The University of Notre Dame Australia Law Review

Article Title

Stemming the Tide of Aboriginal Incarceration

Authors

Miriam KellyFollow
Hilde Tubex, University of Western AustraliaFollow

Abstract

Western Australia’s prison population has the highest rate of Aboriginal over-representation in Australia. Research on the criminogenic effect of imprisonment suggests that the use of imprisonment as a deterrent to future offending is not empirically supported and that imprisonment may in fact contribute to further offending. Consequently, this article explores theoretical debates surrounding penality as a way to inform alternative crime control strategies to imprisonment. It will be argued that any strategy to reduce Aboriginal imprisonment rates could benefit from a perspective that views Aboriginal imprisonment as a manifestation of Aboriginal resistance to settler colonial dominance.

Recommended Citation

Kelly, Miriam and Tubex, Hilde (2015) "Stemming the Tide of Aboriginal Incarceration," The University of Notre Dame Australia Law Review: Vol. 17 , Article 2.
Available at: https://doi.org/10.32613/undalr/2015.17.1.2