Caitlin is an Associate Professor in criminology and drug policy and Matthew Flinders Fellow at Flinders Criminology and the Centre for Social Impact, Flinders University. Caitlin has spent 18 years researching drug and alcohol policy, including 12.5 years at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW, working as part of the Drug Policy Modelling Program - one of the leading drug policy research centres in the world. Having joined Flinders University in July 2019 her research seeks to advance Australian and international drug policy by improving the evidence-base into the effects of different legislative and law enforcement approaches to drug use and supply and working directly with policy makers. Her research focuses on 1) drug laws and drug law reform (including depenalisation, decriminalisation, legalisation), 2) criminal justice policies (including policing and alternatives to arrest) and 3) drug markets, outlining what laws and policies are deployed, how they operate in practice, the impacts of this investment and identifying avenues for more effective responses that can reduce drug-related health, social and criminal justice harms.

As one of the few criminologists and drug policy scholars internationally, and current President of the International Society for the Study of Drug Policy (the only academic society committed to advancing drug policy research and rigorous research methodologies across the globe)., Caitlin brings unique experience working at the interface of criminal justice, health and social systems to drive evidence-based system change. Of note, throughout 2022-2024 she was contracted by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health to lead a cross-national team to analyse the latest state of knowledge about the justice, health, social and economic consequences of adopting diversion, depenalisation and decriminalisation of drug use and possession across the globe and put forward potential law reform options for adoption in Switzerland. Moreover, in 2023 and 2024 she collaborated with social impact and criminological scholars Professor Goodwin-Smtih, Professor Mark Halsey and others to undertake research titled "Beyond Bars" that in a national first quantified the scale and harms from short custodial stays in two regional communities that house prisons – Port Augusta and Port Lincoln. This research drew together five years of correctional data and stakeholder consultations with justice, health, social service, First Nations and NGO experts to identify impacts, harms and a new roadmap for reform and was awarded the 2024 Australian and New Zealand Society of Criminology David Biles Correctional Research Award for an outstanding research report in the field of corrections.    

Caitlin engages extensively with policy makers, law enforcement and health officials from across and outside of Australia, including the Commonwealth Department of Health, the Australian Federal Police,  Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, Australian Customs and Border Control,NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, NSW Police, Victoria Police, ACT Police, ACT Health Directorate, the Irish Department of Justice and Equality and Department of Health, the British Colombia Police, United Nations Development Programme and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. She has been a member of the Australian Civil Society for United Nations Drug Policy since 2019 and attended the 62nd, 63rd, 64th, 65th, 66th, 67th and 68th United Nations Commission on Narcotics Drug Meetings as part of the Australian civil society delegation (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025). Her work has contributed to many policy and practice reforms in Australia, Canada, England, Ireland, Portugal and USA, including the expansion of drug diversion programs for use/ possess offenders;  the reform of drug trafficking thresholds law “to ensure laws target traffickers not users”; the development of new World Health Organisation and United Nations Guidelines on Principles for Treatment and Care for People with Drug Use Disorders in Contact with the Criminal Justice System; and the development of prisoner reintegration aids - namely a new wayfinder app to connect social service providers with correctional staff to aid prisoner re-entry. 

Caitlin is also Visiting Fellow at the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW, Senior Research Associate, International Drug Policy Unit, London School of Economics and President of the International Society for the Study of Drug Policy and is on the editorial board for the International Journal of Drug Policy and the Journal of Illicit Economies and Development.

Dr Hughes served as CBGL Higher Degree Research Coordinator between March 2020 and December 2025 (4.75 years). In this role she oversaw all of the HDR students in business, government, law and criminology and oversaw a more than doubling of student numbers as well as growth in HDR completions, HDR supervisor compliance and engagement of HDR students with industry.

Nationally Competitive Category 1 Grants

Hughes, Halsey, Bowden, Goldsmith. 2023-2028, Tackling Crystal Methamphetamine Supply in Rural and Regional Australia. Australian Research Council – Discovery Project. (DP230100966).

Hughes, Stevens, Barratt, Ferris, Maier, Winstock. 2020-2022. Building procedural justice in Australian street-level drug law enforcement. Australian Institute of Criminology, Criminology Research Grants.

Hughes, Ritter, Weatherburn, Maccoun. 2014-2016. Drug law enforcement policy: The deterrent effects of Australian policing strategies. Australian Research Council – Discovery Project (DP150100910).

