News and media
Community holding offenders accountable drops crime
Uncle Matty’s community once had the highest crime rates in the Northern Territory. Through collective action with local elders, they achieved a remarkable 95% reduction in crime…
Community holding offenders accountable drops crime
Uncle Matty’s community once had the highest crime rates in the Northern Territory. Through collective action with local elders, they achieved a remarkable 95% reduction in crime…
Life skills helping women break the cycle
After several stints in prison, Julie wasn’t sure what her future held—until she found hope with the Alice Springs Alternative to Custody program…
Robbed publican’s common sense justice
When a young girl stole a bottle of rum from behind the bar at the Goldfields Hotel in Tennant Creek, Jason pursued a common sense approach to justice, where the punishment fit the crime…
Go directly to gym
A magistrate discharged Jason to his boxing coach instead of sending him to jail. It changed his life and his community for good
NT’s overcrowded prisons call for smarter justice initiatives
MEDIA RELEASEJune 13, 2023 Smarter Justice for Safer Communities has called for the roll out of Law and Justice Groups and Community Courts to be accelerated as a priority, amid signs the Northern Territory’s swollen prison system is struggling to cope. The...
Justice starts with strengthening communities
May 27, 2023 - OPINION ARTICLEBy Olga Havnen For decades, politicians, policymakers and other “experts” have periodically descended on the Northern Territory offering to fix its problems. We saw this recently when a summer outbreak of crime in and around Alice Springs...
NT Budget investment in smarter justice approaches is a promising start
MEDIA RELEASEMay 9, 2023 Community-led initiative Smarter Justice for Safer Communities welcomes the NT Government’s boost in funding for alternative justice programs as a “step in the right direction” towards stopping the cycle of offending in the Territory. Smarter...
Alternatives to prison do work to reduce crime and break the cycle of reoffending
MEDIA RELEASEMay 2, 2023 Smarter Justice for Safer Communities welcomes the release of a new report highlighting a compelling case for increased investment in alternatives to prison that have been found to dramatically reduce crime and reoffending. The report,...
Alice Springs alternative to prison program for women is working to break the cycle of reoffending
MEDIA RELEASEMarch 27, 2023 More than three-quarters of women who have completed an innovative alternative to custody program in Central Australia have successfully escaped the cycle of reoffending. Justice advocates are calling for increased investment in smarter...