Australia could free a third of its prisoners with little risk to community, new research finds

Exclusive: Study says reduced incarceration of non-violent offenders can deliver savings to taxpayers and get more people into work

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Australia's prison population could be reduced by one-third with little risk to community safety, according to research conducted for the Institute of Public Affairs.

The research paper by Prof Mirko Bagaric, the dean of law at the Swinburne University of Technology, recommends law reform to prevent imprisonment of non-violent offenders.

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