Juvenile justice in Australia 2008–09
Interim report—main tables

December 2010

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare is Australia’s national
health and welfare statistics and information agency. The Institute’s mission is
 better information and statistics for better health and wellbeing.

© Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2010

This work is copyright. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part may be reproduced without prior written permission from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be directed to the Head of the Communications, Media and Marketing Unit, Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, GPO Box 570, Canberra ACT 2601.

This publication is part of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s Juvenile justice series. A complete list of the Institute’s publications is available from the Institute’s website <www.aihw.gov.au>. 

ISSN 1833-3230
ISBN 978-1-74249-102-8

Suggested citation 
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2010. Juvenile justice in Australia 2008–09: interim report—main tables. Juvenile justice series no. 6. Cat no. JUV 6. Canberra: AIHW.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 
Board Chair
Hon. Peter Collins, AM, QC
	
Director 
Penny Allbon

Any enquiries about or comments on this publication should be directed to:
Child and Youth Welfare Unit
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
GPO Box 570
Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: (02) 6244 1000
Email: juvenilejustice@aihw.gov.au

Published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
 
Please note that there is the potential for minor revisions of data in this report.
Please check the online version at <www.aihw.gov.au> for any amendments.

Contents
Acknowledgments	iv
Abbreviations	v
Symbols and abbreviations used in the tables	v
Notes	v
Summary	vi
1	Introduction and methods	1
Number under supervision	1
Population rates	1
National totals	2
2	All young people under supervision	3
3	Young people under community-based supervision	6
4	Young people in detention	9
5	Australian population	13
References	15
List of tables	16
Acknowledgments
This report was prepared by Rachel Aalders, Kirsten Trunk and Ellen Connell. Elena Ougrinovski and Valdis Thomann provided data management support and Tim Beard gave essential advice and guidance.
Preparation of the report was guided by the Juvenile Justice Research and Information Group (RIG). 
Funding for this report was provided by the Australasian Juvenile Justice Administrators (AJJA). 
Thanks are extended to the data managers and staff in the following state and territory departments:
•	Department of Juvenile Justice, New South Wales
•	Department of Human Services, Victoria
•	Department of Communities, Queensland
•	Department of Corrective Services, Western Australia
•	Department for Families and Communities, South Australia
•	Department of Health and Human Services, Tasmania
•	Office for Children, Youth and Family Support, Australian Capital Territory.

Abbreviations
JJ NMDS	Juvenile Justice National Minimum Data Set	

Symbols and abbreviations used in the tables
0	Zero	
—	Rounded to zero and null cells	
n.a.	not available	
n.p.	not published	
ACT	Australian Capital Territory	
Aust	Australia	
NSW	New South Wales	
NT	Northern Territory	
Qld	Queensland	
SA	South Australia	
Tas	Tasmania	
Vic	Victoria	
WA	Western Australia	

Notes
Numbers and percentages in tables may not sum to totals due to rounding.

Summary
In Australia, responsibility for juvenile justice lies with the states and territories and involves both juvenile justice agencies and other justice agencies such as the police and the courts. Each year, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare collects data on young people under juvenile justice supervision from the states and territories and publishes the results in the Juvenile justice in Australia reports. This report contains the main tables from Juvenile justice in Australia 2008–09 (AIHW forthcoming). For more detailed analyses, please see the forthcoming report. 
Western Australia provided only limited data in a non-standard format for 2008–09, and the Northern Territory did not provide any data for 2008–09. Approximate national totals were calculated using available data (see ‘Introduction and methods’). 
In Australia, around 7,200 young people were under juvenile justice supervision on any given day in 2008–09, and around 14,500 young people were under supervision at some time during the year. Almost 90% of those under supervision on an average day were under community-based supervision; the remainder were in detention. Around 20% of young people under supervision during the year were both detained and under community-based supervision during the year (at different times).
Around 2.5 young people per 1,000 aged 10–17 years were under supervision on an average day in 2008–09 with 2.2 per 1,000 under community-based supervision and 0.4 in detention. Indigenous young people aged 10–17 years were 14 times as likely to be under community‑based supervision on an average day as their non-Indigenous counterparts and 24 times as likely to be in detention.
The rate of young people under supervision on an average day increased in each of the four years from 2005–06 to 2008–09, from 2.1 per 1,000 in 2005–06 to 2.5 per 1,000 in 2008–09. Similarly, the rate of community-based supervision increased in each consecutive year, from 1.8 per 1,000 to 2.2 per 1,000 in 2008–09, while the detention rate increased slightly from 0.3 per 1,000 to 0.4.  
While Indigenous young people continue to be over-represented under community-based supervision and in detention, there was a small decrease in the level of over-representation (as shown by the rate ratios). In 2005–06, an Indigenous young person aged 10–17 years was around 28 times as likely to be in detention on an average day as a non-Indigenous young person of the same age; by 2008–09, this had dropped to 24 times. For community-based supervision, the equivalent rate ratios were 16 in 2005–06 and 14 in 2008–09. 

