewater Drug Monitoring Program is based on data collected in August (capital city and regional sites) and October 2024 (capital city sites only). Sixty-one wastewater treatment plants participated nationwide, covering approximately 57% of the population. This provides a comprehensive picture of Australia’s illicit drug markets and drug consumption habits for 12 substances. Report 24 also provides data for the 8th year of the program, allowing for comparisons with previous years.

Findings

The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission has commissioned The University of Queensland, and through it the University of South Australia, to undertake the data collection and analysis that underpins the report.This latest report reveals that 22.2 tonnes of methylamphetamine, cocaine, heroin and MDMA was consumed between August 2023 and August 2024. This is a 34% increase from the previous year, driven by record high consumption of all 4 drugs. 

Longitudinal figures

Longitudinal figures are available for each state and territory and broken down by drug type. These figures offer a guide to trends over the period the respective drugs have been monitored by the wastewater program.

Canberra: Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, 2025. 92p.

By John G. Russell

Seventeen investigations in and an undissipated miasma of suspicion continues to envelop Donald J. Trump. And yet, if his defenders are to be believed, the actions which prompted those investigations are neither technically crimes nor even impeachable offenses. Meanwhile, a U.S. district judge has condemned Michael Flynn’s behavior as “treasonous” and Michael Cohen has been sentenced to three years in prison, but their boss remains free to stalk the halls of power unimpeded, as America hurtles from one “constitutional crisis” to another.

January 3, 2019 In articles 2015,Leading Article |, 4p.

By Jack Kelly 

The aim of this research is to inform crime prevention and planning policy development by using an institutional perspective to understand why and how local governments in New South Wales have adopted Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles into their local planning policies. By both reviewing the literature on the effectiveness of CPTED in reducing crime and the current crop of Development Control Plans (DCP) in New South Wales which have incorporated CPTED, the research will reveal that there is limited empirical evidence to support the assertion that CPTED reduces crime, and that local government needs to adopt a more integrated and contextual approach to embedding CPTED into their policies. From this perspective, the inclusion of CPTED principles in local planning is argued to be counterproductive to a more comprehensive and effective response and eventually results in additional time and cost to the decision. This is in the context that assessment decisions are now being made within tighter approval times. It will be argued that the planning system has a stog tede to adopt ookook o uik fies to poles ithout osideig the overall effectiveness of the philosophy.

The University of Sydney, 13/11/2015, 87p.

By Ian Ayres, Joseph Bankman, & Daniel J. Hemel

The negative moral emotions of guilt and shame impose real social costs but also create opportunities for policymakers to engender compliance with legal rules in a cost-effective manner. We present a unified model of guilt and shame that demonstrates how legal policymakers can harness negative moral emotions to increase social welfare. The prospect of guilt and shame can deter individuals from violating moral norms and legal rules, thereby substituting for the expense of state enforcement. But when legal rules and law enforcement fail to induce total compliance, guilt and shame experienced by noncompliers can increase the law’s social costs. We identify specific circumstances in which rescinding a legal rule will improve social welfare because eliminating the rule reduces the moral costs of noncompliance with the law’s command. We also identify other instances in which moral costs strengthen the case for enacting legal rules and investing additional resources in enforcement because deterrence reduces the negative emotions experienced by noncompliers. We end by exploring the implications of our framework for legal policy across “guilt cultures” and “shame cultures,” for the debate over shaming sanctions, and for other moral emotions such as resentment and virtue.

University of Chicago Law Review (forthcoming), Yale Law & Economics Research Paper, Stanford Law and Economics Olin Working Paper No. 601, 

By Lark Mulligan

The police murdered Alton Sterling on camera. They also murdered Eric Garner, Laquan McDonald, and many others; the videos of their deaths garnered millions of views. Information about some horrors of the criminal legal system is spreading widely, yet White mainstream media outlets frequently dismiss, erase, or demonize Black, Indegenous, and People of Color (“BIPOC”) communities who protest and organize to demand justice through the abolition of or radical changes to the policing and prison systems. In response to these racist atrocities and within the broader context of criminal legal reform, activists and academics frequently craft ethical arguments such as: “Solitary confinement is immoral because it inflicts psychological and physical torture” or “Incarceration is unethical because prisons are inherently violent places.” Many ethical arguments center on the racist injustices and harm that affronts human dignity and agency caused by prisons and police. Others critique the racist and retributive ethics of “law and order” rhetoric. Each argument is well-supported by accessible data that can be found in numerous studies, books, articles, and media. However, people often erroneously dismiss these data-driven, logical, ethical reasonings as factually inaccurate, or many respond with a deeply racist ethical-legal rationale, for example: “While there may be abuses in prisons, some people need to be put in solitary or prison and deserve it because [insert classical legal rationales for punishment: deterrence, retribution, rehabilitation, etc.].” Ethical and legal arguments are severely limited, however, when they lack an epistemological interrogation into the power structures that determine what qualifies as “knowledge” within the ethical-social conversation. This article demonstrates why anti-prison activists’ ethical arguments generally do not receive the due credibility and weight they deserve unless they pair critical liberatory epistemic practices with material, institutional, and social transformations. Abolitionists claiming to fight the confines of carceral epistemologies cannot merely sit back and point out the already-existing logical contradictions in the criminal legal system—it is not enough.

