ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the issues with reference to the experience of policing in remote Australian communities. The material conditions of rural policing, presented difficulties for police attempting to address the problem of domestic violence. Communal integration, often depicted in rural studies as a positive element of gemeinschaft relations, or more recently equated with social capital, is crucial in understanding how remote communities are policed in Australia. While localistic policing can be viewed largely as a positive development, immersion into the community can exacerbate the problematic aspects of police work. Physical isolation impacts upon all aspects of rural policing. For example, police services in all states of Australia experience difficulty in the recruitment and retention of officers to rural areas. Indigenous life is more publicly visible and subject to adverse cultural judgements and formal interventions by the police as violations of public order.