1	Introduction and methods
The juvenile justice system is the set of processes and practices for dealing with children and young people who are alleged to have committed an offence or who have been found guilty of committing an offence. In Australia, juvenile justice is the responsibility of the state and territory governments. These state and territory systems share a number of characteristics, including the general process through which children and young people are arrested, charged and sentenced, and the types of legal orders that are handed down by the courts. In all states and territories, a child is deemed to have criminal responsibility if they are 10 years or older. Children under the age of 10 cannot be charged with a criminal offence in any state or territory in Australia. The age limit for treatment as a young person is 17 years in all states and territories except Queensland, where the age limit is 16 years. However, there may be young people under juvenile justice supervision who are aged 18 years or older. This can occur when young people continue to be supervised by the juvenile justice system after they turn 18 years old or when young people are supervised by the juvenile justice system, rather than the adult correctional system, due to their vulnerability or immaturity. Additionally, young people in Victoria aged 18–20 years may be sentenced to detention in a juvenile detention centre (rather than an adult prison) where the court deems appropriate. 
Each year, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare collect data from the states and territories on all young people supervised by juvenile justice agencies for the Juvenile Justice National Minimum Data Set (JJ NMDS). The Juvenile justice in Australia series comprises annual publications containing data from this data set. This publication contains the main tables from the forthcoming Juvenile justice in Australia 2008–09 (AIHW forthcoming). 
Further information on the juvenile justice system in Australia and juvenile justice data are available in the forthcoming Juvenile justice in Australia 2008–09 (AIHW forthcoming) and in previous editions in the juvenile justice series, such as Juvenile justice in Australia 2007–08 
(AIHW 2009).
Number under supervision
This report contains information on both the number of young people under supervision on an average day and the number of young people under supervision during the year. 
The number of young people under supervision on an average day is calculated by summing the number of days each young person spends under supervision during the year and dividing this total by the number of days in the financial year. 
The number of young people under supervision during the year is calculated by counting each distinct young person under supervision during the financial year. Each young person is counted only once, even if they entered and exited supervision multiple times during the year.
Population rates
Population rates allow the number of young people under supervision to be compared across years and states and territories by taking into account differences in population sizes. For this report, population rates are calculated for young people aged 10–17 years. Young people under supervision who are aged 18 years and older are not included in the calculation of rates. Rates are expressed per 1,000 young people. 
National totals
Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not provide JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. Western Australia provided limited aggregate data in non-standard format. Therefore, tables in this report contain two totals:
•	‘Aust excl WA & NT’—only JJ NMDS data are included in these totals.
•	‘Aust incl WA & NT’—an approximate national total derived from the available JJ NMDS data, non-JJ NMDS data for Western Australia and existing 2007–08 JJ NMDS for the Northern Territory. These totals are rounded to the nearest 5 young people.
Further information is available in the forthcoming Juvenile justice in Australia 2008–09 (AIHW forthcoming).
2	All young people under supervision
Table 2.1: Young people under supervision (all ages) by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	Number of young people—average day(b)	
	Male	
Indigenous	669	144	542	n.a.	158	63	24	n.a.	1,601	2,235	
Non-Indigenous	1,049	1,094	655	n.a.	298	173	79	n.a.	3,349	3,645	
Unknown	129	4	2	n.a.	20	40	0	n.a.	195	n.a.	
Total	1,848	1,242	1,199	n.a.	476	276	103	n.a.	5,144	6,085	
	Female	
Indigenous	132	24	141	n.a.	44	9	3	n.a.	353	465	
Non-Indigenous	157	125	125	n.a.	58	35	16	n.a.	515	555	
Unknown	33	1	0	n.a.	1	9	0	n.a.	44	n.a.	
Total	322	149	265	n.a.	103	53	19	n.a.	912	1,065	
	All young people	
Indigenous	801	168	683	n.a.	202	72	27	n.a.	1,954	2,710	
Non-Indigenous	1,209	1,218	779	n.a.	359	208	95	n.a.	3,869	4,205	
Unknown	162	5	2	n.a.	22	49	0	n.a.	240	n.a.	
Total	2,172	1,392	1,465	n.a.	582	329	122	n.a.	6,062	7,170	
	Number of young people—during the year	
	Male	
Indigenous	1,254	271	930	n.a.	299	88	40	n.a.	2,882	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	2,330	2,132	1,233	n.a.	686	286	174	n.a.	6,841	n.a.	
Unknown	306	12	5	n.a.	50	71	0	n.a.	444	n.a.	
Total	3,890	2,415	2,168	n.a.	1,035	445	214	n.a.	10,167	12,105	
	Female	
Indigenous	285	58	267	n.a.	98	16	7	n.a.	731	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	375	288	251	n.a.	156	66	48	n.a.	1,184	n.a.	
Unknown	77	3	0	n.a.	7	18	0	n.a.	105	n.a.	
Total	737	349	518	n.a.	261	100	55	n.a.	2,020	2,420	
	All young people	
Indigenous	1,539	329	1,197	n.a.	397	104	47	n.a.	3,613	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	2,708	2,421	1,484	n.a.	847	352	222	n.a.	8,034	n.a.	
Unknown	383	15	5	n.a.	58	89	0	n.a.	550	n.a.	
Total	4,630	2,765	2,686	n.a.	1,302	545	269	n.a.	12,197	14,545	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
(b)	Number of young people on an average day may not sum to total due to rounding.
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Total includes young people of unknown sex and Indigenous status.
Table 2.2: Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under supervision by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	Supervision rate—average day	
	Male	
Indigenous	38.01	31.21	33.47	n.a.	49.57	22.97	47.78	n.a.	35.86	35.61	
Non-Indigenous	2.54	2.54	2.51	n.a.	2.81	5.35	4.00	n.a.	2.65	2.51	
Total	4.35	2.89	4.46	n.a.	4.56	7.68	5.09	n.a.	4.10	4.15	
	Female	
Indigenous	8.12	5.79	9.45	n.a.	13.15	3.59	n.p.	n.a.	8.56	8.17	
Non-Indigenous	0.42	0.34	0.51	n.a.	0.66	1.07	0.80	n.a.	0.46	0.43	
Total	0.83	0.41	1.06	n.a.	1.09	1.51	0.98	n.a.	0.82	0.82	
	All young people	
Indigenous	23.45	18.59	21.79	n.a.	31.56	13.38	29.62	n.a.	22.54	22.26	
Non-Indigenous	1.50	1.47	1.53	n.a.	1.78	3.27	2.42	n.a.	1.59	1.50	
Total	2.64	1.69	2.80	n.a.	2.89	4.68	3.07	n.a.	2.50	2.53	
	Supervision rate—during the year	
	Male	
Indigenous	68.35	56.18	56.43	n.a.	90.36	30.41	79.19	n.a.	62.54	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	5.48	4.77	4.73	n.a.	6.48	8.50	8.80	n.a.	5.33	n.a.	
Total	8.88	5.41	7.99	n.a.	9.74	11.92	10.56	n.a.	7.90	8.58	
	Female	
Indigenous	17.25	13.25	17.76	n.a.	29.09	5.89	15.67	n.a.	17.36	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	1.01	0.76	1.05	n.a.	1.82	1.87	2.50	n.a.	1.06	n.a.	
Total	1.90	0.92	2.09	n.a.	2.82	2.75	2.80	n.a.	1.79	1.94	
	All young people	
Indigenous	43.45	34.86	37.63	n.a.	60.06	18.27	49.70	n.a.	40.49	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	3.30	2.82	2.94	n.a.	4.23	5.28	5.70	n.a.	3.25	n.a.	
Total	5.48	3.22	5.12	n.a.	6.39	7.46	6.74	n.a.	4.93	5.36	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Age calculated as at start of financial year if first period of supervision in the relevant year began before the start of the financial year, otherwise age calculated as at start of first period of supervision in the relevant year. 
3.	Total includes young people of unknown Indigenous status.
4.	Rates are number of young people per 1,000 relevant population.
5.	Rates are not published where there were fewer than five young people.

