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Crime in Western Australia is |
'''Crime in Western Australia''' is tackled by the [[Western Australia Police]] and the Western Australian legal system. |
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==History== |
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===Massacres of indigenous Australians=== |
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{{Main|List of massacres of Indigenous Australians}} |
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A number of [[massacre]]s of [[Aboriginal Australians]], some as part of the [[Australian frontier wars|frontier wars]], occurred from the 1830s until well into the 20th century. Few of the perpetrators were ever brought to justice. |
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===Bushrangers=== |
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The colony had its share of [[bushranger]]s in the 19th century, the most well-known of whom was "[[Moondyne Joe]]". |
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===Death Penalty=== |
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[[Capital punishment in Australia|Capital punishment]] in Western Australia was formally removed from the statutes of the state with the passage of the Acts Amendment (Abolition of Capital Punishment) Act 1984. Premier [[Brian Burke (Australian politician)|Brian Burke]] later called this his "proudest achievement".<ref>{{cite web |last1=O'Connor |first1=Andrew |title=Cabinet papers released: Abolition of death penalty 'greatest achievement', former premier Brian Burke says |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-30/abolition-of-death-penalty-greatest-achievement-says-burke/6507984 |website=ABC News |access-date=25 June 2022 |date=30 May 2015}}</ref> |
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Western Australia was the second last state in which capital punishment was legal. |
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==Crime statistics== |
==Crime statistics== |
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{{update|section|date=February 2018}} |
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As at December 2004, [[Western Australia]] recorded lower rates than most other states in Australia for violent offences, but was the highest State for burglary in 2003. |
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===2003-2004=== |
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In 2003 the prison population increased by 3.4% with a similar increase in 2004.<ref>http://www.crc.law.uwa.edu.au/facts__and__figures/statistical_report_2003</ref> |
[[Western Australia]] recorded lower rates than most other states in Australia for violent offences, but had the highest rate of burglary. In 2003 the prison population increased by 3.4% with a similar increase in 2004.<ref>[http://www.crc.law.uwa.edu.au/facts__and__figures/statistical_report_2003 Reports and statistics Portal] at Faculty of Law, [[University of Western Australia]]</ref> |
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===2007–2008=== |
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84 [[homicides]], 3,903 [[sexual assault]]s, 22,708 [[assault]]s and 1,849 [[robberies]] were recorded, with a total of 33,890 offences against the person. |
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{{See|List of specific crimes in Western Australia}} |
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===Eric Cooke=== |
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{{Main|Eric Edgar Cooke}} |
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Cooke was the central figure in several murders in Perth during 1963. After a crime spree he was captured later that year and confessed to the murder of five people and non-fatal shootings of three others. He also confessed to over 250 burglaries. |
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39,482 incidents of [[burglary]] and 82,963 incidents of theft were recorded, with a total of 177,846 offences against property.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.police.wa.gov.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=vP8PS6nEscg=&tabid=1219|title=Monthly verified crime statistics 2007/08|publisher=[[Western Australia Police]]|date=28 June 2010|accessdate=20 January 2013}}</ref> |
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Cooke was the last person hanged in Western Australia on October 26, 1964. |
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===2008–2009=== |
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In two related cases, [[John Button (ex-convict)|John Button]] was accused of the murder of his girlfriend Rosemary Anderson in 1963 and [[Darryl Beamish]] was accused of the murder of Jillian Brewer in 1961. Despite a last minute confession from Cooke prior to going to the [[gallows]] for the two murders, the two men were tried and convicted as police believed Cooke to be a notorious liar. Following an investigation conducted by the journalist and author, [[Estelle Blackburn]] from 1998, both men's cases were reopened and their convictions were quashed in 2002. |
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The chance of being a victim of physical assault was 3.8%. In comparison, the [[Northern Territory]] rated 5.7% and New South Wales, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory each rated 2.8%. |
