The Australian Government's Innovation Report

Forensic counter-terrorism practitioners and
crime scene investigators from around Australia train at ANSTO in specially developed radiological crime scene investigations workshops to develop practical
skills and knowledge in dealing with radiological hazards. Photo credits: ANSTO
In 2005-06, ANSTO hosted two radiological crime scene investigation workshops in preparation for the 2006
Melbourne Commonwealth Games. Participants from across Australia included forensic counter-terrorism, bomb
squad, fire/Hazardous Materials and defence force personnel.
The aim of the workshop was to equip participants with the skills and knowledge to competently assess the extent
of a radiological hazard following a terrorist attack and, if safe to do so, enter the scene to collect evidence.
Participants were presented with both academic and practical challenges. On the practical side, they responded
to two realistic mock scenarios requiring all agencies to work together and safely examine the crime scenes.
Academically, participants received formal instruction on all aspects of crime scene operations, radiation
protection and measurement, decontamination and radiological sampling.
Overall, the exercises demonstrated the importance of a national approach to such specialist training programmes.
The outcomes from the workshops assisted ANSTO staff in drafting guidelines for assessing suspicious
packages and substances for the national chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear working group.
Communicating research and statistics on crime and justice: The Australian Institute of Criminology
(AIC) is committed to wide dissemination of crime and justice research and data to meet the needs of different
target groups including policy makers, practitioners, researchers and the public.
Each year the institute produces Australian crime: facts and fi gures, which provides a short, easy to read summary of
recorded crime, and statistics on victimisation, offenders and the criminal justice system in Australia. It also produces
publications of major research projects, and papers that summarise key findings and issues.
As well as print publications, which are also available on its website, the AIC produces several web-only products
ranging from short digests of recent research and statistics in a series of fact sheets (AICrime reduction matters,
Crime facts info, BushFire arson bulletin, High tech crime brief) to in-depth discussion of research methodology and
findings (technical and background papers). These are all notified to subscribers to the institute’s email alert list,
and to different groups in Australia and around the world.
The AIC’s website was recently voted one of the top five sources of web-based information worldwide by the
US National Institute of Justice. The website, which turned 10 in 2006, is not only a source of information about
the institute, but also provides a gateway to reliable and valued information about over 40 topics in crime and
criminal justice.
Catering to a broad audience of policy makers, researchers, practitioners and the general public, the website
links to the institute’s own publications and conferences and to sources from around the world on subjects from
arson to young offenders and from crime statistics to crime prevention.
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