Table 2.3: Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under supervision on an average day by Indigenous status, states and territories, 2005–06 to 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT 	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	2005–06(b)	
Indigenous	18.08	13.88	25.23	37.11	28.15	n.a.	29.89	13.19	20.91	22.18	
Non-Indigenous	1.06	1.07	1.59	1.13	1.61	n.a.	2.30	1.25	1.30	1.28	
Rate ratio	17.06	12.97	15.87	32.84	17.48	n.a.	13.00	10.55	16.08	17.33	
Total	1.86	1.26	3.00	3.16	2.57	n.a.	2.92	6.29	2.08	2.24	
	2006–07	
Indigenous	19.49	15.16	24.73	36.29	24.35	13.44	27.57	11.08	21.22	22.08	
Non-Indigenous	1.19	1.20	1.58	1.10	1.62	2.79	2.49	0.66	1.38	1.35	
Rate ratio	16.38	12.63	15.65	32.99	15.03	4.82	11.07	16.79	15.38	16.36	
Total	2.08	1.39	3.01	3.12	2.47	3.68	3.14	5.09	2.20	2.33	
	2007–08	
Indigenous	22.67	17.15	24.68	38.45	29.41	15.05	34.65	8.12	23.17	23.51	
Non-Indigenous	1.33	1.36	1.64	1.06	1.70	2.49	2.40	0.98	1.49	1.44	
Rate ratio	17.05	12.61	15.05	36.27	17.30	6.04	14.44	8.29	15.55	16.33	
Total	2.39	1.55	3.07	3.23	2.75	3.62	3.23	4.02	2.40	2.50	
	2008–09	
Indigenous	23.45	18.59	21.79	n.a.	31.56	13.38	29.62	n.a.	22.54	22.26	
Non-Indigenous	1.50	1.47	1.53	n.a.	1.78	3.27	2.42	n.a.	1.59	1.50	
Rate ratio	15.63	12.65	14.24	n.a.	17.73	4.09	12.24	n.a.	14.18	14.84	
Total	2.64	1.69	2.80	n.a.	2.89	4.68	3.07	n.a.	2.50	2.53	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
(b)	Detention data for Tasmania are only available from 1 January 2006. The Australian totals for 2005–06 include these data and will therefore be an undercount of the total number in detention. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Age calculated as at start of financial year if first period of supervision in the relevant year began before the start of the financial year, otherwise age calculated as at start of first period of supervision in the relevant year. 
3.	Total includes young people of unknown Indigenous status.
4.	Rates are number of young people per 1,000 relevant population.
5.	Rates are not published where there were fewer than five young people.
6.	Rate ratio calculated by dividing the Indigenous rate by the non-Indigenous rate. 
3	Young people under community-based supervision
Table 3.1: Young people under community-based supervision (all ages) by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09 
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT 	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	Number of young people—average day(b)	
	Male	
Indigenous	475	122	479	n.a.	133	54	19	n.a.	1,282	1,790	
Non-Indigenous	859	991	615	n.a.	267	156	74	n.a.	2,963	3,220	
Unknown	120	4	0	n.a.	20	40	0	n.a.	184	n.a.	
Total	1,454	1,117	1,094	n.a.	420	250	93	n.a.	4,429	5,205	
	Female	
Indigenous	121	22	135	n.a.	42	7	2	n.a.	329	430	
Non-Indigenous	139	119	120	n.a.	53	34	15	n.a.	480	515	
Unknown	31	1	0	n.a.	1	9	0	n.a.	42	n.a.	
Total	291	142	255	n.a.	95	50	17	n.a.	851	990	
	All young people	
Indigenous	596	145	613	n.a.	174	62	21	n.a.	1,611	2,225	
Non-Indigenous	998	1,111	736	n.a.	322	191	88	n.a.	3,445	3,740	
Unknown	151	5	0	n.a.	22	48	0	n.a.	226	n.a.	
Total	1,745	1,260	1,349	n.a.	518	301	109	n.a.	5,283	6,205	
	Number of young people—during the year	
	Male	
Indigenous	1,045	260	877	n.a.	245	85	36	n.a.	2,548	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	1,831	2,055	1,168	n.a.	590	271	154	n.a.	6,069	n.a.	
Unknown	287	10	0	n.a.	50	71	0	n.a.	418	n.a.	
Total	3,163	2,325	2,045	n.a.	885	427	190	n.a.	9,035	10,590	
	Female	
Indigenous	248	52	260	n.a.	83	15	5	n.a.	663	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	309	277	228	n.a.	119	64	39	n.a.	1,036	n.a.	
Unknown	68	3	0	n.a.	7	18	0	n.a.	96	n.a.	
Total	625	332	488	n.a.	209	97	44	n.a.	1,795	2,100	
	All young people	
Indigenous	1,293	312	1,137	n.a.	328	100	41	n.a.	3,211	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	2,140	2,333	1,396	n.a.	712	335	193	n.a.	7,109	n.a.	
Unknown	355	13	0	n.a.	58	89	0	n.a.	515	n.a.	
Total	3,788	2,658	2,533	n.a.	1,098	524	234	n.a.	10,835	12,705	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
(b)	Number of young people on an average day may not sum to total due to rounding.
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Total includes young people of unknown sex and Indigenous status.
Table 3.2: Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under community-based supervision by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09 
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	Community-based supervision rate—average day	
	Male	
Indigenous	26.49	27.15	29.34	n.a.	41.36	18.69	35.37	n.a.	28.39	28.24	
Non-Indigenous	2.08	2.32	2.36	n.a.	2.46	4.70	3.58	n.a.	2.34	2.21	
Total	3.40	2.63	4.05	n.a.	3.95	6.78	4.37	n.a.	3.50	3.53	
	Female	
Indigenous	7.37	5.56	9.02	n.a.	12.35	2.58	n.p.	n.a.	7.94	7.47	
Non-Indigenous	0.37	0.33	0.48	n.a.	0.59	1.05	0.75	n.a.	0.43	0.40	
Total	0.75	0.39	1.02	n.a.	1.00	1.42	0.85	n.a.	0.75	0.75	
	All young people	
Indigenous	17.18	16.43	19.46	n.a.	27.01	10.72	21.46	n.a.	18.41	18.09	
Non-Indigenous	1.25	1.35	1.45	n.a.	1.56	2.93	2.18	n.a.	1.41	1.33	
Total	2.11	1.54	2.57	n.a.	2.53	4.17	2.64	n.a.	2.16	2.18	
	Community-based supervision rate—during the year	
	Male	
Indigenous	56.83	54.40	52.98	n.a.	75.77	28.84	67.87	n.a.	55.21	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	4.30	4.63	4.47	n.a.	5.41	7.89	7.64	n.a.	4.68	n.a.	
Total	7.21	5.25	7.51	n.a.	8.22	11.24	9.15	n.a.	6.97	7.43	
	Female	
Indigenous	14.82	12.35	17.27	n.a.	25.09	5.35	13.05	n.a.	15.79	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	0.82	0.72	0.95	n.a.	1.37	1.79	1.97	n.a.	0.91	n.a.	
Total	1.59	0.87	1.96	n.a.	2.25	2.64	2.21	n.a.	1.58	1.67	
	All young people	
Indigenous	36.36	33.51	35.63	n.a.	50.71	17.21	42.42	n.a.	35.97	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	2.60	2.73	2.75	n.a.	3.45	4.93	4.85	n.a.	2.84	n.a.	
Total	4.47	3.12	4.80	n.a.	5.32	7.06	5.74	n.a.	4.34	4.63	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Age calculated as at start of financial year if first period of community-based supervision in the relevant year began before the start of the financial year, otherwise age calculated as at start of first period of community-based supervision in the relevant year. 
3.	Total includes young people of unknown Indigenous status.
4.	Rates are number of young people per 1,000 relevant population.
5.	Rates are not published where there were fewer than five young people.