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The rate of assault was 2,199 offenders per 100,000 people, compared with the Northern Territory's 4,832 and the Australian Capital Territory's 1,096.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/1370.0~2010~Chapter~States%20and%20territories%20(4.4.6.4) |title=Crime – States and Territories – Personal Crimes – Assault|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|date=15 September 2010|accessdate=16 January 2013}}</ref> |
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The chance of being a victim of a [[Burglary|break-in]] in Western Australia was 5.1%. This compared to the Northern Territory's 7.7% and Tasmania's rate of 2.6%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/1370.0~2010~Chapter~Household%20crimes%20-%20break-ins%20(4.4.3) |title=Crime – States and Territories – Household Crimes – Break -Ins|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|date=15 September 2010|accessdate=16 January 2013}}</ref> |
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===Shirley Finn=== |
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{{Main|Shirley Finn}} |
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68 homicides, 3,753 sexual assaults, 22,869 assaults and 1,862 robberies were recorded, with a total of 34,492 offences against the person. |
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'''Shirley Finn''' was a flamboyant Perth [[brothel]] madam whose murdered body was found in her parked car in South Perth near Royal Perth Golf Club on June 23, 1975. |
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36,364 incidents of burglary and 86,487 incidents of theft were recorded, in a total of 169,263 offences against property.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.police.wa.gov.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=IM/f5V4qYC8=&tabid=1219|title=Monthly verified crime statistics 2008/09|publisher=[[Western Australia Police]]|date=24 June 2010|accessdate=17 January 2013}}</ref> |
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===2009–2010=== |
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The murder remains unsolved, and it prompted a State [[Royal Commission]] into policing in the sex industry ''Commission of Inquiry to Inquire into Matters Surrounding the Administration of the Law Relating to Prostitution (1976)''. Thirty years after the murder, West Australian police re-opened a cold-case review of the murder. |
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[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]] figures for 2009/10 showed that police action was taken against 2072.1 people per 100,000 head of population in WA.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/women-increasingly-target-of-police-action-20110224-1b6x2.html | work=The Sydney Morning Herald | first=Xavier | last=La Canna | title=Women increasingly target of police action | date=2011-02-24}}</ref> |
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The chance of being a victim of break-in was 5.2%.<ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4530.0Main%20Features42010-11?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4530.0&issue=2010-11&num=&view=|title=Household Crime Summary|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|date=20 February 2012|accessdate=17 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130104013222/http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4530.0Main%20Features42010-11?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4530.0&issue=2010-11&num=&view=|archive-date=4 January 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> |
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===Perth Mint Swindle=== |
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{{Main|Perth Mint Swindle}} |
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76 homicides, 3,246 sexual assaults, 22,394 assaults and 1,70293 robberies were recorded in Western Australia, in a total of 32,922 offences against the person. |
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In 1982 a gold [[Robbery|heist]] netted persons as yet unknown 68 kg of [[gold]] bars from the [[Perth Mint]]. |
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30,043 incidents of burglary, 73,215 incidents of theft were recorded in a total of 143,844 offences against property.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.police.wa.gov.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=tkbWITNSOXA=&tabid=1219|title=Monthly verified crime statistics 2009/2010|publisher=[[Western Australia Police]]|date=5 October 2011|accessdate=17 January 2013}}</ref> |
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===2010–2011=== |
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===David and Catherine Birnie=== |
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The chance of being a victim of physical assault was 3.6%. This compared to the Northern Territory rate of 5.8% and the lowest, [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]]'s, rate of 2.0%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4530.0Main%20Features32010-11?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4530.0&issue=2010-11&num=&view=|title=Personal Crime Summary|publisher=[[Australian Bureau of Statistics]]|date=20 February 2012|accessdate=17 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130104030433/http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Latestproducts/4530.0Main%20Features32010-11?opendocument&tabname=Summary&prodno=4530.0&issue=2010-11&num=&view=|archive-date=4 January 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> |
