4517.0 - Prisoners in Australia, 2014 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 11/12/2014   
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TASMANIA

Snapshot

At 30 June 2014:

    • The number of adult prisoners in Tasmanian prisons was 448, a decrease of 7% (35 prisoners) from 2013. (Table 14)

    • The adult imprisonment rate was 112.0 prisoners per 100,000 adult population, a decrease from 121.5 prisoners per 100,000 adult population in 2013. (Table 18)

    • Just under two in three prisoners (63% or 281 prisoners) had been imprisoned under sentence previously. (Table 13)

    • The most common offence/charge for which prisoners were in custody was acts intended to cause injury (18% or 82 prisoners), followed by homicide (14% or 63 prisoners). (Table 15)
Sex

At 30 June 2014:

    • Males comprised 93% (415 prisoners) of the total prisoner population. (Table 13)

    • Since 30 June 2013, the male imprisonment rate decreased from 226.9 to 210.5 prisoners per 100,000 male adult population. This was the lowest male imprisonment rate since 2004. (Table 14)

    • For the same period, the female imprisonment rate decreased from 18.9 to 16.3 prisoners per 100,000 female adult population. (Table 14)
Age

At 30 June 2014:

    • The median age of adult prisoners was 33.4 years of age. (Table 13)

    • The proportion of adult prisoners aged under 25 years was 18% (80 prisoners). (Table 20)
Country of Birth

At 30 June 2014:

    • Overseas-born prisoners accounted for 3% (15 prisoners) of the adult prisoner population. (Table 21)
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Status

At 30 June 2014:

    • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders comprised 16% (72 prisoners) of the adult prisoner population. (Table 13)

    • The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander age standardised imprisonment rate was three and a half times the non-indigenous age standardised imprisonment rate (417.0 prisoners per 100,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adult population compared to 118.7 prisoners per 100,000 adult non-indigenous population). (Table 17)
Legal Status

At 30 June 2014:

    • Unsentenced prisoners comprised 22% (98 prisoners) of the adult prisoner population. (Table 13)

    • The median time spent on remand by unsentenced prisoners in custody was 1.6 months. Time on remand as reported in the Prisoner Census is time spent on remand as at 30 June 2014, and not the total time on remand. Time on remand is influenced by a number of factors, particularly the time it takes for a case to come before a court. (Table 30)

    • The median aggregate sentence length of sentenced prisoners was 2.0 years. (Table 24)
Other Key Points

At 30 June 2014, of all states and territories:

    • Tasmania was the only jurisdiction that experienced a decrease in the adult prisoner population since 30 June 2013 (from 483 prisoners to 448 prisoners). (Table 14)

    • Tasmania had the lowest imprisonment rate (112.0 prisoners per 100,000 adult population). (Table 18)

    • The median time spent on remand by unsentenced prisoners in custody was lowest in Tasmania (1.6 months). Time on remand as reported in the Prisoner Census is time spent on remand as at 30 June 2014, and not the total time on remand. Time on remand is influenced by a number of factors, particularly the time it takes for a case to come before a court. (Table 30)