NCJ Number
163072
Journal
Juristat Volume: 16 Issue: 9 Dated: (July 1996) Pages: complete issue
Date Published
1996
Length
21 pages
Annotation
Statistics are presented on the risk of becoming a crime victim in Canada, criminal activities of young people and adults, offender punishment, demands on the correctional system, and criminal justice system operating costs.
Abstract
Rates of violent victimization are higher among women than men in Canada, and violent incidents involving women tend to occur in the victim's home. Surveys consistently show that violent victimization rates are highest among young adults and decline steadily with age. Factors that affect the risk of property crime include location, dwelling type, and availability of valuable goods, and the risk of being a property crime victim is positively related to household income. The combined rate of household property offenses in 1993 was 190 per 1,000 Canadian households, and 1.5 million property crimes occurred in 1994 Statistics suggest that Canadians are no more likely to be victimized by crime today than they were in the late 1980's. Even so, the police report about 2.6 million criminal incidents annually and violent crime steadily increased between 1962 and 1992. Young people are most overrepresented in incidents involving property crimes. Although young people are less likely to be charged with violent crimes than property crimes, they are still overrepresented among persons charged with violent crimes. Data suggest that adults and young people appearing in court are convicted of Criminal Code and drug crimes in equal proportions. All components of Canada's correctional system have experienced caseload increases in recent years, with average daily inmate counts rising for both adult and young offenders. Costs of operating Canada's criminal justice system are estimated at $9.6 billion yearly, or $331 per capita. The largest share of the criminal justice dollar is spent on policing (60 percent), followed by adult correctional services (20 percent). Youth corrections cost $488 million yearly, or $17 per capita. 25 references, 5 tables, and 6 figures