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{{Main|David and Catherine Birnie}} |
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A husband and wife team faced charges of abduction, rape, torture and murder of four women in suburban Perth during 1986. Both received life sentences in Western Australian prisons for their crimes. |
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The chance of being a victim of break-in was 3.7%, a significant drop from the previous two years. The highest-rating Northern Territory scored 6.8% and the lowest, [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]], 2.2%.<ref name="auto"/> |
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In January 2000, acting Western Australian [[Attorney-General of Western Australia|Attorney General]], [[Kevin Prince]], said that while the Birnies can be considered for parole in 2007, he thought they would never be released unless they became too frail or senile. |
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103 homicides, 2,900 sexual assaults, 22,854 assaults and 1,793 robberies were recorded in a total of 32,479 offences against the person. |
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David Birnie hanged himself in his cell at [[Casuarina Prison]] on the morning of 7 October 2005. He was given an indigent's funeral at taxpayers expense after no one came forward to claim his body. |
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35,555 incidents of burglary and 77,897 incidents of theft were recorded in a total of 152,649 offences against property.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.police.wa.gov.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=uN2BCzN6TOE=&tabid=1219|title=Monthly verified crime statistics 2010/11|publisher=[[Western Australia Police]]|date=5 October 2011|accessdate=17 January 2013}}</ref> |
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===2011–2012=== |
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===Claremont serial killings=== |
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91 homicides, 2,645 sexual assaults, 22,818 assaults and 1,777 robberies were recorded in a total of 32,091 offences against the person. |
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{{Main|Claremont serial murders}} |
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36,551 incidents of burglary and 85,541 incidents of theft were recorded in a total of 160,445 offences against property.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.police.wa.gov.au/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=BU/EJtWwURc=&tabid=1219|title=Monthly verified crime statistics 2011/12|publisher=[[Western Australia Police]]|date=24 September 2012|accessdate=17 January 2013}}</ref> |
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===2013-2014=== |
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In the 1990s two young women were [[murder]]ed and a third disappeared in the area of [[Claremont, Western Australia]]. All three women disappeared from the same suburb in similar circumstances, leading police to believe an unidentified [[serial killer]] may be behind the crimes. |
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Police statistics showed 86 homicides, 3,645 sexual assaults, 16,236 violent assaults, and 106 robberies.<ref name="auto1">{{Cite web |url=https://www.police.wa.gov.au/404?item=%2fcrime%2fcrime-statistics-portal%2fcrime-statistics-portal%2fmonthly-and-annual-crime-statistics&user=extranet%5cAnonymous&site=wwwPolice |access-date=2019-03-13 }}</ref> |
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===2014-2015=== |
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To date no-one has been charged with the murders of the women despite an intensive police investigation. Several suspects have been identified and are believed to be subject to ongoing police surveillance. [http://www.crimezzz.net/serialkiller_news/CLAREMONT_serial_killer.php] |
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Police recorded 88 homicides, 3,159 sexual assaults, 27,664 domestic and non-domestic assaults, and 1,359 robberies.<ref name="auto1"/> |
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===2015-2016=== |
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===Ora Banda shooting and Don Hancock bombing=== |
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3,946 sexual assaults, 33,348 assaults and 135 robberies.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.police.wa.gov.au/Crime/Crime-Statistics-Portal/Crime-Statistics-Portal/Monthly-and-annual-crime-statistics |access-date=2016-10-25|title=Monthly and annual crime statistics|website=Western Australia Police|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026162959/https://www.police.wa.gov.au/Crime/Crime-Statistics-Portal/Crime-Statistics-Portal/Monthly-and-annual-crime-statistics |archive-date=2016-10-26 |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