Ritter, Hughes, Hoppe. 2013-2014. The science-policy interface in policy theories: A comparative case study of street-level policing for illicit drugs. Australian Research Council – Discovery Project (DP140100219).

Shanahan, Hughes, McSweeney. 2014-2015. Australian police diversion for cannabis offences: Assessing program outcomes and cost-effectiveness. National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund. 

Hughes, Chalmers, Bright, McFadden. 2013-2014. Trafficking in multiple commodities: Exposing Australia’s poly-drug and poly-crime networks. National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund. 

Hughes, Ritter, Cowdery. 2011. Using evidence to evaluate Australian drug trafficking thresholds: Proportionate, equitable and just? Criminology Research Council. 

Ritter, Chalmers, Hughes. 2008-2009. Examining the effectiveness of different types of law enforcement interventions directed towards methamphetamine. National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund. 

Selected Tenders

Mizzi, Goodwin-Smith, Halsey, Hughes, de Vel-Palumbo, Deegan, Cleary, Ferraretto. 2024-2026. Making it easy – a re-entry wayfinding app to support successful prisoner re-entry and re-integration. Department for Correctional Services SA.

Hughes, Ritter, Bowden, Deegan. 2024-2025. Quantifying and expanding alternatives to arrest for personal use and possession of illicit drugs in Australia. Law Foundation of South Australia.

Hughes, Pardal, Hoorens, Kilmer, Agnew-Pauley, Stevens. 2022-2023. International status of decriminalisation of drug use. Swiss Federal Office of Public Health.

Goodwin-Smith, Halsey, Hughes, Tually, Bogomolova, Deegan, Cleary. 2023-2025. Beyond Bars. Centacare Catholic Country.

Hughes, Bowden, Deegan, Cowdery. 2023-2024. Attitudes towards current and alternate cannabis legal regimes in South Australia. Law Foundation of South Australia.

Hughes, Bowden. 2022-2025. Health, social and criminal justice impacts of the South Australian Police Drug Diversion Initiative. SA Health and Flinders. 

Ahmad, Kamarulzaman, Hughes. 2021. Determining drug purchasing and usage trends in Malaysia. United Nations Development Programme.

Hughes, Goldsmith, Halsey, Goudie. 2021. Triangulating wastewater and a prospective survey of drug consumption: A pilot study. Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission. 

Deegan, McDonald, McDonald, Hughes. 2021. Extended joint criminal enterprise: Public perceptions of appropriate sentences for murder in South Australia. The Law Foundation of South Australia.

Hughes, Bright, Gundur. 2020. The impacts of COVID-19 on illicit drug trafficking and supply in Australia.  Flinders University College of Business, Government and Law COVID-19 Grant Scheme. 

Barratt, Hughes, Ferris, Winstock. 2019. Patterns of emergency medical treatment seeking following alcohol and other drug use among Australian festival-goers. NSW Coroner.

Hughes, Hulme, Ritter. 2019. The relationship between price, purity and population-level drug-related harm: A rapid review. Australian Institute of Criminology. 

Stevens, Hughes, Hulme, Cassidy. 2018. Review of approaches taken in Ireland and in other jurisdictions to simple possession drug offences. Government of Ireland - Department of Justice and Equality.

Hughes, Ritter, Mazerolle, Seear. 2018. Criminal justice responses relating to personal possession of illicit drugs. Commonwealth Department of Health. 

Hughes, Shanahan, Ritter, Vuong. 2017. Developing a program logic and evaluation framework for an ACT Drug and Alcohol Court. ACT Justice and Community Safety Directorate.

Shanahan, Hughes. 2017. Cannabis cautioning in NSW. NSW Police. 

Hughes, Ritter, Shanahan, McDonald. 2012. Consultant to evaluate the Australian Capital Territory Drug Diversion programs. ACT Health Directorate. 

Current projects (selected)

Australian Research Council Discovery Project - Tackling crystal methamphetamine supply in rural and regional Australia

This project tackles one of the leading drug policy and organised crime issues in Australia, namely the increased availability of crystal methamphetamine (ice) in rural and regional communities. The first study of its kind nationally, it will use an innovative combination of qualitative and quantitative methods across four regional communities in three states (New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria)  to uncover how ice infiltrates regional communities, the drivers and mechanisms and impacts thereof. Expected outcomes include a roadmap to reduce supply and harms, strengthened communities and enhanced international collaborations. With ice use and supply costing the Australian government $5 billion per year, the project stands to provide significant social, public health and economic benefits.