Table 3.3: Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under community-based supervision on an average day by Indigenous status, states and territories, 2005–06 to 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT 	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	2005–06	
Indigenous	13.63	11.45	22.83	30.98	24.86	9.81	24.91	9.31	17.63	18.43	
Non-Indigenous	0.89	0.97	1.48	0.99	1.44	2.47	2.47	0.92	1.16	1.14	
Rate ratio	15.31	11.80	15.43	31.29	17.26	3.97	10.09	10.12	15.20	16.17	
Total	1.51	1.14	2.75	2.68	2.29	3.30	2.97	4.46	1.83	1.95	
	2006–07	
Indigenous	14.54	13.27	22.01	29.22	20.79	10.11	30.08	7.36	17.64	18.01	
Non-Indigenous	1.00	1.11	1.46	0.94	1.45	2.33	2.78	0.52	1.24	1.20	
Rate ratio	14.54	11.95	15.08	31.09	14.34	4.34	10.82	14.15	14.23	15.01	
Total	1.69	1.28	2.73	2.57	2.19	3.03	3.39	3.43	1.93	2.01	
	2007–08	
Indigenous	16.68	15.05	21.93	29.92	24.57	11.13	30.94	5.30	18.96	18.91	
Non-Indigenous	1.11	1.25	1.51	0.91	1.50	2.21	2.69	0.78	1.33	1.28	
Rate ratio	15.03	12.04	14.52	32.88	16.38	5.04	11.50	6.79	14.26	14.77	
Total	1.91	1.42	2.78	2.60	2.40	3.08	3.40	2.74	2.08	2.14	
	2008–09	
Indigenous	17.18	16.43	19.46	n.a.	27.01	10.72	21.46	n.a.	18.41	18.09	
Non-Indigenous	1.25	1.35	1.45	n.a.	1.56	2.93	2.18	n.a.	1.41	1.33	
Rate ratio	13.74	12.17	13.42	n.a.	17.31	3.66	9.84	n.a.	13.06	13.60	
Total	2.11	1.54	2.57	n.a.	2.53	4.17	2.64	n.a.	2.16	2.18	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Age calculated as at start of financial year if first period of community-based supervision in the relevant year began before the start of the financial year, otherwise age calculated as at start of first period of community-based supervision in the relevant year. 
3.	Total includes young people of unknown Indigenous status.
4.	Rates are number of young people per 1,000 relevant population.
5.	Rates are not published where there were fewer than five young people.
6.	Rate ratio calculated by dividing the Indigenous rate by the non-Indigenous rate. 
4	Young people in detention
Table 4.1: Young people in detention (all ages) by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	Number of young people—average day(b)	
	Male	
Indigenous	198	22	66	n.a.	27	9	5	n.a.	327	455	
Non-Indigenous	195	105	42	n.a.	32	18	7	n.a.	399	435	
Unknown	9	1	2	n.a.	—	—	0	n.a.	12	n.a.	
Total	402	128	110	n.a.	59	27	12	n.a.	738	905	
	Female	
Indigenous	12	1	6	n.a.	3	2	1	n.a.	26	40	
Non-Indigenous	19	6	4	n.a.	6	1	1	n.a.	36	40	
Unknown	2	0	0	n.a.	—	—	0	n.a.	2	n.a.	
Total	33	7	11	n.a.	8	2	3	n.a.	64	85	
	All young people	
Indigenous	210	24	72	n.a.	29	11	7	n.a.	353	495	
Non-Indigenous	217	111	46	n.a.	38	18	8	n.a.	438	480	
Unknown	11	1	2	n.a.	—	—	0	n.a.	14	n.a.	
Total	437	135	121	n.a.	68	29	15	n.a.	805	990	
	Number of young people—during the year	
	Male	
Indigenous	803	86	302	n.a.	174	35	29	n.a.	1,429	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	1,301	459	255	n.a.	266	93	100	n.a.	2,474	n.a.	
Unknown	66	2	5	n.a.	1	3	0	n.a.	77	n.a.	
Total	2,170	547	562	n.a.	441	131	129	n.a.	3,980	4,975	
	Female	
Indigenous	148	16	58	n.a.	46	5	5	n.a.	278	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	191	50	64	n.a.	80	9	29	n.a.	423	n.a.	
Unknown	24	0	0	n.a.	1	0	0	n.a.	25	n.a.	
Total	363	66	122	n.a.	127	14	34	n.a.	726	925	
	All young people	
Indigenous	951	102	360	n.a.	220	40	34	n.a.	1,707	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	1,495	510	319	n.a.	350	102	129	n.a.	2,905	n.a.	
Unknown	90	2	5	n.a.	2	3	0	n.a.	102	n.a.	
Total	2,536	614	684	n.a.	572	145	163	n.a.	4,714	5,910	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
(b)	Number of young people on an average day may not sum to total due to rounding.
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Total includes young people of unknown sex and Indigenous status.
Table 4.2: Rate of young people aged 10–17 years in detention by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	Detention rate—average day	
	Male	
Indigenous	11.21	3.66	4.29	n.a.	7.85	4.57	11.24	n.a.	7.35	7.27	
Non-Indigenous	0.45	0.20	0.16	n.a.	0.31	0.62	0.38	n.a.	0.30	0.29	
Total	0.93	0.24	0.42	n.a.	0.56	0.89	0.65	n.a.	0.59	0.62	
	Female	
Indigenous	0.76	n.p.	0.45	n.a.	n.p.	n.p.	n.p.	n.a.	0.63	0.70	
Non-Indigenous	0.05	0.02	n.p.	n.a.	0.07	n.p.	n.p.	n.a.	0.04	0.03	
Total	0.09	0.02	0.05	n.a.	0.10	n.p.	n.p.	n.a.	0.06	0.07	
	All young people	
Indigenous	6.12	1.91	2.42	n.a.	4.36	2.82	7.60	n.a.	4.07	4.12	
Non-Indigenous	0.26	0.11	0.09	n.a.	0.20	0.33	0.22	n.a.	0.17	0.17	
Total	0.52	0.13	0.24	n.a.	0.34	0.51	0.40	n.a.	0.33	0.35	
	Detention rate—during the year	
	Male	
Indigenous	46.11	18.43	19.59	n.a.	55.50	16.78	61.09	n.a.	32.97	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	3.26	1.06	1.06	n.a.	2.95	3.37	5.73	n.a.	2.16	n.a.	
Total	5.26	1.27	2.24	n.a.	4.72	4.39	7.11	n.a.	3.42	3.85	
	Female	
Indigenous	9.18	3.31	3.99	n.a.	14.91	2.68	n.p.	n.a.	6.79	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	0.54	0.16	0.29	n.a.	0.99	0.32	1.67	n.a.	0.43	n.a.	
Total	0.98	0.20	0.52	n.a.	1.48	0.49	1.87	n.a.	0.70	0.80	
	All young people	
Indigenous	28.12	10.92	12.01	n.a.	35.43	9.80	37.58	n.a.	20.19	n.a.	
Non-Indigenous	1.94	0.62	0.69	n.a.	2.01	1.89	3.73	n.a.	1.32	n.a.	
Total	3.17	0.75	1.40	n.a.	3.15	2.49	4.53	n.a.	2.10	2.37	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Age calculated as at start of financial year if first period of detention in the relevant year began before the start of the financial year, otherwise age calculated as at start of first period of detention in the relevant year. 
3.	Total includes young people of unknown Indigenous status.
4.	Rates are number of young people per 1,000 relevant population.
5.	Rates are not published where there were fewer than five young people.