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice, Vol. 27 [2025], No. 2, Art. 1

By Brian Taehyuk Keum,  Lianne Wong & Jung Yun Na

Social media is a major vehicle that can facilitate people’s exposure to gun violence and polarized attitudes that favor gun ownership, yet little research has examined how such exposure affects people’s mental health in today’s digital era. To advance empirical research in this area, the current study developed the Gun Violence on Social Media Scale (GVSMS) using best practices in measure development. Items were developed via a literature review, a survey of social media platforms, and an expert review. Exploratory (N = 277) and confirmatory (N = 241) factor analyses yielded a 2-factor structure with the following subscales: (a) Gun Violence Content (4 items); mediated exposure to gun violence through social media content, and (b) Pro-Gun Attitudes (3 items); exposure to polarized pro-gun attitudes on social media. The initial psychometric properties of the GVSMS were adequate. Internal consistency estimates were adequate, and construct validity was established with positive associations with other gun-related measures, negative mental health outcomes (depressive, anxiety and trauma symptoms), and non-significant associations with impression management. Implications for research practice are discussed.

Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma

By Hannah S. Laqueur & Colette Smirniotis

Using firearm transaction and crime gun recovery records from California (2010–2021), we employ machine learning to identify dealers who sold the largest number and highest fraction of guns recovered in crimes within 1 year of sale. This short “time-to-crime” (TTC) is a well-established indicator of potential illegal activity by dealers or traffickers. We developed two primary prediction models: the first classifies dealer-years in the top 5% of 1-year crime gun sales volume (prediction model 1), the second identifies dealer-years in the top 5% based on the fraction of sales recovered within a year (prediction model 2). Both models demonstrated strong discriminative performance, with areas under the receiver operating curve (AUCs) of 0.95 and 0.86, respectively, and areas under the precision-recall curve (AUC–PRs) of 0.72 and 0.43. By comparison, a random classifier would be expected to achieve an AUC of 0.50 and an AUC-PR of 0.05. Prediction model 1 was particularly effective at identifying the highest risk dealers: Those with predictions exceeding 0.90 consistently ranked in the top 5% across multiple years, averaging 33 1-year crime gun sales annually. The machine learning models generally outperformed simpler regression and rule-based approaches, underscoring the value of data-adaptive methods for prediction. Key predictors included prior-year crime gun sales, the average age of purchasers, the proportion of “cheap” handgun sales, and the local gun robbery and assault rate.

Firearms dealers may engage in behaviors that facilitate the diversion of guns to criminal markets. Combining detailed transaction and recovery records with machine learning could help efficiently identify high-risk retailers for targeted enforcement to disrupt the flow of firearms to gun offenders. Future research is needed to determine whether a high number of short TTC sales as compared to a high fraction is a more reliable predictor of law evasion.

Criminology & Public Policy Volume 24, Issue 3 Aug 2025 Pages307-497

By Jingyuan Yu, · Aliya Andrich, · Max Schindle

This exploratory study investigates the potential gender differences in research priorities, driven by factors such as established sexual stigma and traditional gender norms surrounding pornography. Using temporal and thematic analyses, we identify and examine research topics of 6,145 pornography studies published between 2001 and 2024. Our findings suggest that the lead author's gender may influence topic selection, with women exploring topics that have historically been underrepresented or overlooked. Furthermore, female-led publications have engaged with internet and web-related research earlier and more prominently. Additionally, our analyses outline the evolution of male- and female-led publication patterns in the feld, highlighting a trend toward more balanced representation. This study aims to serve as a foundational basis for future research, encouraging more thorough investigations into gender disparities and their underlying causes within this domain. We also highlight the importance of longitudinal research to uncover potential gender disparities over time.  