International status of decriminalisation of drug use 

Over the last century international drug control has centred around three conventions which have prohibited and criminalised the production, supply and possession of illicit drugs including cannabis, heroin and cocaine. But, many jurisdictions and countries are now considering alternatives to criminal sanctions for simple drug possession and use. One such alternative is ’decriminalisation’ defined as the removal of laws and policies that define drug use and/or the possession of drugs for personal use as a criminal offence. Spurred by the calls by the Swiss Federal Council to examine alternative approaches that could be employed and a resurgence of calls by the United Nations for countries to consider alternative approaches this project funded by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Helath is critically analysing the latest approaches to depenalisation, diversion, decriminalisation and legalisation of the use and possession of drugs from across the globe, design considerations and evidence of positive and negative effects on public health, public safety and criminal justice systems.

Making it easy – a re-entry wayfinding app to support successful prisoner re-entry and re-integration.

Almost half of the 67,000 people released annually from prisons in Australia return to prison within two years of release, with First Nations peoples and people who are dependent on alcohol or other drugs disproportionately impacted. New and improved ways to aid prisoner re-entry are thus vital. This project will build off our recent research undertaken in partnership with Centacare Catholic Country SA (CCCSA) (Beyond Bars) that brought to the fore the high burden of unmet health and social needs of current and former prisoners and the need for more coordinated communication and collaboration between, on the one hand, correctional services, and on the other, the social and health service ecosystems to aid service providers and prisoners. This project is funded by the Department for Correctional Services SA and is developing, designing, implementing and evaluating for the first time a wayfinder app that will connect social and health service providers as well as correctional staff (within prison and community corrections), with the aim of better assisting people to stay out of prison and get the supports they need.

• Dec 2019 Vivienne Moxham-Hall - Deans Award for Outstanding PhD Thesis
• Dec 2019 Shann Hulme - Deans Award for Outstanding PhD Thesis
• July 2024 Brooke Crabtree - Best 3MT Presenter in College of Business, Government, and Law and top six for Flinders University 
• December 2024 Hamid Azizi - Best Higher Degree Research Student Publication in College of Business, Government, and Law and top six for Flinders University
• February 2025 Winnie Agnew-Pauley - Commendation for an outstanding PhD Thesis 

• Understanding how high-level drug traffickers respond and adapt to changes in supply 
• Promoting compliance, recovery and desistance: comparative case studies of pre-sentence diversion schemes for drug misusing arrestees in Australia and England
• An exploration of the roles, contextual circumstances and motivations of female drug traffickers in Australia
• Conflict theory and street-level drug law enforcement: The use of drug detection dogs in NSW 2008 to 2014
• Investigating displacement effects as a result of the Sydney, NSW alcohol lockout legislation
• What do young people living in New South Wales think of current and alternate approaches of regulating cannabis? 
• The nature and drivers of illicit drug trafficking and production in Myanmar and its future drug policy responses
• The police use of stop and search in England: A critical realist and ethnographic approach
• Declared criminal: An examination of the South Australian ‘bikie gang’ moral panic

• Investigating the utility of indexes for drug policy analysis
• The supply and diversion of pharmaceuticals
• Australia, the United Nations, and the War on Drugs: Examining Australia’s Support for the 1988 Drug Convention
• Women, drugs and anonymous online markets: A secondary analysis of the Global Drug Survey
• Legalising cannabis in Australia - a comparative policy analysis of attitudes to cannabis, stigma and help-seeking in the ACT and NSW

Ongoing Supervisions:

• The nature and extent of the Taliban’s involvement in and profit from the drug trade in Afghanistan pre and post regime change 
• Alcohol and other drugs and impacts of stigma and discrimination on access to health and social services in rural and regional Australia
• Re-thinking AOD harm reduction strategies in Sydney’s licensed entertainment settings and outdoor music festivals: 
  A cross-national comparative analysis 
• Evaluating the South Australian Police Drug Diversion Initiative
• Police bail: The moments of truth on entry into the criminal justice system
• Nordic Noir: Investigating crime discourses produced by cross-cultural adaptations of Scandinavian crime drama