Policing substance abuse in Indigenous communities: report from a workshop held in Mildura, Victoria, 5–6 August 2008

Willis M (2009)
Policing substance abuse in Indigenous communities: report from a workshop held in Mildura, Victoria, 5-6 August 2008.
Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology

This report documents the findings of a workshop held in Mildura that provided an opportunity to disseminate findings from the National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund to an audience of NSW and Victorian police involved in implementing and managing the policing response to substance abuse in Indigenous communities.

Police presented environmental scans from their respective jurisdictions. The objectives of the workshop included: establishing the key issues for police in relation to substance abuse in Indigenous communities; identifying differences in policing illicit drug use in Indigenous communities compared with other communities; and identifying where police may be able to improve their response to these issues. Key findings included: research and environmental scans shared at the workshop raised awareness of the emerging issue of illicit drug use; differences between urban, regional and remote communities in policing responses to illicit substance use; differences in police responses to urban Indigenous drug use highlighted the need for further research; and networking between operational police and staff from other areas (such as Aboriginal Community Liaison Officers) is likely to provide significant benefits and needs to be encouraged.

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