Table 4.3: Rate of young people aged 10–17 years in detention on an average day by Indigenous status, states and territories, 2005–06 to 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT 	Aust incl WA & NT(a)	
	2005–06(b)	
Indigenous	4.47	2.26	2.50	6.75	3.42	n.a.	9.96	3.98	3.37	3.88	
Non-Indigenous	0.17	0.09	0.12	0.15	0.18	n.a.	0.29	0.33	0.14	0.14	
Rate ratio	26.29	25.11	20.83	45.00	19.00	n.a.	34.34	12.06	24.07	27.71	
Total	0.35	0.12	0.26	0.52	0.28	n.a.	0.50	1.87	0.26	0.31	
	2006–07	
Indigenous	4.90	1.68	2.83	7.66	3.80	3.22	6.27	3.72	3.69	4.22	
Non-Indigenous	0.19	0.08	0.12	0.17	0.18	0.35	0.29	n.p.	0.15	0.15	
Rate ratio	25.79	21.00	23.58	45.06	21.11	9.20	21.62	n.a.	24.60	28.13	
Total	0.39	0.10	0.29	0.60	0.30	0.55	0.42	1.70	0.28	0.33	
	2007–08	
Indigenous	5.93	2.15	2.89	8.83	4.92	3.37	8.66	2.82	4.27	4.69	
Non-Indigenous	0.22	0.10	0.13	0.18	0.20	0.27	0.26	n.p.	0.18	0.18	
Rate ratio	26.95	21.50	22.23	49.06	24.60	12.48	33.31	n.a.	23.70	26.06	
Total	0.47	0.12	0.30	0.68	0.36	0.49	0.46	1.31	0.33	0.37	
	2008–09	
Indigenous	6.12	1.91	2.42	n.a.	4.36	2.82	7.60	n.a.	4.07	4.12	
Non-Indigenous	0.26	0.11	0.09	n.a.	0.20	0.33	0.22	n.a.	0.17	0.17	
Rate ratio	23.54	17.36	26.89	n.a.	21.80	8.55	34.55	n.a.	23.94	24.24	
Total	0.52	0.13	0.24	n.a.	0.34	0.51	0.40	n.a.	0.33	0.35	
(a)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
(b)	Detention data for Tasmania are only available from 1 January 2006. The Australian totals for 2005–06 include these data and will therefore be an undercount of the total number in detention. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Age calculated as at start of financial year if first period of detention in the relevant year began before the start of the financial year, otherwise age calculated as at start of first period of detention in the relevant year.
3.	Total includes young people of unknown Indigenous status.
4.	Rates are number of young people per 1,000 relevant population.
5.	Rates are not published where there were fewer than five young people.
6.	Rate ratio calculated by dividing the Indigenous rate by the non-Indigenous rate. 

