ACJRD Juvenile Justice Seminar

The ACJRD were delighted to present this online Juvenile Justice seminar on 20 March 2024, along with Dr Siobhán Buckley, Ulster University School of Law, and Caroline Rutherford and Michelle Kennedy of Extern. A recording of the seminar available to ACJRD members only is available to view here. Presentations are available to download here, and a report will be available shortly. 

SCARS Art Exhibition

SCARS Art Exhibition of artwork created by prison students in Ireland, Norway and Malawi as part of an EU-funded project. Maynooth University, 25 April, 6-7:30pm. For further detail click here.

Policing Empires: Militarization, Race and the Imperial Boomerang

In an event hosted by the Centre for Criminology of Maynooth University on 25 April, 6:30-8pm, Professor Julian Go of the Sociology Department, University of Chicago will discuss his newest book, Policing Empires: Militarization, Race, and the Imperial Boomerang in Britain and the US. In this research project, Go traces the origins of modern policing tactics and ideologies present in the USA and the UK to systems of control that were pioneered in Ireland and other colonies across the globe. His work offers an incisive, postcolonial critique of the very institution of police in contemporary western societies. For further details see Eventbrite.

Alternative Ways of Seeing – An exhibition of work by people in custody 2024

‘Alternative Ways of Seeing’ is a national exhibition of artwork produced in prisons and curated by artist Eddie Cahill, a former prisoner himself. Cahill together with Tom Shortt, Arts Officer for the Irish Prison Service, travelled the length and breadth of the country, selecting a body of work which spans all the prisons in Ireland and displays a wealth of skills taught within the prison education system. The exhibition runs until 27 April at Rua Red, South Dublin Arts Centre, Tallaght. For further detail click here.

Public Understandings of Hate Crime: Ireland, North and South, University of Limerick

'Public Understandings of Hate Crime: Ireland, North and South', University of Limerick, 30 April, 4-5pm. A presentation of data from the ground-breaking Irish Research Council (IRC) funded PUHC project, hosted by the European Centre for the Study of Hate. Speakers: Professor Amanda Haynes, Department of Sociology; Professor Jennifer Schweppe, School of Law; Dr Kevin Brown, Queens University Belfast; Professor Zoë James, the University of Plymouth, UK. For further detail click here. 

The Politics and Practice of Drug Policing in Ireland, Northern Research Police Webinar Series  

The Politics and Practice of Drug Policing in Ireland: Reflections on the Citizens' Assembly on Drug Use, The fifth in the Northern Research Police Webinar Series of Spring 2024, 3 May 11am-12:15pm. 

The role of policing in the perpetration of the Irish state’s own five-decade-long ‘war on drugs’ was, inevitably, a point of discussion for the Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use. This presentation outlines the Assembly’s treatment of policing and the contributions of senior officers from Ireland’s national police force, An Garda Síochána, to the process. The presentation then offers some reflections on why the Assembly gave such an impoverished assessment of drugs policing in Ireland, including the dearth of evidence and research on the topic. Speaker: Dr Cian Ó Concubhair, Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in Maynooth University; Chair: Dr. Ian Marder, Assistant Professor in Criminology, Maynooth University School of Law and Criminology. For further detail click here.  

Police Reform in a Changing Ireland, Maynooth University

Police Reform in a Changing Ireland, ICCL in partnership with the Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ), Maynooth University, 16 May, 10am-5pm. 

More than five years on from the publication of the final report of the Commission on the Future of Policing in Ireland (CoFPI) and with appetite for police reform appearing to wane, this conference will take a past, present and future view of human rights-based policing on the island of Ireland. Speakers include: Conor Brady, former editor of the Irish Times and founding commissioner, Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission; Alyson Kilpatrick, Chief Commissioner, Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission; Andy George, President, National Black Police Association (UK); Helen Hall, Chief Executive Officer, Policing Authority; Prof. Donncha O’Connell, former member of CoFPI and Professor of Law, University of Galway; Martin Collins, Co-Director, Pavee Point; Emily Williams, Policing and Justice Policy Officer, ICCL. For further detail click here.  

Longest serving probation officer: 'Nail 'em, jail 'em policies will not solve repeat offending', The Journal interview with Gerry McNally

Gerry McNally has spent 45 years at the coal face of the Irish Probation Service starting back in 1978... “CAPTURE ‘EM, NAIL ‘EM, jail em” will not solve the problem of repeat offenders but including them in the community can positively move people away from a life of crime, Ireland’s most experienced Probation Service officer has said. Click here to read the interview with Gerry McNally in The Journal.

Listen: Rachel Lillis on RTE Radio 1 speaks with Oliver Callan about the Probation Service and Restorative Justice

Rachel Lillis, the National Lead for the Restorative Justice and Victims Services Unit at the Probation Service, talks with Oliver Callan about the work of the Probation Service and Restorative Justice. Click here to listen to the interview.

'Replacing the Offences Against the State Acts: Shaking the Security Mindset'

The Irish Criminal Law Journal (2024 34(1)) has published an article entitled 'Replacing the Offences Against the State Acts: Shaking the Security Mindset' by Prof. Claire Hamilton, Maynooth University School of Law and Criminology. This is available in print and online at westlaw.ie

An Evaluation of the Provision of Psychiatric Care within the Irish Prison System

This inspection was carried out in February and March 2023, by a team including two international experts in forensic psychiatry. The provision of care was assessed in seven of the thirteen prisons in the State, and many of the Inspectorate’s recommendations refer to systemic issues arising across the prison estate. Click here to view the website where an action plan and summary report are available, click here to download the full report, or here to view the infographic.

• Neglect of prisoners with mental health difficulties exposes a prison system that is unfit for purpose - Mental Health Reform respond to the report here.

The reasons why applicants are still required to disclose criminal records are not always clear

Charlotte Brooks presents research on the complex landscape of university admissions policies for those with criminal records - Higher education policies for applicants with criminal records in the United Kingdom: Are universities ‘banning the box’? Charlotte Brooks is a Doctoral Researcher at the University of Nottingham. To read the blog, click here.

Adolescent Addiction Service Report 2024

This report, prepared by Denis Murray, covers the work of the Adolescent Addition Service. Click here to download the report. 

ACJRD Newsletter and notice submissions

If you have submissions relevant for distribution to personnel working in or associated professionally with the criminal justice system, please send them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will consider them for our next newsletter and notices.

Also, we sometimes receive submissions at short notice for events, vacancies and opportunities, so be sure to keep an eye on our News section so you don’t miss these.