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Demographics
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples have relatively high rates of contact with the criminal justice system, as either victims or offenders, than other Australians. They continue to be over-represented in the prison system and make up a high proportion of deaths in custody. In 2003, 20% of prisoners in Australia (4,818 prisoners) identified as Indigenous and 10 of the 39 deaths that occurred in prison custody (26%) were Indigenous prisoners.
Indigenous adults were 11 times more likely than non-Indigenous adults
to be in prison. Western Australia had the highest age-standardised
ratio of Indigenous to non-Indigenous rates of imprisonment, followed
by South
Australia (table 2.17).
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2.17
Imprisonment rates, by states and territories - |
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NSW |
Vic. |
Qld |
SA |
WA |
Tas. |
NT |
ACT |
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Crude
rate |
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Indigenous |
2
012.2 |
1
068.8 |
1
572.2 |
1
623.7 |
3
114.4 |
597.2 |
1
589.4 |
1
094.7 |
1
851.9 |
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|
Non-Indigenous |
149.1 |
89.2 |
138.3 |
91.4 |
134.5 |
109.4 |
153.5 |
103.0 |
124.3 |
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Ratio
of crude rates |
13.5 |
12.0 |
11.4 |
17.8 |
23.2 |
5.5 |
10.4 |
10.6 |
14.9 |
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Age-standardised
rates |
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Indigenous |
1
561.9 |
810.5 |
1
203.5 |
1
218.5 |
2
358.7 |
467.2 |
1
218.7 |
867.8 |
1
416.9 |
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Non-Indigenous |
153.6 |
91.1 |
141.4 |
100.1 |
136.6 |
121.3 |
141.0 |
88.9 |
129.0 |
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Ratio
of age-standardised rates |
10.2 |
8.9 |
8.5 |
12.2 |
17.3 |
3.9 |
8.6 |
9.8 |
11.0 |
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ABS
2004g In a 10-year comparison from 1992, 14% of all male prisoners were Indigenous and 18% of all female prisoners were Indigenous. By 2002 this proportion had risen to 20% for Indigenous males and 25% for Indigenous females (graph 11.33), even though Indigenous persons were estimated to comprise just over 2% of the total Australian population in 2002. Over the 10 years to 2002, the increase in the proportion
of prisoners who are Indigenous was mainly influenced by increases
in New South Wales (from 9% in 1992 to 17% in 2002) and Queensland
(from 18% in 1992 to 25% in 2002). 
The 4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 2005 includes a useful article on Crime
and Justice: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People: Contact
with the Law. This article includes detailed information on victimisation
and Indigenous Australians in custody. |
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