The Latest Breaking News from VALS

Cost of crime crackdown criticised as Victoria prepares for influx of prisoners with huge jail spend

Jacinta Allan announces $727m expansion of prison system as data shows rise in remand numbers after ‘tough new bail laws’ introduced

The Guardian - AU · May 13, 2025

Focus on youth crime may be influencing bail decisions for children, Victorian judge says

Exclusive: supreme court judge says ‘it is a cause for concern’ if public policy is considered over individual merits of a case

The Guardian - AU · Mar 20, 2024

Police shouldn't be able to investigate themselves. Victoria needs an independent police accountability body

This week, a new report revealed First Nations people, as well as people of African or Middle Eastern appearance, were disproportionately targeted by police in issuing COVID-19 fines.

The Conversation · Jun 29, 2023

Yoorrook Justice Commission hears Victorian bail laws are criminalising Aboriginal people, especially women

Victorians are being refused bail for offences so minor they might never have warranted a sentence of imprisonment, with a disproportionate number of Indigenous offenders ending up on remand, a truth-telling inquiry has heard.

ABC News · Dec 16, 2022

From bail reform to Covid: the five issues missing from the Victoria state election campaign

Amid the pledges for new hospitals, power bill relief and $2 public transport fares, other important matters have been noticeably absent

The Guardian - AU · Nov 23, 2022

Victoria’s prison health care system should match community health care

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that names of deceased people are included in this article.

The Conversation · May 9, 2022

Police errors, no legal representation and strict bail laws: why was Veronica Nelson behind bars when she died?

Inquest into Aboriginal woman’s death in custody is also examining the affects of Victoria’s punitive bail laws

The Guardian - AU · Apr 30, 2022

Decriminalisation of public drunkenness delayed by Victorian government

Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service ‘disappointed’ that official repeal will not occur in November

The Guardian - AU · Apr 22, 2022

Strip searches in prison are traumatising breaches of human rights. So, why are governments still allowing them?

Content warning: This article contains details readers may find distressing including discussion of excessive or gratuitous violence, abuse and mental illness.

The Conversation · Feb 18, 2022

NSW records 30 deaths, Victoria 20, Qld 10, SA three and Tasmania one – as it happened

Australia to scrap PCR test requirement for international arrivals; Triple J counts down Hottest 100. This blog is now closed

The Guardian - AU · Jan 21, 2022