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After retiring as head of the [[Western Australia Police|Perth CIB]], Don Hancock purchased the tiny pub at [[Ora Banda, Western Australia|Ora Banda]], near [[Kalgoorlie]]. In October 2000 several members of the [[Gypsy Jokers]] [[motorcycle gang]] entered the pub and started to abuse the barmaid, who was Hancock's daughter, after which he threw them out. Later that night, one of the bikies, William Grierson, was shot dead as he sat around the campfire. |
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==Indigenous imprisonment rates== |
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In September 2001, Hancock, returning from a Perth horse racing meeting with book-maker friend Lou Lewis drove into his driveway. A massive car bomb planted under the car at the race meeting, was remotely detonated and exploded, killing them both instantly. Don Hancock is also related to the Perth Mint Swindle. |
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A leading researcher in prison reform, [[Gerry Georgatos]], said in 2014 that one in thirteen of all Aboriginal adult males in WA is in prison. He stated that this is the highest jailing rate in the world, with WA "...the highest jailer from a racialised lens of our Aboriginal people".<ref>{{cite interview|interviewer=Bronwyn Herbert|last=Georgatos|first=Gerry|title=Aboriginal deaths in custody bring focus to disturbing rate of imprisonment|url=http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2014/s4118422.htm|access-date=10 October 2019|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|website=ABC|series= 7:30 with Leigh Sales}}</ref> |
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Police believe that the bombing was a payback by motorcycle gang members for Grierson's murder. |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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*[[Civil disturbances in Western Australia]] |
*[[Civil disturbances in Western Australia]] |
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* [[Indigenous Australians and crime]] |
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*[[Western Australia Police]] |
*[[Western Australia Police]] |
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'''National:''' |
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==References== |
==References== |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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* {{cite web|url=https://www.police.wa.gov.au/Crime/CrimeStatistics#/start|website=Western Australia Police Force|title=Crime statistics|date=6 November 2023 }} |
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* Francis Burt Law Education Center & Museum in Perth [http://francisburt.lawsocietywa.asn.au/] |
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* Office of Crime Prevention [http://www.crimeprevention.wa.gov.au/] |
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==Further reading== |
==Further reading== |
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*{{cite web|url=http://www.crc.law.uwa.edu.au/__data/page/38151/stats_report_2005_with_maps.pdf |
*{{cite web|url=http://www.crc.law.uwa.edu.au/__data/page/38151/stats_report_2005_with_maps.pdf|title=Crime and Justice Statistics for Western Australia 2005|work=Crime Research Centre, University of Western Australia|date=March 2007|author1=N S N Loh|author2=M G Maller|author3=J A Fernandez|author4=A M Ferrante|author5=M R J Walsh|accessdate=2008-07-02|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720090221/http://www.crc.law.uwa.edu.au/__data/page/38151/stats_report_2005_with_maps.pdf|archive-date=2008-07-20|url-status=dead}} |
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{{Australian_crime}} |
{{Australian_crime}} |
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[[Category:Crime in Western Australia| |
[[Category:Crime in Western Australia| ]] |
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[[Category:Perth, Western Australia]] |
[[Category:Crime in Perth, Western Australia]] |
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Latest revision as of 17:47, 20 February 2024
Crime in Western Australia is tackled by the Western Australia Police and the Western Australian legal system.
History
[edit]Massacres of indigenous Australians
[edit]A number of massacres of Aboriginal Australians, some as part of the frontier wars, occurred from the 1830s until well into the 20th century. Few of the perpetrators were ever brought to justice.
Bushrangers
[edit]The colony had its share of bushrangers in the 19th century, the most well-known of whom was "Moondyne Joe".
Death Penalty
[edit]Capital punishment in Western Australia was formally removed from the statutes of the state with the passage of the Acts Amendment (Abolition of Capital Punishment) Act 1984. Premier Brian Burke later called this his "proudest achievement".[1]
Western Australia was the second last state in which capital punishment was legal.
Crime statistics
[edit] | This section needs to be updated. (February 2018) |
2003-2004
[edit]Western Australia recorded lower rates than most other states in Australia for violent offences, but had the highest rate of burglary. In 2003 the prison population increased by 3.4% with a similar increase in 2004.[2]
2007–2008
[edit]84 homicides, 3,903 sexual assaults, 22,708 assaults and 1,849 robberies were recorded, with a total of 33,890 offences against the person.
