Media Release

Embargoed until Thursday, 3 December 1998

Crime and Justice Statistics for Western Australia, 1997

There is no evidence to support the notion that Western Australia has been in the grip of a "crime epidemic", according to the latest statistics on crime and criminal justice in WA.

The findings are contained in the eighth edition of Crime and Justice Statistics for Western Australia - a regular series produced by researchers at the Crime Research Centre, University of Western Australia. Authors of the 1997 report are Ms Anna Ferrante, Ms Nini Loh and Mr John Fernandez.

Senior author of the report, Ms Anna Ferrante said that there was little change in the overall recorded crime rate between 1996 and 1997. The total number of reported offences rose by 3%, however, once population growth had been taken into account, the rate had remained fairly stable at 15,702 offences per 100,000 persons. For against person (violent) offences, the rate was constant at about 1,100 per 100,000 persons, that is, about 11 persons in every 1,000 reported being a victim of violence in 1997.

When viewed over the longer term, rates of reported crime in WA have increased. However, yearly fluctuations and variations from one offence type to another have occurred. For example, for property crimes and in particular, burglary and vehicle theft offences, 1995 was a ‘peak’ year. Since then, the rates for these offences have either declined or remained relatively stable. In contrast, the rates of armed and unarmed robbery have risen continually since the early 1990s. For unarmed robbery, the rate has doubled since 1991, while for armed robbery the rate has almost quadrupled. Since 1995, the rates of armed and unarmed robbery have increased by almost 50%. [see page 10]

"The trend in the robbery rate is disturbing. However, the WA rate is still on a par with the national average, and still well below the robbery rate of New South Wales." Ms Ferrante said. [see pages 8,9]

"A notable feature of the robbery statistics is the age pattern of victims. Generally, it is young people who are at most risk of being victims of violent crimes, and in the case of unarmed robbery, those at greatest risk are young men aged 18-24. However, increasing rates of victimisation were also recorded in 1997 for women over the age of 45." [see p. 34]

The publication draws on information from the WA Police Service, the Ministry of Justice and the Australian Bureau of Statistics. It aims to provide policy makers and people involved or interested in the criminal justice system with a concise overview of developments in crime and justice in WA.

Key findings from the Report are.

In comparison to national rates, Western Australia had average or slightly higher than average recorded crime rates for most offence categories in 1997. The Northern Territory had the highest homicide and sexual assault rates, New South Wales had the highest rates for robbery and motor vehicle theft, while WA had the highest rate for burglary offences. WA has had the highest rate of recorded burglary offences since the start of the ABS national recorded crime series (1993). [see pp.8-9]

The homicide rate was higher in 1997 than in 1996 but less than the national average and less than the WA rates recorded in 1995 and 1994. [see pp.12-13]

Aborigines continued to be a highly victimised section of the WA community. In 1997 they were about four times more likely to be a victim of violence than non-Aborigines. Three-quarters of all Aboriginal victims were women (compared with less than half for non-Aboriginal victims). [p.15]

There were significant regional variations in reported crime. The Kimberley region had the highest rate of violent offences for 1997 - a rate which was 2 to 3 times greater than that of most other regions (including Perth). [p.18]

Compared to 1996 figures, arrests increased by about 6% during 1997. However, the increase was more significant for Aborigines (13%) than for non-Aborigines (3%). Despite declines in arrests throughout the 1990s, the number of adult Aborigines arrested by the police has increased consistently. [p.40]

The use of formal cautions and the proportion of juvenile Aboriginal offenders receiving these cautions have increased since 1995. [p.50]

The number of charges and juveniles dealt with by the Children’s Court continued to decline in 1997, due in part to the increasing use of diversionary schemes such as cautioning and referrals to juvenile justice teams. [p.88]

In the Children’s Court, there was an increase in the use of custodial sentences and fines and a decline in dismissals following conviction. More than a quarter of convicted offences received sentences of detention.

In the Higher Courts, the conviction rate in 1997 remained high, at about 87%. For "distinct" persons, the proportion sentenced to imprisonment increased slightly since 1993, with imprisonment accounting for 81% of sentences for violent offences in 1997. Imprisonment continues to be the most common sanction imposed by the Higher Courts. [see pp 64-71; for definition of "distinct" person, see p. 61]

There was a substantial increase in the number of burglary charges finalised by the Higher Courts in 1997. This was as a result of changes to the Criminal Code which expanded the definition of ‘aggravated’ burglary and transferred jurisdiction to the Higher Courts. In 1997 the median sentence for home burglary increased from 1.5 years to 2.0 years, however, the proportion of charges resulting in conviction declined. [p. 71]

Since the mid 1990s, there has been a steady decline in the number of receptions to prison, yet prison census populations have increased steadily. This trend reflects the growing number of prisoners serving longer prison sentences. [see p. 110]

While the number of male, non-Aboriginal receptions (ie entries into prison) has declined steadily since 1995, the number and proportion of Aboriginal offenders received into prison have steadily increased (although these are still below 1994 counts). The number and proportion of female receptions have also increased. [see p. 111]

In 1997, the number of persons entering prison for fine default (334) was almost double that in 1996 (175). These figures are still far below those recorded prior to the introduction of the Fines Enforcement System, however, the potential still exists for the system to impact negatively on some sectors of the community. Almost half of all female Aborigines entering prison in 1997 did so because they defaulted on fine payment. [see pp 115-116]

Except for the Northern Territory, WA had the highest rates of juvenile detention and adult incarceration in Australia.

The juvenile detention rate was 53 per 100,000 juveniles, 1.4 times the national rate. The detention rate of young Aborigines was 38 times that of non-Aboriginal youth. [see p. 96]

The adult imprisonment rate in WA for 1997 was 124 per 100,000. WA continues to exceed all other states and territories in the rate of imprisonment of adult Aborigines. [see p. 112]

As in previous publications, the Report includes coloured crime maps showing the distribution of different types of offences occurring in the Perth metropolitan area. Maps showing the distribution of robbery offences and drug offences have also been included. [see pp 21-30]

To obtain a copy of the report (cost is $25), please contact:

The Administrative Secretary, Crime Research Centre, University of WA

Phone   (09) 6488 2830
Fax   (09) 6488 1034

Email   crime.research@uwa.edu.au