RLC in the media

RLC CEO Jo Shulman speaks with National Indigenous Radio Service about what RLC's funding crisis will mean for Indigenous communities in Redfern and surrounding service areas.

Women's rights advocates want a full overhaul of the way governments deal with domestic violence to stop the large numbers of women being killed. So far this year 34 women have been killed in Australia - including two women in New South Wales who were allegedly killed by their partners in the last week. Activists say governments need to prioritise anti-violence programs and give them the funding they need. They say domestic violence tears at the fabric of society.

Women's rights advocates have called for an overhaul of the way the Government deals with domestic violence to stop the rising number of women being killed.

Watch the story of Melissa Dunn and her treatment by the NSW Police Force on the ABC website. March 2015 - ABC 7:30 Report

The new consorting provisions, introduced into the Crimes Act in 2012, allow police to label otherwise lawful associations a crime and to prosecute on that simple basis. The consorting provisions lack appropriate definitions, restrictions, and standards.

Domestic violence in Australia remains an "epidemic" while other violent crimes decline, leading to calls for more coordination between governments and the community.

In inner-city Sydney, a man in his 50s answers an unexpected knock at the front door. It’s the police, carrying a DNA sample kit and some paperwork. A document explains to the man that he has been classified as an untested former offender, empowering the police to collect his DNA.

Plans to expand NSW police powers would encourage officers to arrest people for spurious reasons and to hold them in custody even if they face only financial penalties, legal experts have warned.

THE charging of domestic violence victims who retract allegations should be approved only at the highest levels of state police forces or by directors of public prosecution, says the Australian Law Reform Commission.

RLC's Police Powers solicitor, David Porter, spoke with Eleanor Bell on ABC Radio National's PM show, on measures to address youth crime.