Archives of Sexual Behavior (2025) 54:1995–2003 

By Siobhán Healy‑Cullen,   Kris Taylor,   Tracy Morison

Purpose of Review - In this article, we dig more deeply into the assumptions underpinning common-sense understandings about youth “exposure” to pornography and the ostensible “effects” of this exposure, specifically “pornography addiction”. We trace the emergence of the notion of “pornography addiction”, highlighting how cultural conditions have allowed for its realisation as a socially recognisable and intelligible narrative. Recent Findings:  Media effects research on the issue of youth “exposure” to pornography is not conclusive, nor is pornography addiction officially recognised as a diagnosable disorder. Moreover, an emerging body of multidisciplinary qualitative research, which, importantly, includes the perspectives and experiences of young people themselves, raises questions about some of the assumptions and conclusions of effects-focused research. Summary:  Despite inconclusive and contrasting findings, the social narrative of pornography addiction persists both within and beyond academe. We make sense of this persistence in relation to the broader problematization of youth sexuality, which includes unease and moral objection to young people viewing pornography. It is important to recognise the broader socio-cultural systems supporting the cultural narrative of pornography addiction, and the social functions that this narrative serves, that is, the need for adult intervention into the sexual lives of youth.  

  Current Addiction Reports (2024) 11:265–274

By Whitney Bragagnolo, Yanei Lezama

Sextortion, a distinct form of sexual misconduct intersects with both sexual violence and corruption. Within the sphere of sport, marked by inherent power diferentials and hierarchical structures, cases of sexual abuse and corruption persist, with sextortion emerging as a concerning manifestation of these pervasive issues. While sextortion shares commonalities with other forms of sexual abuse, such as harassment and assault, a distinguishing feature lies in how coercion is leveraged through authority or power imbalances. Unlike more overt forms of abuse, sextortion often involves subtle or implicit threats, where compliance is sought in exchange for perceived privileges or opportunities within the sporting environment. Leveraging Institutional Theory and Applied Ethics, this study aims to provide a comprehensive exploration of sextortion in sport. Despite increasing awareness, research on sextortion in sport remains limited. Previous studies lack data specifc to this elusive misconduct, primarily relying on empirical data related to sexual abuse. This study represents the first empirical investigation into sextortion in sport, drawing on data collected from 49 countries and endeavours to quantifiably communicate the scale of sextortion. Through data analysis of over 500 elite athletes, community sport practitioners, and sport industry professionals aged 17 and above, the research sheds light on experiences related to abuses of entrusted power for sexual gain. Results found 20% (n=96) of global respondents experienced sextortion, including 37 minors at the time of the incident, encompassing diverse genders, abilities, and identities. Sextortion was identified across 41 of the 49 surveyed nationalities and within 19 of 26 sport categories from grassroots to elite levels. This research deepens the understanding of sport-related sextortion and underscores the importance of addressing this pervasive issue through further theoretical and empirical inquiry. It emphasises the critical role of good governance, clear safeguarding protocols, increased awareness of power dynamics, consent, and the importance of diverse regional data in effectively combating sextortion in the sporting domain.     

  Crime, Law and Social Change (2025) 83:13  

By Catherine Schittenhelm , .  Christine Weber , Maxime Kops , Sebastian Wachs 

The ubiquitous use of information and communication technologies among adolescents carries the risk of exposure to online victimization during this vulnerable stage of development, including cybergrooming as a form of sexual victimization. Although established in traditional abuse research, studies on disclosure processes in the specific context of cybergrooming victimization are still pending. The present study exploratively investigated reasons for and against disclosure following cybergrooming victimization in the subsample of n = 400 victims (44.1%; Mage = 15.48 years, girls: 57.5%) from N = 908 adolescent participants. Most victims disclosed to someone (86%), with peer disclosure being more frequent (73%) than disclosure to adults (55%). Findings indicated differences of small effect sizes in reasons for and against disclosure depending on the confidant (peers vs. adults; for example, the reporting of similar experiences by others was more relevant in peer disclosure). However, gender had almost no influence on the assessed reasons. In structural equation models, latent factors of reasons against, and intra- and interindividual reasons for disclosure predicted peer and adult disclosure to varying degrees, with reasons against disclosure being the most predictive in both cases. Disclosure to adults could be better explained than disclosure to peers (R2 peers = 28.6%, R2 adults = 46.9%). In open-ended items, participants provided further reasons, which were grouped into categories (e.g., help-seeking, warning/prevention, fear of bullying/social exclusion). Practical implications like the aspired congruence between reasons for disclosure and confidants’ reactions, and limitations such as the neglect of the processual character of disclosure are outlined.  

Youth Adolescence (2025).

