Outline

Overview

The unit of study aims to encourage students to develop skills and knowledge about the police and policing, with particular reference to the shifting nature of policing. The unit includes critical analysis of theoretical and policy issues within contemporary criminal justice, but also examines policing (in its widest sense) including the pluralisation of policing. Students will examine: crime and crime control within a social and political context; policing and other institutions and processes of criminal justice in the light of contemporary research and policy debates; the major theoretical frameworks within which crime, policing and criminal justice policy are constructed and analysed; challenges for policing arising from changes in spatial arrangements, and from transnational developments in crime and crime control.

Unit details and rules

Unit code	LAWS5155
Academic unit	Law
Credit points	6
Prohibitions ?	LAWS3048 or LAWS3455
Prerequisites ?	None
Corequisites ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Murray Lee, murray.lee@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Presentation	Presentation (10%) Presentation - prerecorded in class presentation	10%	Week 04 Due date: 17 Mar 2023 at 23:59	5 minutes - pre-recorded presentation
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Seminar paper (30%) Written assessment	30%	Week 05 Due date: 21 Mar 2023 at 23:59	2000 words / 4 weeks
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Research essay (60%) Written assessment	60%	Week 13 Due date: 26 May 2023 at 23:59	3000 words / 9 weeks
Outcomes assessed:
= hurdle task ?

Assessment summary

Presentation (10%)

Students are required to record a 5 minute presentation and upload to Canvas by 23:59 on March 17th. The presentation should comprise of an overview of a seminar topic allocated by the Unit Coordinator in week one. The outcome of a grant of special consideration application may include an alternative task, at the discretion of the Unit Coordinator.

Seminar paper (30%)

Each participant is required to submit a seminar paper worth 30%. The paper will consist of a written answer on questions covering material from the allocated Presentation topic, raising policy, pratical and technical issues as appropriate. The assignment will be allocated in Week 1 and it is due by 23:59 on March 21st 2023, Sydney Australia time. The maximum length of the assignment is 2000 words, excluding references. Any words in excess of the word limit will not be read or marked. The outcome of a grant of special consideration application may include an alternative task, at the discretion of the Unit Coordinator, that has been designed to meet the same learning outcomes as the original assessment.

Research essay (60%)

Students are required to submit a research essay based on topics provided in Week 4. Alternatively, students can propose their own topic by email to the Unit Coordinator.

The essay is due by 23:59 on May 26th, Sydney Australia time. The maximum length of the assignment is 3000 words, excluding references. Any words in excess of the word limit will not be read or marked. The outcome of a grant of special consideration application may include an alternative task, at the discretion of the Unit Coordinator, that has been designed to meet the same learning outcomes as the original assessment.

The use of assistance in preparing and editing assessment tasks in this unit of study is strictly prohibited. Assistance includes human and automated writing tools (not including spell checking).

Assessment requirement to pass a unit of study: A student must make a genuine attempt at all assessment tasks set out in this Unit of Study in order to obtain a Pass mark and grade (or above); otherwise an Absent Fail grade will be recorded as the student’s result for this Unit of Study.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100	Completely answers the question. Contains striking originality of approach or analysis. Demonstrates exhaustive or innovative research (where independent research required). Exceptionally well written, structured and expressed. Is otherwise exceptional in some way.
Distinction	75 - 84	Completely answers the question. Achieves a critical and evaluative approach to the issues. Content and structure is well organised in support of the argument. Demonstrates extensive research and analysis to support a well-documented argument. Generally well expressed and free from errors. Has a clear structure and is well articulated.
Credit	65 - 74	Covers main issues fairly well in answering the question. Contains no significant errors. Demonstrates an attempted critical approach to the issues. Demonstrates reasonably sound research and analysis in addressing the key issues. Has a clear structure and reasonably clear expression.
Pass	50 - 64	Identifies the key issues, but does not follow through with a reasoned argument. Contains some significant errors. Displays satisfactory engagement with the key issues. Offers a descriptive summary of material relevant to the question. Superficial use of material, and may display a tendency to paraphrase. Demonstrates little evidence of in-depth research or analysis. Adequate expression. Overall, demonstrates the minimum level of competence in the assessment and satisfies the requirements to proceed to higher-level studies in the degree or subject area.
Fail	0 - 49	Does not answer the question. Contains significant or numerous errors. Few or no identifiable arguments. Content that is inappropriate or irrelevant. Lack of research or analysis. Difficult or impossible to understand through poor grammar, expression or structure. Overall, does not demonstrate the minimum level of competence in the assessment.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

