NSW courts have become the first to abolish 'good character' references in sentencing.

Alex's response to this was caution, Kia was optimistic - and that represents community views around this change.

So what is it, who could it benefit and where do we still need to ensure that everyone is getting a fair and equal process through the sentencing process?

Are police forces failing 50% of their community?

Alex recently wrote about this for The Conversation. Inpsired by the clashes between police and protestors in Sydney, but also because there have been reviews and reports and media articles on the problematic cultures we see in the police force without much change.

So what's it going to take to have a police force that keeps their entire population safe?

This is what Kia and Alex take a look at today, focussing on reviews in Australia and around the world.

You can read Alex's Conversation piece here: https://theconversation.com/australias-masculine-policing-culture-is-failing-women-and-children-276176

It was the biggest case in Australia, but also the world in 2025.

The trial of an Australian woman found guilty for three counts of murder and one count of attemtped murder after feeding members of her extended family beef wellington laced with death cap mushrooms, a highly toxic fungi.

There were podcasts, journalists, documumentary makers, true crime influencers (whatever the heck that is) and authors in the court room.

Three of them whipped a book out at the end of 2025, The Mushroom Tapes by Helen Garner, Chloe Hooper and Sarah Krasnostein.

Kia enhaled this book and couldn't wait to talk about it and Alex had been asked a lot about why we were so into this case as it played out, so we've brought a bit of a review and convo on this case togther.