Table 4.4: Young people in detention on an average day(a) (all ages) by legal status and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas(b)	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT(c)	
	Unsentenced	
Indigenous	111	8	48	n.a.	15	6	5	n.a.	192	270	
Non-Indigenous	128	33	30	n.a.	20	11	6	n.a.	228	250	
Unknown	7	—	2	n.a.	—	—	0	n.a.	10	n.a.	
Total	246	42	80	n.a.	35	17	11	n.a.	430	530	
	Sentenced	
Indigenous	100	16	31	n.a.	14	5	2	n.a.	168	235	
Non-Indigenous	90	78	19	n.a.	18	7	2	n.a.	214	230	
Unknown	4	1	0	n.a.	0	0	0	n.a.	4	n.a.	
Total	194	94	51	n.a.	32	12	4	n.a.	387	470	
(a)	Number of young people on an average day may not sum to total due to rounding.
(b)	For Tasmania, young people on concurrent sentenced and unsentenced orders are recorded as being on a sentenced order.
(c)	Totals for 2008–09 include aggregate data supplied by Western Australia and 2007–08 data for the Northern Territory, where available. Numbers were rounded to the nearest 5 young people. 
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Number of unsentenced and sentenced young people may not sum to total number of young people as some young people may have changed legal status during the same day. 
Table 4.5: Young people in detention during the year (all ages) by legal status, states and territories, 2008–09
Legal status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas(a)	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	
	Number	
Unsentenced	2,372	392	621	n.a.	537	134	161	n.a.	4,217	
Sentenced	708	336	192	n.a.	99	48	9	n.a.	1,392	
Both unsentenced and sentenced	544	114	129	n.a.	64	37	7	n.a.	895	
Total number of young people	2,536	614	684	n.a.	572	145	163	n.a.	4,714	
	Per cent	
Unsentenced	93.5	63.8	90.8	n.a.	93.9	92.4	98.8	n.a.	89.5	
Sentenced	27.9	54.7	28.1	n.a.	17.3	33.1	5.5	n.a.	29.5	
Both unsentenced and sentenced	21.5	18.6	18.9	n.a.	11.2	25.5	4.3	n.a.	19.0	
Total number of young people	100.0	100.0	100.0	n.a.	100.0	100.0	100.0	n.a.	100.0	
(a)	For Tasmania, young people on concurrent sentenced and unsentenced orders are recorded as being on a sentenced order.
Notes
1.	Western Australia and the Northern Territory did not supply JJ NMDS data for 2008–09. 
2.	Total includes young people of unknown sex and Indigenous status.
3.	Number of unsentenced and sentenced young people will not sum to total as some young people would have been both unsentenced and sentenced during the year.
5	Australian population
Table 5.1: Australian population aged 10–17 years by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, December 2008
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT	
	Male	
Indigenous	16,049	3,364	15,363	7,116	2,811	1,907	442	5,838	39,973	52,930	
Non-Indigenous	359,841	277,943	230,069	116,193	81,269	26,107	17,272	7,999	992,624	1,116,813	
Total	375,890	281,307	245,432	123,309	84,080	28,014	17,714	13,837	1,032,597	1,169,743	
	Female	
Indigenous	15,250	3,320	14,530	6,483	2,750	1,869	383	5,556	38,127	50,170	
Non-Indigenous	342,698	262,986	218,976	108,357	77,413	24,644	16,773	7,203	943,618	1,059,174	
Total	357,948	266,306	233,506	114,840	80,163	26,513	17,156	12,759	981,745	1,109,344	
	All young people	
Indigenous	31,299	6,684	29,893	13,599	5,561	3,776	825	11,394	78,100	103,100	
Non-Indigenous	702,539	540,929	449,045	224,550	158,682	50,751	34,045	15,202	1,936,242	2,175,987	
Total	733,838	547,613	478,938	238,149	164,243	54,527	34,870	26,596	2,014,342	2,279,087	
Notes
1.	The number of Indigenous young people in December each year is approximated by averaging the two relevant 30 June Indigenous population projections; numbers may not therefore sum to the total.
2.	The number of Indigenous young people aged 10–17 years for Australia and for all states and territories excluding the Australian Capital Territory is calculated by summing the relevant individual age years. The number of Indigenous young people aged 10–17 years for the Australian Capital Territory is approximated by summing the total number of Indigenous children aged 10–14 years and three-fifths of the number of Indigenous young people aged 15–19 years as data for individual age years were not available. This method assumes that there is an even distribution of Indigenous young people in each single year of age between 15 and 19.
3.	The number of non-Indigenous young people is obtained by subtracting the number of Indigenous young people from the total number of young people. 
Source: ABS 2009a, 2009b, 2009c, 2009d.

