ABORIGINAL AND TORRES STRAIT ISLANDER OFFENDERS
This publication presents data about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders for New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory only, with data for New South Wales presented separately in this chapter (refer to paragraphs 45-47 of the Explanatory Notes). Based on an ABS assessment, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander data for offenders for other jurisdictions are not of sufficient quality and/or do not meet ABS standards for self-identification for national reporting in 2011-12.

The willingness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to self-identify may contribute to the year to year movements in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offender numbers. Caution should therefore be exercised when interpreting these data.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander identification is difficult to ascertain when police proceed by way of a summons or penalty/infringement notice as these methods usually do not provide an opportunity for police to ask individuals to self-identify. As a result, all offenders who were proceeded against by police through the issuing of a penalty/infringement notice have been excluded from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status data. For further information refer to paragraphs 40-43 of the Explanatory Notes.

Although offenders who have been proceeded against by police through the issuing of a penalty/infringement notice have been excluded from the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status data in this publication, there remains a small proportion of offenders whose Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander status remains unknown (not stated) in the published data: Queensland (6%); South Australia (13%) and Northern Territory (3%).

Excluding offenders who were proceeded against by a penalty notice, the proportion of offenders identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander was as follows:

• Northern Territory - 74%;
• Queensland - 19%; and
• South Australia - 14%.

In comparison, the proportion of the preliminary Estimated Resident Population aged 10 years and over as at 30 June 2011 (the latest estimates available) identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander was as follows:

• Northern Territory - 30%;
• Queensland - 4%; and
• South Australia - 2%.

Between 2010-11 and 2011-12, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offender population increased in all selected jurisdictions: 8% in the Northern Territory, 6% in Queensland and 1% in South Australia. These movements were similar to that of the total offender population for the Northern Territory (increase of 7%) and Queensland (increase of 3%), while for South Australia, the total number of offenders decreased by 4%.


Principal offence

Across all the selected states and territories, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders were more likely than non-Indigenous offenders to have a principal offence of Acts intended to cause injury. The most notable difference occurred in the Northern Territory where 49% of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders had a principal offence of Acts intended to cause injury, compared with 26% of non-Indigenous offenders. Across the selected states and territories non-Indigenous offenders were more likely to have a principal offence of Illicit drugs compared with offenders identified as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.


Age

For each of the selected states and territories, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders had a lower median age compared with non-Indigenous offenders. The lowest median age for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders was in Queensland (24 years) and the highest in the Northern Territory (28 years). The largest discrepancy between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous offenders was in South Australia (27 years for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders compared with 29 years for non-Indigenous offenders).

The crude Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offender rate (refer to paragraphs 33-38 of the Explanatory Notes) was highest for Queensland at age 15-19 years (16,952 offenders per 100,000 people aged 15-19 years) while for the Northern Territory the highest offender rate occurred for the 25-29 year age group (11,752 offenders per 100,000 people aged 25-29 years) and at age 30-34 years in South Australia (20,536 offenders per 100,000 people aged 30-34 years). Non-Indigenous offender rates were highest in the 15-19 year age group for each of the selected jurisdictions. These age groups were the same as for 2010-11.


Age standardised rates

The following rates have been age standardised. Age standardisation is a method of removing the influence of age when comparing populations with different age distributions. When comparing rates of offending for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous offenders, it is preferable to use age standardised rates (refer to paragraphs 33-38 of the Explanatory Notes).

The age standardised offender rates per 100,000 people aged 10 years and over for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in 2011-12 were:

• 11,786 in South Australia;
• 8,912 in Queensland; and
• 6,335 in the Northern Territory.

South Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander age standardised offender rate of 11,786 per 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 10 years and over was the highest of the selected states and territories. This rate was 9 times the non-Indigenous offender rate, while the ratio for the other selected states and territories was 7 in the Northern Territory and 6 in Queensland.


Repeat offenders

On average, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders were proceeded against by police more often than non-Indigenous offenders. In 2011-12, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders were proceeded against by police between an average of 2.0 times in the Northern Territory and 2.4 times in South Australia. This compares with 1.6 times in Queensland and South Australia and 1.5 times in the Northern Territory for non-Indigenous offenders.

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