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Women don’t scare or damage us – the need to close all women’s prisons
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November 9, 2016 @ 11:30 pm - November 10, 2016 @ 1:00 am
“Women almost never scare us. They rarely commit random acts of serious violence or violate our sexual integrity. They never form organised crime networks. Yet the number of women incarcerated is now the highest in recorded history. This is breathtaking policy failure. Instead of imprisoning more women, we should move towards closing down all women’s prisons” – Prof Mirko Bagaric.
Mirko Bagaric is Professor of Law and former Dean of the Deakin Law School. He is the author or co-author of over 20 books and 100 articles in leading international journals. His main work is in the area of punishment, sentencing and human rights. Professor Bagaric’s main research priority is encouraging governments to implement an evidence-based and normatively sound sentencing system. He is one of 18 contributors to Future Proofing Australia (MUP, 2013) which is edited by Federal Senator and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs Brett Mason and co-editor Daniel Wood. The forward to the book is written by Australian former Prime Minister Tony Abbot who states that the authors are ‘big thinkers on big ideas’. Professor Bagaric has extensive legal experience. He is a former member of the Migration and Refugee Tribunal and as a lawyer has appeared at courts at all levels of the judicial hierarchy, including the High Court of Australia.