AGE AND SEX
The proportion of male defendants finalised varied somewhat between court levels: 83% of defendants in the Higher Courts were male, compared with 70% in the Magistrates' Courts and 68% in the Children's Courts (Table 2.6).
Across the three court levels, the 30-39 year age group was the highest represented age cohort (28%), and this was consistent for both males and females. More than half (53%) of all defendants were aged between 25 and 44 years. In the Children's Courts, one-half of all defendants (50%) were aged 16 or 17 years of age (Table 2.6).
The largest age cohort in New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia was 35-39 year olds. In Victoria, 40-44 year olds had the highest proportion of finalised defendants. The largest age cohorts in the other states and territories were 30-34 year olds in Western Australia and Tasmania, 25-29 year olds in the Northern Territory and 20-24 year olds in the Australian Capital Territory (Table 2.7).