Table 5.2: Australian population aged 10–17 years by Indigenous status, states and territories, December 2005 to December 2008
Indigenous status	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Aust excl WA & NT	Aust incl WA & NT	
	2005	
Indigenous	29,296	6,226	27,296	12,880	5,252	3,702	803	11,067	72,613	96,561	
Non-Indigenous	702,277	536,119	431,001	217,460	158,845	51,417	34,855	15,152	1,914,759	2,147,370	
Total	731,573	542,345	458,297	230,340	164,097	55,119	35,658	26,219	1,987,372	2,243,931	
	2006	
Indigenous	30,707	6,491	28,889	13,311	5,407	3,837	798	11,284	76,186	100,791	
Non-Indigenous	703,856	538,650	437,674	219,605	159,341	51,149	34,569	15,247	1,925,458	2,160,300	
Total	734,563	545,141	466,563	232,916	164,748	54,986	35,367	26,531	2,001,644	2,261,091	
	2007	
Indigenous	31,146	6,608	29,550	13,471	5,496	3,832	808	11,328	77,515	102,321	
Non-Indigenous	703,910	539,789	444,309	221,701	159,172	50,982	34,181	15,320	1,932,568	2,169,582	
Total	735,056	546,397	473,859	235,172	164,668	54,814	34,989	26,648	2,010,083	2,271,903	
	2008	
Indigenous	31,299	6,684	29,893	13,599	5,561	3,776	825	11,394	78,100	103,100	
Non-Indigenous	702,539	540,929	449,045	224,550	158,682	50,751	34,045	15,202	1,936,242	2,175,987	
Total	733,838	547,613	478,938	238,149	164,243	54,527	34,870	26,596	2,014,342	2,279,087	
Notes
1.	The number of Indigenous young people in December each year is approximated by averaging the two relevant 30 June Indigenous population projections; numbers may not therefore sum to the total.
2.	The number of Indigenous young people aged 10–17 years for Australia and for all states and territories excluding the Australian Capital Territory is calculated by summing the relevant individual age years, The number of Indigenous young people aged 10–17 years for the Australian Capital Territory is approximated by summing the total number of Indigenous children aged 10–14 years and three-fifths of the number of Indigenous young people aged 15–19 years as data for individual age years were not available. This method assumes that there is an even distribution of Indigenous young people in each single year of age between 15 and 19.
3.	The number of non-Indigenous young people is obtained by subtracting the number of Indigenous young people from the total number of young people. 
Source: ABS 2009a, 2009b, 2009c, 2009d.