This unit has an exception to the standard University policy or supplementary information has been provided by the unit coordinator. This information is displayed below:

The late submission of a piece of assessment, without an approved extension, will attract a penalty of 10% of the total marks available for the piece of assessment per 24 hours or part thereof, after the due time on the due date. For example, a submission after the due time but before the same time the following day will attract a 10% penalty.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

You may only use artificial intelligence and writing assistance tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator, and if you do use them, you must also acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section.

Studiosity is permitted for postgraduate units unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	1. Introduction: police and government, and police and politics; 2. Police histories and the history of policing	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 02	1. Popular cultural representations of policing; 2. Policing and media work: framing crime from a police perspective	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 03	1. Nature and functions of police and criminal investigations; 2. Police discretion and police powers	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 04	1. Regulating police, police deviance, and police culture; 2. Policing public order: which public? whose order?	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 05	1. Policing and public confidence; 2. Policing strategies: community policing	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 06	Policing strategies: problem-solving policing, and intelligence-led policing	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 07	1. Policing strategies: broken windows and zero tolerance; 2. Guest speaker	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 09	1. Police and diversity: diversity in policing; 2. Police and Indigenous communities	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 10	1. Plural policing, private policing, and contractualism; 2. Policing space: social exclusion or visual inclusion	Lecture (4 hr)
Week 11	1. Policing the global: transnational crime and security; 2. Fear of crime, and the policing of risk	Lecture (4 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: All students are required to attend 70% of classes (or as otherwise specified by the Unit Coordinator) to satisfy the pass requirements for each unit of study. Attendance requirements may be satisfied by face-to-face attendance as specified by the Unit Coordinator. Failure to meet this requirement may result in a student being precluded from sitting the final assessment.

Word count penalty: Any words in excess of prescribed word limit will not be read or marked. The total word count for essay and other written assessments will exclude bibliography; footnote numbers; footnote citation; cover page and include body text; headings and sub-headings; quotations; anything other than numbers and citations in footnotes.

Referencing: The Sydney Law School expects you to use the Australian Guide to Legal Citation (4th edition, 2018) for your footnoting style, although you should confirm this with your lecturer, and a link to the library website where this is set out comprehensively is available at https://libguides.library.usyd.edu.au/c.php?g=508212&p=3476376.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

Reiner, Robert (2000) The politics of the police 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Introduction.
Ericson, R (1982) Reproducing order, pp3-30 Extract reprinted in Newburn, T (2005) (ed) Policing: Key Readings Cullompton: Willan, ch. 15.
Dandeker, C. (1990) Surveillance, Power and Modernity, Polity Press, Britain, Chapter 4 pp110-133.
Finnane, Mark. (1994) Police and government: histories of policing in Australia Melbourne: Oxford University Press, pp9-30, 111-130.

Reiner, R (2003) Policing and the media in Newburn T. (ed) Handbook of Policing Willan Publishing, ch.11.

Leishman, Frank and Paul Mason (2003) Policing and the media: facts, fictions and factions Cullompton, Devon: Willan. Ch. 7 [see also other chapters].

Lee, M. and McGovern, A. (2012). Image Work(s): “Simulated Policing” and the New Police (Popularity) Culture’, in Carrington, K., Ball, M., O’Brien, E. and Tauri, J. (eds). Crime, Justice and Social Democracy. Palgrave Macmillan
McGovern, A & Lee, M, (2010) ‘“Cop[ying] it Sweet”: Police Media Units and the Making of News’ 43(3) Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology 444-464.

