The Australian Institute of Public Safety is a fully accredited private provider of training and education. The Institute has achieved international acclaim for its series of practical courses that range from entry-level training through to University equivalent degrees.

The Institute is fully accredited and works closely with industry and professional bodies to ensure all course content fully meets relevant expectations and standards.

The Institute is Quality Assured, dual winner of the Australian Excellence in Training Award, and regularly provides consultancy services to government, professional associations, public and private entities and the courts. Principal staff are also active researchers and key-note speakers at conferences internationally.

The purpose of the Australian Institute of Public Safety is to provide a learning environment in which staff and students can discover, examine, preserve and transmit knowledge, wisdom and values involving issues of public safety and related matters that will impact upon current and future generations.

The mission of the Australian Institute of Public Safety is

“To maintain excellence in the provision of services that will further enhance public safety.”

With regard to higher education, this mission is based upon the Institute’s premise that it is preparing students for a diverse and ever changing world where, in our educational environment:

• Students are able to access world-class learning facilities;
• Have equal opportunities to learn both within and beyond the classroom;
• Are exposed to leading-edge scholarship throughout their educational experience;
• Learn in an atmosphere of mutual respect; and
• Are challenged to advance, grow and achieve.

The Australian Institute of Public Safety maintains an international focus and has appointed Judge Eugene M. Hyman (California, USA) as its Patron. The Office of Patron is a uniquely important position whereby the Patron provides support and guidance to the Institute generally.

Judge Hyman was a graduate of the University of Santa Clara, California in 1977 and practised as a lawyer specialising in personal injury litigation and criminal law until his first appointment as a Judge of the Santa Clara County Municipal Court in 1990. In 1997, Judge Hyman was elected to the Santa Clara County Superior Court, a Court that is similar in jurisdiction to the Victorian Supreme Court.

Since 1984, Judge Hyman has also lectured in law at the University of Santa Clara, School of Law. He has also taught a number of legal related subjects in other university faculties and also within the Santa Clara County Police Academy.

In 1998, Judge Hyman received the Women's Fund Man of the Year Award for his efforts in domestic violence prevention. In the same year, the Institute brought Judge Hyman to Australia where he addressed various units within Victoria Police and the Victorian Judiciary on domestic violence and substance abuse issues.

Judge Hyman has extensive experience within a number of organisations including Santa Clara County Criminal Justice System Advisory Board, Santa Clara County Bar Association, and the Judicial Council Criminal Standing Advisory Committee. He was also Chair of the Santa Clara County Domestic Violence Council’s Court Systems Committee and the Ethics Advisory Committee of the Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Workers' Compensation.

Judge Hyman has published extensively including articles on medical malpractice, drug courts, drug treatment programs, ethics, domestic and family violence, and sentencing alternatives for judges.

Judge Hyman has been a keynote speaker at many conferences in the United States and abroad. He has presented on a range of topics including advocacy skills, drugs, youth issues, domestic violence, the role of the judiciary in drug treatment, court security, and sexual violence.

Judge Hyman's appointment as Patron of the Australian Institute of Public Safety is just one example of the Institute's international collaborative approach toward public safety education, a first for any educational institution in Australia.

Press Release 7/7/04

The Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara, is proud to announce that two of its judges have received recent honors. One of these judges, Hon. Eugene Hyman, received one of the Unsung Hero Awards, 2004, from the Santa Clara County Victim Support Network. Judge Hyman also received an Alumni Special Achievement Award from the Santa Clara University School of Law.

Judge Hyman’s achievements as a judicial officer have been demonstrated broadly. By his creation of the first juvenile delinquency domestic and family violence court, he brings “new levels of care, concern and remediation to these much younger offenders and especially to their victims.” Judge Hyman has been a judge in Santa Clara County for over 14 years. He formerly served as a police officer, private attorney, and currently is also a featured lecturer internationally in the area of juvenile domestic violence.