Around the Country – May 2026
Including funding for more prisons in the NT, families protesting outside Risdon prison in TAS, a man being returned to prison in NSW after being mistakenly released and more.
ISSUE NO. 23
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4 MIN READ
Ethan Cassidy
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News and Investigations
Each edition contains news articles and investigative pieces. These are topical stories that are usually about prisons and criminal justice.
We also summarise the latest criminal justice news around the country.
Latest
Alternatives to Police as First Responders
By Zoe Edema
In April 2025, The Alternative First Responder campaign officially launched in Australia, calling for alternative first responses to police that centre care and dignity.
ISSUE NO. 23
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3 MIN READ
Willy Pleasance
Homelessness Isn’t a Crime and Shouldn’t Stop You Getting Bail
By Denham Sadler
A judge in Victoria has ruled that a lack of stable housing in the community shouldn’t be used as a reason to deny someone bail, particularly when it involves a First Nations person.
ISSUE NO. 23
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1 MIN READ
Willy Pleasance
ONLINE NEWS
Victoria Overrides Human Rights Charter to Restrict Access to Open Air in Prison
The state government introduced legislation to Parliament last week that allows for people in prison’s legal right of one hour in the open air every day to be limited due to a range of reasons.
June 22, 2026
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2 MIN READ
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Willy Pleasance
ONLINE NEWS
Prison Staff Pepper Sprayed Self-Harming First Nations Woman, ACT Inspector Finds
Staff at a Canberra prison pepper sprayed a First Nations inmate who was self-harming and then handcuffed and strip searched her, an investigation has found.
June 18, 2026
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2 MIN READ
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Willy Pleasance
ONLINE NEWS
Huge Number of Election Votes From Prison Not Counted
New informal voting data reveals there is still a long way to go to ensure the prison population is provided with proper information and education.
June 8, 2026
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2 MIN READ
Ike Curtis
ONLINE NEWS
Parole Problems Fuelling Prison Overcrowding: Report
Nearly one in three people incarcerated in Queensland are eligible for parole but yet to be released, a new report has found.
June 2, 2026
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3 MIN READ
ONLINE NEWS
Transport Program for First Nations People Leaving Prison to Shut Down
A support service transporting First Nations people from prison to treatment facilities will shut down after it ran out of funding.
May 21, 2026
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3 MIN READ
Rainbow Lodge
Archive
ISSUE NO. 4
October 2024
Young People and the Law: Latest Updates
By Meg Tait
The past month has seen several important developments in youth justice legislation and policy across the country.
8 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 4
October 2024
Queensland Becomes First State to Make Painkillers Available in Prison Buy-Ups
By Denham Sadler
Queensland has become the first state to allow people in prison to purchase basic painkillers through the canteen buy-up process, marking a significant step forward in the provision of healthcare in the prison system.
10 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 3
September 2024
The Case of Ron Brierley, Healthcare and Elderly Prisoners
By Sam Harris
Ron Brierley’s case is the tip of a very large iceberg when it comes to elderly people and healthcare in prison.
9 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 3
September 2024
Around the Country – August 2024
By About Time
The latest criminal news from around the country, including pressure on WA government to act on ‘systemic failures’ in youth detention following inquest into death in custody of Cleveland Dodd, Victoria backflipping on raising the age of criminal responsibility and all prisons in NSW now having access to ‘virtual’ medical care.
18 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 3
September 2024
'They Really Can’t Afford It’: The Prohibitive Cost of Making Phone Calls in Prison
By Denham Sadler
There are renewed hopes that phone calls in Australian prisons will soon be more affordable or completely free, with campaigns advocating for the change ramping up around the country.
12 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 2
August 2024
Port Phillip to Close as Australia Turns Away From Private Prisons
By Denham Sadler
Port Phillip Prison will close at the end of next year as part of a growing move away from privately run prisons in Australia.
8 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 1
July 2024
Welcome to Australia’s National Prison Newspaper
By Joseph Friedman
Australia has never had a regular national prison newspaper. There have been at least 67 prison newsletters and magazines in Australian prison history, but none has been distributed regularly to every cell in the nation. We believe it’s about time that changed.
2 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 2
August 2024
Around the Country – July 2024
By Joseph Friedman
The latest criminal news from around the country, including a boost in investment to the criminal justice system, criticism around new footage of treatment of children in custody and an inquest into the death of Justin James Cordy.
20 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 2
August 2024
The History of Australian Prison Publications
By Damien Linnane
It doesn’t feel like it’s already been eight years since I was in prison myself, wishing there was any way that people in custody could express themselves and feel heard. I asked around if there was any kind of prison newsletter or magazine, but nobody had even heard of one.
8 MIN READ
ISSUE NO. 1
July 2024
Around the Country – June 2024
By About Time
The latest criminal news from around the country, including new laws to combat ‘deepfake’ pornography, a landmark report on the CLC industry, and a review of First Nations over-incarceration.
7 MIN READ
