The primary goal of the criminal justice system must be the protection of the community. [...] Over the past ten years, overall spending on incarcerating youth offenders has increased by 66 per cent, however the severity of youth offending continues to rise, and the number of violent youth offenders has increased by 28 per cent over the last ten years. [...] Currently in Australia, despite millions in taxpayer dollars being spent on the incarceration of youth offenders, the severity of offending continues to rise, and the number of violent youth criminals is at its highest in 13 years. [...] The sharp increase in costs per prisoner can be partly attributed to the decline in the number of youth detainees since 2014-15, and therefore the costs are spread over fewer numbers of prisoners. [...] Whilst the overall number of youth offenders has declined over the past ten years, the number of youths committing violent crimes has increased by 28 per cent since 2012-13.4 Violent youth offenders now make up over a third of all youth crime and the number of violent youth criminals has not been this high since 2009-10.5 - 2 - Figure 2: Number of youth offenders in Australia, indexed (100=2012-13.
Authors
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- 6
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- Australia
Table of Contents
- From the desk of Mia Schlicht Research Fellow mschlichtipa.org.au 1
- 10 October 2024 Committee Secretary Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee PO Box 6100 Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600 Dear Committee Secretary 1
- The key findings of the research are that the current reliance on detention is not only unsustainable financially but is also not working to reduce crime. 1
- I wish to thank the committee for the opportunity to provide this submission. Please do not hesitate to contact me at mschlichtipa.org.au for further consultation or discussion. 1
- Kind regards 1
- - 1 - 2
- OCTOBER 2024 Mia Schlicht 2
- Key findings 2
- Spending on youth incarceration has surged over the past decade 2
- - 2 - 3
- Figure 1 3
- Prisons are failing to deliver on community safety 3
- - 3 - 4
- Figure 2 4
- Preventing the incarceration of young offenders 4
- - 4 - 5
- Analysis of successful alternatives to prison in the United States 5
- - 5 - 6
- Youth rehabilitation can reduce costs and improve community safety 6
- For more information contact Morgan Begg Director of Research at mbeggipa.org.au 6
- End Notes 6
