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Criminology Society of Victoria

Established in the late 19th century by radical clergyman Charles Strong of the Australian Church, the Criminology Society of Victoria promoted 'enlightened and rational treatment' of prisoners and awakened public interest in prison conditions. The society organised public lectures on crime and punishment, lobbied for penological innovation in the form of indeterminate sentences (introduced 1908) and a Children's Court (opened 1907) and protested against the use of corporal and capital punishment. The society became the Victorian branch of the Howard League for Penal Reform in 1922.

Simon Cooke