By Anamika Madhuraj, Francesca Batault, and Sofia Rivas 

Sexual violence in conflict settings is often framed in narrow terms—strategically deployed, militarized, and perpetrated by armed actors. Yet, this framing can obscure more complex realities. Drawing on the Managing Exits from Armed Conflict (MEAC) Project’s evidence from the North West of Nigeria, the Lake Chad Basin (LCB), and Colombia, this brief interrogates and expands upon six common assumptions about conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). It assesses whether these assumptions hold in the settings where MEAC conducts studies, or whether the reality is more nuanced and varied than often understood. In fast-moving humanitarian and policy environments, simplified narratives about CRSV may take hold out of necessity. But when these narratives become entrenched, they risk obscuring survivor experiences and misdirecting support. By critically examining these common conceptions, this brief surfaces key tensions, contradictions, and overlooked dynamics that challenge some dominant understandings of CRSV. Rather than reinforcing a singular narrative, the findings point to the need for more contextualized and survivor-informed responses. Effective prevention and response efforts must grapple with the full complexity of CRSV—the diversity of perpetrators, hidden forms, and lasting consequences—in order to prevent CRSV and meaningfully support those affected. 

Geneva, SWIT: United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research UNIDIR, 2025. 25p.

By Alishya Dhir

In this paper, I argue that a new term, ‘thematic discretion’, can help us understand police decision-making in cases of youth image-basedsexual abuse (YIBSA). YIBSA can be defined as harmful image-sharing practices amongst young people, inclusive of the non-consensual sharing of private sexual images, upskirting and cyberflashing,alongside other actions. I will be drawing on findings from a doctoral research project investigating YIBSA, which utilised a mixed methods approach, comprising of quantitative analysis of freedom of information requests from 40 police forces in England and Wales, as well as 26qualitative interviews with police and non-police practitioners, also based within England and Wales. Research findings established thatYIBSA is highly complicated, and as a result, police officers utilised discretion at a considerable rate, alongside crafting their own guidelines to direct their decision-making, which is argued to be steeped in sexistand victim-blaming narratives

Policing and Society, An International Journal of Research and Policy, Volume 35, 2025 - Issue 2

By Isangelo Senna, Fabio Iglesias, Lucas Heiki Matsunaga

Abstract Despite decades of research on Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED), the specifc impact of its dimensions on fear of crime (FoC) remains under-examined. This study investigates these efects by analyzing responses from 460 participants who evaluated photographs and completed the Situational Fear of Crime Scale for Public Spaces (SFS-Scale). The fndings reveal that defciencies in natural surveillance, followed by a lack of territoriality, are linked to heightened FoC. Moreover, natural surveillance emerged as a more signifcant predictor of FoC compared to territoriality. Additionally, police ofcers and military personnel reported lower levels of FoC than the general public. The study highlights the importance of understanding how CPTED dimensions shape public perceptions of safety. It also ofers practical insights for the development of targeted public security policies. These fndings suggest that CPTED principles can play a crucial role in reducing fear of crime and enhancing public safety in urban settings.

Crime Prevention and Community Safety (2025) 27:1–17 

By Elia Acciai, Michele Belloni, Marina Della Giusta

This paper provides evidence of a consistent gap in the value of cultural goods exported from Italy and the value declared by its trading partners in official trade statistics for the period 1994-2021 and discusses it in the context of the literature on illicit trafficking in cultural property, a phenomenon that plights a number of both developing and developed countries rich in cultural heritage. Differences between the four categories of cultural goods recorded (archaeological goods, antiquities, paintings, and sculptures) are exploited to highlight potential areas where trafficking might be expected to be larger. We construct a panel dataset to estimate a gravity model of the gap including market size, extent of trade, level of corruption and adoption of protective legislation (UNESCO and UNIDROIT) and discuss results indicating further questions to be investigated in this important and to date under researched policy area.

IZA Discussion Paper No. 16282

Bonn: IZA – Institute of Labor Economics . 2023. 18p.

By Rigissa Megalokonomou and Chrysovalantis Vasilakis

Recent political instability in the Middle East has triggered one of the largest influxes of refugees into Europe. The different departure points along the Turkish coast generate exogenous variation in refugee arrivals across Greek islands. We construct a new dataset on the number and nature of crime incidents and arrested offenders at island level using official police records and newspaper reports. Instrumental variables and difference-in-differences are employed to study the causal relationship between immigration and crime. We find that a 1-percentage-point increase in the share of refugees on destination islands increases crime incidents by 1.7-2.5 percentage points compared with neighboring unexposed islands. This is driven by crime incidents committed by refugees; there is no change in crimes committed by natives on those islands. We find a significant rise in property crime, knife attacks, and rape, but no increase in drug crimes. Results based on reported crimes exhibit a similar pattern. Our findings highlight the need for government provision in terms of infrastructure, social benefits, quicker evaluation for asylum, and social security.

IZA DP No. 16502

Bonn:  IZA – Institute of Labor Economics, 2023. 66p.