References
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2009a. Experimental estimates and projections, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 1991 to 2006 (Series B). Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2009b. Indigenous population projections by age and sex at 30 June 2009: unpublished projections for the Indigenous population based on 2006 Census of Population and Housing data (Series B). Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2009c. Population by age and sex at 31 December 2008: unpublished estimates based on 2006 Census of Population and Housing data. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2009d. Projected population, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, states and territories, 2006–2021: unpublished projections based on 2006 census of Population and Housing data (Series B). Canberra: ABS.
AIHW 2009. Juvenile justice in Australia 2007-08. Juvenile justice series no. 5. Cat. no. JUV 5. Canberra: AIHW.
AIHW forthcoming. Juvenile justice in Australia 2008-09. Canberra: AIHW.

List of tables
Table 2.1: 	Young people under supervision (all ages) by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 2.2: 	Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under supervision by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 2.3: 	Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under supervision on an average day by Indigenous status, states and territories, 2005–06 to 2008–09
Table 3.1: 	Young people under community-based supervision (all ages) by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 3.2: 	Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under community-based supervision by sex  and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 3.3: 	Rate of young people aged 10–17 years under community-based supervision on an average day by Indigenous status, states and territories, 2005–06 to 2008–09
Table 4.1: 	Young people in detention (all ages) by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 4.2: 	Rate of young people aged 10–17 years in detention by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 4.3: 	Rate of young people aged 10–17 years in detention on an average day by Indigenous status, states and territories, 2005–06 to 2008–09
Table 4.4: 	Young people in detention on an average day(a) (all ages) by legal status and Indigenous status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 4.5: 	Number of young people in detention during the year (all ages) by legal status, states and territories, 2008–09
Table 5.1: 	Australian population aged 10–17 years by sex and Indigenous status, states and territories, December 2008
Table 5.2: 	Australian population aged 10–17 years by Indigenous status, states and territories, December 2005 to December 2008