• Robyn Gilbert, Lisa Rosevear, Kelly Richards
• Indigenous Justice Clearinghouse

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Image: Savara / flickr

12 April 2011This paper reviews the evidence on policies and programs that reduce offending by Indigenous juveniles in Australia.

Indigenous juveniles (those aged 10 to 16 years in Queensland and 10 to 17 years in all other jurisdictions) are over-represented at all stages of the criminal justice system, and their over-representation becomes more pronounced at the most severe end of the system (ie in detention).

Recent figures show that Indigenous juveniles are 24 times as likely to be detained in a juvenile correctional facility as non-Indigenous juveniles.

A variety of explanations for this over-representation have been proposed, including:

• lack of access or disparate access to diversionary programs;

• systemic discrimination against Indigenous juveniles (eg police bias against Indigenous juveniles);

• inadequate resourcing of Aboriginal legal services; and

• genuinely higher levels of offending by Indigenous juveniles.

A range of measures (including diversion and juvenile conferencing programs) has recently been implemented to reduce the over-representation of Indigenous juveniles in detention, and minimise the contact of juveniles with the formal criminal justice system. Diversionary measures can only have a limited impact, however, and reducing offending and reoffending have been identified as critical factors to address if the over-representation of Indigenous juveniles is to be reduced.

While acknowledging that other measures designed to reduce the over-representation of Indigenous juveniles are important, this paper reviews the evidence on policies and programs that reduce offending by Indigenous juveniles in Australia. Where relevant, research from comparable jurisdictions, such as New Zealand and Canada, is also discussed.

Photo: Savara / flickr