Dixon, David (2005) Why don't the police stop crime? Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology 38, 1: 4-24.
Brookman, Fiona & Innes, Martin (2013) ‘The problem of success: What is a ‘good’ homicide investigation?’, Policing and Society: An International Journal of Research and Policy , Vol 23(3).
Maguire, Mike (2003) Criminal investigation and crime control in Newburn T. (ed) Handbook of Policing Willan Publishing, ch. 15

Boon-Kuo, L. Brodie, A. Keene-McCann, J. Sentas, V. & Weber, L. (2021) Policing biosecurity: police enforcement of special measures in New South Wales and Victoria during the COVID-19 pandemic, Current Issues in Criminal Justice, 33:1, 76-88, DOI: 10.1080/10345329.2020.1850144
Taylor, E. & Lee, M (2019), 'Off the Record? ‘Arrestee Concerns about the Manipulation, Modification, and Misrepresentation of Police Body-Worn Camera Footage, Surveillance and Society, 17(3/4): 473-483.
Grewcock, M., & Sentas, V. (2021). Strip Searches, Police Power and the Infliction of Harm: An Analysis of the New South Wales Strip Search Regime. International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy, 10(3), 191-206. https://doi.org/10.5204/ijcjsd.1665
Kidd, J. NSW (2020) Police set quota for 241,000 personal searches and strip searches in 12 months, documents reveal https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-13/nsw-police-strip-search-quota-revealed-in-foi-documents/11960682

Klockars, Carl (1980) ‘The Dirty Harry problem’ The Annals 452, 33-47 reprinted in Klockars C and Mastrofski, S (eds) Thinking about police: Contemporary readings 2nd ed. New York, McGraw-Hill

Louise E Porter, Tim Prenzler , (2016) "The code of silence and ethical perceptions: Exploring police officer unwillingness to report misconduct", Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, Vol. 39 Iss: 2, pp.370-386
Don L. Kurtz & Lindsey L. Upton (2018) The Gender in Stories: How War Stories and Police Narratives Shape Masculine Police Culture, Women & Criminal Justice, 28:4, 282-300, DOI: 10.1080/08974454.2017.1294132

Lee, M. (2021). Policing the Pedal Rebels: A Case Study of Environmental Activism Under COVID-19. International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy, 10(2), 156-168. https://doi.org/10.5204/ijcjsd.1887
McNamara,L., & Quilter, J. (2019). Criminalising protest through the expansion of police ‘move-on’ powers: A case study from Australia. International Journal of Law, Crime and Justice, 58,22–34.
Waddington, P. (1999) Policing citizens London, UCL Press, ch 3 ‘Keeping dissent in its place’.

Hough, M., Jackson, J., Bradford, B., Myhill, A. and Quinton, P. (2010). ‘Procedural Justice, Trust and Institutional Legitimacy’, Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 4(3) 203-210.
Lee, M and McGovern, A (2014) Policing and Media: Public Relations, simulations and Communications, London: Routledge. Chapter 2, The logics of Police Media work.
Ellis, J. R. (2021). Social media, police excessive force and the limits of outrage: Evaluating models of police scandal. Criminology & Criminal Justice. https://doi.org/10.1177/17488958211017384
Ortiz, A. (2020) Confidence in Police Is at Record Low, New York Times, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/12/us/gallup-poll-police.html

O’Malley P and Palmer D ‘Post-Keynesian policing’ (1996) Economy and Society 25(2) 137-155.
Skogan, Wes (2006) The promise of community policing in Weisburd D and Braga A (eds) Police innovation: contrasting perspectives New York, Cambridge University Press.
Mastrofski, Stephen (2006) Community Policing: A Skeptical View, in Weisburd D and Braga A (eds) Police innovation: Contrasting perspectives New York, Cambridge University Press.

Brown, Mark and Sutton, Adam (1991) ‘Problem oriented policing and organisational form: Lessons from a Victorian experiment’ Current Issues In Criminal Justice 9(1) 21-33
Cross, Cassandra (2016) ‘Using financial intelligence to target online fraud victimisation: Applying a tertiary prevention perspective.’ Criminal Justice Studies, 29(2), pp. 125-142.

Murray Lee, Toby Martin, Jioji Ravulo & Ricky Simandjuntak (2022) [Dr]illing in the name of: the criminalisation of Sydney drill group ONEFOUR, Current Issues in Criminal Justice, 34:4, 339-359, DOI: 10.1080/10345329.2022.2100131
Young, A. (2012). Criminal images: The affective judgment of graffiti and street art. Crime, Media, Culture, 8(3), 297–314. https://doi.org/10.1177/1741659012443232
Andrew Millie, (2019) Crimes of the Senses: Yarn Bombing and Aesthetic Criminology, The British Journal of Criminology, Volume 59, Issue 6, Pages 1269–1287, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azz036

Miles-Johnson T, (2019) ‘Policing diverse people: How occupational attitudes and background characteristics shape police recruits' perceptions’, SAGE Open p1-13
Dwyer A, Bond CEW, Ball M, Lee M, Crofts T. Support Provided by LGBTI Police Liaison Services: An Analysis of a Survey of LGBTIQ People in Australia. Police Quarterly. 2022;25(1):33-58. doi:10.1177/10986111211038048
Brown, Jennifer & Heidensohn, Frances (2000) Gender and policing: comparative perspectives Houndmills, Macmillan, ch. 4.

