The 14 page Trends and patterns in domestic violence assaults: 2001 to 2010 [PDF] by Katrina Grech & Melissa Burgess reports on trends in domestic violence and factors associated with reporting offences to police in NSW.
It is based on analysis of incidents of domestic assault recorded by the NSW Police between 2001 and 2010 in line with the Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 (NSW). Factors associated with reporting of offences to police were examined using the Australian Bureau of Statistics, Crime Victimisation Survey 2008-2009.
The report indicates that -
over the last 10 years the trend in domestic assault has been stable across NSW and has fallen slightly in regional areas. The majority of incidents of domestic assaults occurred on residential premises between 6pm and 9pm, Saturdays and Sundays. Alcohol remains an associated factor in many of these incidents. Victims were predominantly female and offenders predominantly male. The overrepresentation of Indigenous Australians as both victims and offenders of domestic assault has not changed over the last decade. Less than half of all respondents who had been the victim of a domestic assault in the previous 12 months reported the incident to the police. Older victims, those who were married and victims of assaults that did not involve weapons or serious injury were less likely to report to police. ...The authors conclude that although the incidence of domestic assault has been stable across the past decade
In 2010, nearly 40% of all assaults were recorded as domestic violence related. Similarly, a third of all incidents of harassment, threatening behaviour and private nuisance were considered to be domestic. Only a small proportion (4-5%) of indecent assaults, acts of indecency and other sexual offences were recorded by police as being related to domestic violence during this period. ...
41% of domestic assault incidents in NSW were flagged by police as alcohol-related. This percentage varied across NSW SDs, ranging from between 35% in the Sydney SD to 62% in the Far West SD.
it continues to be problematic at certain times, in certain places and particularly in some Indigenous communities. Efforts to increase reporting of assault may be best targeted at the subgroups identified in this report who are currently less inclined to report assaults to police.The profile of offenders receiving suspended sentences [PDF] by Lucy Snowball explores whether the profile of those receiving suspended sentences (of any length) in NSW changed over the decade from 2000 to 2009 and whether those receiving suspended sentences have different characteristics from those receiving a full-time custodial sentence of the same length (in this case six months).
The report is based on analysis of the distribution of characteristics over the period amongst offenders who had received a suspended sentence. It indicates that
Over the period 2000 to 2009, there has been a reduction in the proportion of suspended sentences imposed on property offenders and an increase in the proportion of suspended sentences imposed on persons convicted of driving and traffic and ‘other’ offences. Offenders are more likely to receive a suspended sentence (than a full-time custodial sentence of six months or less) if they are female, older than 35 years of age, have been convicted of an offence that does not involve serious violence, theft or breaching an order, do not have concurrent convictions, do not have prior convictions and are not legally represented.Snowball concludes that NSW Courts do not appear to reserve suspended sentences for offenders who would otherwise have gone to prison.
