Criminology Research Council grant ; (21/75)
This report is in the form of a book of 204 pages published by the Victorian Association for the Care and Resettlement of Offenders. The book is essentially a detailed analysis of information concerning all juvenile offenders officially coming to police attention in Victoria in 1975. The total sample comprised 13,084 cases, of whom 4,364 were the subject of police warnings and were not required to appear in court. Where appropriate, comparisons are made with the results of similar research conducted in Victoria in 1966 and 1972. Chapters in the book deal with: the problem; the official picture; the sample; the offenders; the offenders' families; educational factors; the distribution of offenders; the offences; the delays; and the result of the police contact.
In a postscript Mr Challinger has written:
The data presented in this report provide a solid and factual basis for further consideration of the topic. All too often in criminology, there are complaints about the non-availability of hard statistics on which to elaborate theories, explanations and programmes. Here, then, are such statistics which not only cover 1975 formal police contacts with young offenders, but also compare many features with data collected up to nine years previously. Overall, there is little change in the juvenile offending situation in Victoria in those years. Certainly the numbers of cases formally dealt with by the police have increased but this may well reflect changing police methods rather than an actual increase in such youthful activity. It was mentioned that a 'juvenile crime wave' may be suggested by future police figures compiled after the new Victoria Police Cautioning programme is fully operative. If the expected numerical increase does occur, the media no doubt will give it considerable attention. This in turn may cause a law-abiding youngster to feel he is odd if his anti-social behaviour has not been persistent or serious enough to bring him to police attention. And then, perhaps, the increase in youthful offending may really be established. But for the present, most of the offending that results in formal police contact is directed against property by lower secondary school students whose police contact generally concludes in a salutary, but relatively minor, manner.