Cunneen, C. (2019) ‘Criminalisation and Policing in Indigenous Communities’, in Behrendt, Larissa, Chris Cunneen, Terri Libesman and Nicole Watson (eds) Indigenous Legal Relations in Australia Melbourne, Oxford University Press, ch. 5.
Porter, A.J. (2016) 'Decolonizing Policing: Indigenous Patrols, Counter-Policing and Safety', Theoretical Criminology, vol. 20, no. 4.

Sarre, R., Prenzler, T. (2018). Privatisation of Police: Themes from Australia. In: Hucklesby, A., Lister, S. (eds) The Private Sector and Criminal Justice. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-37064-8_4
Cunneen, Chris, and Russell, Sophie (2020) Vilification, vigilantism and violence: troubling social media in Australia. In: Weinert, Kim, Crawley, Karen, and Tranter, Kieran, (eds.) Law, Lawyers and Justice: through Australian lenses. Routledge, Abingdon, UK, pp. 82-105.
Chang, L. (2018) ‘Internet vigilantism: co-production of security and compliance in the digital age’ in Criminal Justice and Regulation Revisited: Essays in Honour of Peter Grabosky. Y C Chang, L. & Brewer, R. (eds.). 1st ed. Abingdon Oxon UK: Routledge, p. 147-160 14 p. (Routledge Frontiers of Criminal Justice).

Taylor, E. and Gill, M. (2014) 'CCTV: Reflections on its use, abuse and effectiveness', In M. Gill (Ed.) The Handbook of Security. Palgrave Macmillan: Basingstoke.
Palmer, Darren and Warren, Ian (2014), ‘The pursuit of exclusion through zonal banning’, The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Criminology, vol. 47, no. 3, pp. 429-446.
Asher Flynn Mark Halsey Murray Lee (2016) ‘Emblematic Violence and Aetiological Cul-De-Sacs: On the Discourse of ‘One-punch’ (Non) Fatalities’, British Journal of Criminology, Volume 56, Issue 1, pp 179-195.

Palmer, Darren and Warren, Ian J. (2013), ‘Global policing and the case of Kim Dotcom’, International journal for crime, justice and social democracy, vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 105-119.

Martin, J. Munksgaard, R. Coomber, R. Demant, J. Barratt, M. (2020) ‘Selling Drugs on Darkweb Cryptomarkets: Differentiated Pathways, Risks and Rewards’, The British Journal of Criminology, Volume 60, Issue 3, May 2020, Pages 559–578, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azz075

AUSTRAC (2021) ‘AUSTRAC Annual Report 2020-2021’ https://www.austrac.gov.au/about-us/corporate-information-and-governance/reports-and-accountability/annual-reports

Lee, Murray (2009) ’The enumeration of anxiety: power, knowledge and the fear of crime’ in S Farrall and M Lee (eds) Fear of crime: Critical voices in an age of anxiety Milton Park, Routledge-Cavendish, ch. 3.
Ericson, R & Haggerty, K (2005) The policing of risk in T Newburn (ed) Policing: Key Readings Cullompton, Willan.
Garland, David (2001) The culture of control Chicago, University of Chicago Press, ch. 5.

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. examine and understand the practices and institutions of policing within a social and political context
LO2. examine and understand debates about the nature of policing
LO3. examine and understand the particular character of policing in Australia
LO4. examine and understand the inter-relationships between policing and other mechanisms of regulation
LO5. examine and understand the impact of criminal law and its enforcement on different social groups, with particular attention on race, gender, and class, and to their intersection
LO6. examine and understand prospects for the reform of policing.

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Updated.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect

Current students

LAWS5155: Policing, Crime and Society

Semester 1, 2023 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

Media

Student links

About us

Connect