Salus Journal

Spies and Sparrows: ASIO and the Cold War

Samantha Jones — 2023-02-04

Spies and Sparrows: ASIO and the Cold War
By Phillip Deery

Melbourne University Press
2021, paperback, 270 pages
ISBN: 9780522878301

Retail Crime – A Perfect Storm

Donald Meyerhoff — 2023-02-04

In recent years there has been a noticeable increase in crime and theft aimed at retail establishments. Often these events involve organised groups that systematically steal and sell in-demand items. More recently, there has also been an increase in crowd or mob-based looting events, presenting merchants with overwhelming circumstances outside of their ability to control. This study examines various influences that contribute to this dilemma. Factors commonly believed to contribute to theft and looting that are discussed include adjustments made in criminal charging and prosecution of retail thefts, current public events focusing on police violence, prosecutorial reforms, and the impact of COVID-19 on law enforcement responses.

Evidence-Based Policing: A Review of its Adoption and Use by Police Forces in England and Wales

Garth den Heyer — 2023-02-04

Policing is changing in response to increased demands from the community, the need to do more with less, fiscal austerity, the varying nature of crime, new technology, the loss of legitimacy, and the need for more transparency and accountability. One strategy that has been identified that could assist the police in responding to these challenges is evidence-based policing. This research examines the adoption of evidence-based policing by police forces in England and Wales. The research found that while most officers understand what evidence-based policing is and are amenable to its adoption and use, the methods that agencies use to communicate and disseminate information, internally, were inadequate and the current organisational structures cannot support evidence-based practice.

Cybercrime Policing in the Lagos State Command of the Nigeria Police Force

Usman A. Ojedokun — 2023-02-04

The criminality of cybercriminals operating in Nigeria has significantly expanded from the initially dominant cyber fraud to include other categories of cybercrime. Although the Nigerian Government has tried to contain the problem, there is a shortage of scholarly information on the specific role of the Nigeria Police Force in fighting this form of crime. Given this, the central objective of this study was to investigate cybercrime policing in the Lagos State Command of the Nigeria Police Force. It was exploratory and cross-sectional in design. . Data were sourced from 27 purposively selected police personnel using in-depth and key-informant interviews. The results showed that the Lagos State Police Command routinely handled different cases of cybercrime. However, exposure to professional training in cybercrime policing skills was restricted to certain categories of officers. Although different internal and external strategies were being used by the Police Command to combat cybercrime, the overall effectiveness of its personnel was being hampered by multiple operational challenges.

“The house always wins” — Empirical reflections on UK Freedom of Information legislation for policing research

Mehzeb Chowdhury — 2023-02-04

Freedom of information legislation (FOIL) as a method for criminal justice research is relatively underexamined, notwithstanding its marketisation as an academic resource. This paper investigates the seldom-used technique in the context of policing research conducted with forty-five (45) forces in the United Kingdom. An examination of the instant study, previous research using the method, the challenges the researcher faced, and the overall merits of using FOIL, are supplemented by consideration of the general efficacy of the provisions in the jurisdiction. Despite improvements to accessibility, the principal issues plaguing the method continue to be non-responses, late responses, misunderstood requests leading to relaying of unwanted data, unlabelled and unsorted records, raw data without contextual information to make sense of it, and out-of-date information. Recommendations are afforded and contextualised to inform potential users of the nuances of FOIL, in what can be described as a work-in-progress rather than a reliable data collection mechanism.

An exploratory study of opioid drug overdoses and how law enforcement officers are affected in their personal and professional lives

Dena Marie Weiss — 2023-02-04

This exploratory study measures the impact on law enforcement as it relates to police officers responding to opioid drug overdoses. A brief survey was developed to explore how responding to opioid overdoses impacted police officers’ personal and professional lives. The results indicate that 59% of the police officers surveyed (n=262) had responded to an opioid overdose while on duty and 46% (n=204) involved a fatal overdose. Data showed that 32.7% (n=139) of the officers indicated they felt uneasy regarding the potentially adverse effects of responding to an opioid overdose and 31.8% (n=135) experienced a heightened awareness of the danger to themselves or other family members. A preliminary examination of the data indicates that opioid overdose calls may be problematic for law enforcement, provoking anxiety and impacting their family lives. The limited study revealed a small percentage of officers experienced hopelessness or feelings that responding to opioid overdose incidents is futile. Post reactions such as anxiety were documented after administering Narcan® to victims of an overdose when children were present. There is a need for further research to gather additional data. At the time of this study, the use of Narcan by law enforcement was rare. Future research is recommended in assessing the anxiety level of officers administering Narcan versus other life-saving activities.