Abstract
At a time when a majority of Australian prisons are seriously overcrowded, Victoria stands apart from the other states in maintaining a significantly lower imprisonment rate. Victoria's approach to the problem of prison overcrowding is the focus of the seminar.
It discusses whether or not it is politically and morally feasible for a jurisdiction to place a limit on the number of prisoners that it will house, regardless of the pressures that come from the courts, from the police, and from the public. It highlights various options that may be pursued to keep prison numbers down, including the use of electronic technology as an aid to home detention or other alternatives to imprisonment.
Proceedings of a seminar held 29-30 September 1987
Contents
- Overview
Julia Vernon - Welcome
David Biles
Controlling prison crowding - the Victorian approach
- The political imperative
Jim Kennan - Sentencers' reactions
Murray Gerkens - Practical aspects of Victoria's approach
Bill Kidston
Commentaries on Victoria's approach
- Whose gaols? Whose goals?
Alec Lobban - A police perspective on prison populations
David Hunt - Overcrowding - police and prisons
Simon Brown-Greaves - A further commentary
George Zdenkowski - A magistrate's view
Clarrie Briese
- Crowding and prison management
Tom Abbott - Electronic technology as an alternative to prison
Richard Fox - Reflections on prison crowding
David Grant
Barry Apsey - List of participants