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HIGHER CRIMINAL COURTS COLLECTION

The fourth issue of the publication Higher Criminal Courts (ABS Catalogue No. 4513.0) covering the 1997/98 financial year was released on 26 July 1999. The publication continues the series on caseflow for defendants with criminal cases in the Supreme and Intermediate Courts. Key findings from the 1997-98 publication were:

• Nationally, there were 17,039 defendants who had criminal cases initiated (up 8% on 1996-97) and 16,406 defendants who had criminal cases finalised during 1997-98 (up 5% on 1996-97).
• More than three quarters (77%) of all defendants dealt with by the higher courts in 1997-98 had guilty outcomes;
• More than half (56%) of the Higher Courts defendants who had an initial plea of not guilty later changed their plea to guilty during 1997-98;
• The median time taken to finalise cases in the higher courts in 1997-98 was 21 weeks, an 8% increase on 1996-97;
• New South Wales and the Northern Territory recorded the longest median time taken to finalise defendants cases at 32 weeks. Western Australia had the shortest median time taken to finalise cases at 13 weeks;
• The number of defendants waiting to have their cases finalised in the higher courts during 1997-98 rose in all the States and Territories except South Australia and the Northern Territory, Queensland data was unavailable;
• Tasmania reported the youngest median age of defendants at 25 years, while Victoria had the oldest at 32 years;