Lam, Huette --- "Crime in Rural Australia, Edited by Elaine Barclay, Joseph F Donnermeyer, John Scott and Russell Hogg" [2007] ALRCRefJl 21; (2007) 91 Australian Law Reform Commission Reform Journal 68

• Crime in Rural Australia

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Crime in Rural Australia

Edited by Elaine Barclay, Joseph F Donnermeyer, John Scott and Russell Hogg

Federation Press, 2007

$49.95

Crime in Rural Australia

Until recently, empirical and critical research has focused primarily on urban crime. Myths that rural communities are homogenous and places of social cohesion—together with the idea of the city as a dangerous place—help to reinforce this city-centred focus. The authors endeavour to dispel these myths and make a strong case for the separate analysis of rural crime.

Rural crime has been a much neglected area in criminology. Crime in Rural Australia makes the point that, although many of the current criminological theories and methodologies can be applied to rural crime, there are significant differences between urban and rural crime that warrants deeper examination of crime challenges faced by rural populations.

Research on rural crime shows that rural and remote communities in Australia are not crime-free places. Although the incidence of rural crime is diverse, it might be surprising for the reader to learn, for example, that the rates of violence are higher in many rural and regional locations than in metropolitan centres. In addition, the rates for violent offences and property crimes have been increasing more rapidly in regional Australia than in urban areas. Less surprisingly, given their physical isolation and the use of informal social controls, there are issues concerning the under-reporting of crime in rural communities, such as domestic violence.

The book is divided into three parts. Part One applies criminological theories—which traditionally focussed on urban crime—to the study of rural crime. It was argued that there has been too much emphasis on place-based theories to explain rural crime, when other criminological theories also could be utilised to explain crime in rural and remote areas. This Part also reviews the existing research and examines the social construction of rural crime.

In Part Two, a number of core criminological issues are considered, including the rural- specific issue of farm crime (eg, theft of livestock and other property offences, and environmental crime), as well as contemporary issues that are typical in the study of urban crime, such as youth crime, alcohol and drug problems, and the fear of crime.

Finally, Part Three examines rural crime from the perspectives of policing, crime prevention and criminal justice, including issues concerning indigenous Australians. Here, differences between urban and rural crimes are also apparent. For example, the police are more often expected to be part of a rural community and therefore may find themselves playing competing roles as a law enforcer and a resident. People living in rural areas have restricted access to support services due to their physical isolation, inadequate access to transport and dispersed population—issues that do not affect urban areas to any great extent. In addition, the effectiveness of crime prevention strategies in rural Australia tended to be undermined by the narrow focus on property crime and crime in public spaces, as well as assumptions about crime, space and rural relations.

The book is written in scholarly prose that is nonetheless accessible to the lay reader. It also includes interesting vignettes from the NSW police concerning rural policing and the ‘stock squad’ (Rural Crime Investigators), as well as contributions from a youth worker on the key to successful youth programs and a magistrate on the lack of sentencing options in rural areas.

Written and edited by leading scholars, the book is an important resource for students, criminologists, policy makers and those involved in the criminal justice system. It helps to bring the focus onto rural crime and takes a great step towards filling the void in criminological literature.

Huette Lam