Crime in Australia
Human smuggling, human trafficking and the illegal drug trade have all impacted Australia in recent years.[1] Australia has a much lower violent crime rate than some other developed nations, such as the United States and the United Kingdom.[2]
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[edit] Crime statistics
The Australian Institute of Criminology provides national statistics on crime in Australia.[3] State police and justice departments also compile information on the patterns of regional crime.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) shows that during the 2009/10 financial year police took action against 375,259 people,[4] up by 4.8 per cent from 2008/09 figures.[5] Young offenders aged 10 to 19, comprised about 29 percent of the total offender population across Australia.[6]
In the 2009/10 financial year, 84,100 women had police action taken against them across Australia, up by six per cent compared with the previous year.[7] 290,400 men had police action taken against them in 2009/10, an annual increase of 4 per cent.[8] About 30 per cent of the women were accused of theft, whereas the most common principal offence for men was intention to cause injury and matters related to public order.[9]
Research from the Australian Institute of Criminology, shows that from 1990 until the middle of 2011, 40 per cent of people who were fatally shot by police were suffering from a mental illness. In NSW, the fatalities included Adam Salter (shot dead in Sydney in 2009); Elijah Holcombe (shot dead in Armadale in 2009); and Roni Levi (shot dead on Bondi Beach in 1997). In Victoria, the fatalities included the 2008 shooting death of Tyler Cassidy. At age 15, Cassidy is believed to be the youngest person ever shot dead by police in Australia.[10]
[edit] Regional crime
[edit] Australian Capital Territory
[edit] New South Wales
[edit] Queensland
[edit] South Australia
[edit] Tasmania
[edit] Victoria
[edit] Western Australia
[edit] History
[edit] Convicts
During the late 18th and 19th centuries, large numbers of convicts were transported to the various Australian penal colonies by the British government.[11] One of the primary reasons for the British settlement of Australia was the establishment of a penal colony to alleviate pressure on their overburdened correctional facilities. Over the 80 years more than 165,000 convicts were transported to Australia.[12]
[edit] Bushrangers of Australia
Bushrangers were criminals who used the Australian bush as a refuge to hide from authorities between committing their robberies, roughly analogous to the British "highwayman" and American "Old West outlaws,". Their targets often included small-town banks or coach services. The term "bushranger" evolved to refer to those who abandoned social rights and privileges to take up "robbery under arms" as a way of life, using the bush as their base.
[edit] Riots in Australia
See also - Civil disturbances in Western Australia
- Lambing Flat riots of 1860-1861
- Bathurst Riots
- 2004 Palm Island riots
- 2004 Redfern riots
- 2005 Macquarie Fields riots
- 2005 Cronulla riots
[edit] Law enforcement in Australia
Law enforcement in Australia is served by police, sheriffs and bailiffs under the control of state, territory and the Federal governments. A number of state, territory and federal agencies also administer a wide variety of legislation related to white-collar crime.
The Police are responsible for the criminal law. The sheriff and bailiffs in each state and territory are responsible for the enforcement of the judgments of the courts exercising civil law (common law) jurisdictions.
It is a common misconception that in Australia there are two distinct levels of police forces, the various state police forces and then overriding that, the Australian Federal Police (AFP). In actuality, the various state police forces are responsible for enforcing state law within their own states while the AFP are responsible for the enforcement of and investigation of crimes against Commonwealth law which applies across the whole country.
[edit] Civic organisations
[edit] Penal system
[edit] Major crimes in Australia
[edit]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Australia Black Markets". http://www.havocscope.com/regions-main/asia/australia/.
- ^ World Crime Trends
- ^ Australian Institute of Criminology
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html.
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html.
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html.
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html.
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html.
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html.
- ^ Quentin McDermott (March 05, 2012). "Shooting deaths spark call for mental health overhaul". ABC News. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-03-05/shooting-deaths-spark-call-for-mental-health-overhaul/3868754.
- ^ Shorter Oxford English Dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2002. ISBN 0-19-860575-7. "convictism noun (Hist.) the system of penal settlements for convicts; the body of convicts so transported M19"
- ^ Convict Records, Ancestry.co.uk
[edit] External links
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