Investing in Alternatives to Prison

Abstract

The Australian Institute of Criminology suggests that the overall imprisonment rate per 100,000 of the adult prison population increased from 88 to 168 between 1984 and 2008, an average growth rate of five percent per year. This has profound implications for the people being sentenced to prison and has consequences for resettlement of prisoners coming out of prison. There are also significant financial costs associated with this increased use of incarceration, not least of which is associated with the substantial resources that have to be invested in prison building programs. This seminar looks at the costs of imprisonment and considers how limited public funds could be invested in alternatives to imprisonment. Speakers at this event include: •The Honourable Harold Sperling QC (Convenor, Crime and Justice Reform Committee) •Mr Peter Achterstraat (Auditor-General, Audit Office of NSW) •Emeritus Professor David Brown (University of New South Wales)