Casing the Joint: Introducing Histories of Crime

Delve beyond true crime podcasts, books and television series

Crime holds a special place in Australian history, having facilitated colonisation, provided its most celebrated anti-hero in Ned Kelly and been used to sell millions of newspapers, books and movie tickets. Drawing upon a rich array of digital history resources, this course offers you a guided tour of the origins of Australian underworlds and of the study of the history of crime and punishment.

This course will allow you to develop deeper understanding of the underworlds you will encounter in podcasts, televisions series and books. You will develop a sense of the processes which occur when someone becomes entangled with the legal system, and you will know where you can go to find out more about an offender and a crime for yourself.

Recommended for learners age 15+

This course is for anyone interested in history, criminal law, true crime and crime fiction. It would also suit those who are interested in researching crimes and criminal offenders.

• What is the History of Crime?
• Welcome
• Approaches to Studying & Writing About Criminal Pasts
• Why Crime Histories Are Important
• Criminal Justice and the Prosecution Project
• Welcome to the Court Room
• Digital Court Records
• Wrapping Up the Case
• Identifying Underworlds
• Keeping Track of the Criminal Underworld
• Visual Police Records
• A Digital Detective Agency