Europe’s ‘murder capital’ slashed violent crime with a radical program. Will it work in Victoria?

‘We jailed lots of people, [and it] didn’t make any difference’ … Karyn McCluskey ran the first violence reduction unit in Scotland, which focused on schools and hospitals. Photograph: Sean Smith/The Guardian

In the first week at her new job, Andrea Davidson received a call from the deputy director of trauma at one of Melbourne’s major hospitals.

“He said, ‘Andrea, I’m sick and tired of patching these kids up and hoping they don’t come back, and then seeing them turn up six months later and this time … they die’,” Davidson says.