39,482 incidents of burglary and 82,963 incidents of theft were recorded, with a total of 177,846 offences against property.[3]
2008–2009
[edit]The chance of being a victim of physical assault was 3.8%. In comparison, the Northern Territory rated 5.7% and New South Wales, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory each rated 2.8%. The rate of assault was 2,199 offenders per 100,000 people, compared with the Northern Territory's 4,832 and the Australian Capital Territory's 1,096.[4]
The chance of being a victim of a break-in in Western Australia was 5.1%. This compared to the Northern Territory's 7.7% and Tasmania's rate of 2.6%.[5]
68 homicides, 3,753 sexual assaults, 22,869 assaults and 1,862 robberies were recorded, with a total of 34,492 offences against the person. 36,364 incidents of burglary and 86,487 incidents of theft were recorded, in a total of 169,263 offences against property.[6]
2009–2010
[edit]Australian Bureau of Statistics figures for 2009/10 showed that police action was taken against 2072.1 people per 100,000 head of population in WA.[7]
The chance of being a victim of break-in was 5.2%.[8]
76 homicides, 3,246 sexual assaults, 22,394 assaults and 1,70293 robberies were recorded in Western Australia, in a total of 32,922 offences against the person. 30,043 incidents of burglary, 73,215 incidents of theft were recorded in a total of 143,844 offences against property.[9]
2010–2011
[edit]The chance of being a victim of physical assault was 3.6%. This compared to the Northern Territory rate of 5.8% and the lowest, Victoria's, rate of 2.0%.[10]
The chance of being a victim of break-in was 3.7%, a significant drop from the previous two years. The highest-rating Northern Territory scored 6.8% and the lowest, Victoria, 2.2%.[8]
103 homicides, 2,900 sexual assaults, 22,854 assaults and 1,793 robberies were recorded in a total of 32,479 offences against the person. 35,555 incidents of burglary and 77,897 incidents of theft were recorded in a total of 152,649 offences against property.[11]
2011–2012
[edit]91 homicides, 2,645 sexual assaults, 22,818 assaults and 1,777 robberies were recorded in a total of 32,091 offences against the person. 36,551 incidents of burglary and 85,541 incidents of theft were recorded in a total of 160,445 offences against property.[12]
2013-2014
[edit]Police statistics showed 86 homicides, 3,645 sexual assaults, 16,236 violent assaults, and 106 robberies.[13]
2014-2015
[edit]Police recorded 88 homicides, 3,159 sexual assaults, 27,664 domestic and non-domestic assaults, and 1,359 robberies.[13]
2015-2016
[edit]3,946 sexual assaults, 33,348 assaults and 135 robberies.[14]
Indigenous imprisonment rates
[edit]A leading researcher in prison reform, Gerry Georgatos, said in 2014 that one in thirteen of all Aboriginal adult males in WA is in prison. He stated that this is the highest jailing rate in the world, with WA "...the highest jailer from a racialised lens of our Aboriginal people".[15]
See also
[edit]- List of people legally executed in Western Australia
- Civil disturbances in Western Australia
- Crime in Australia
- Indigenous Australians and crime
- Western Australia Police
References
[edit]- ^ O'Connor, Andrew (30 May 2015). "Cabinet papers released: Abolition of death penalty 'greatest achievement', former premier Brian Burke says". ABC News. Retrieved 25 June 2022.
- ^ Reports and statistics Portal at Faculty of Law, University of Western Australia
- ^ "Monthly verified crime statistics 2007/08". Western Australia Police. 28 June 2010. Retrieved 20 January 2013.
- ^ "Crime – States and Territories – Personal Crimes – Assault". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 15 September 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2013.
- ^ "Crime – States and Territories – Household Crimes – Break -Ins". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 15 September 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2013.
- ^ "Monthly verified crime statistics 2008/09". Western Australia Police. 24 June 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ La Canna, Xavier (24 February 2011). "Women increasingly target of police action". The Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ a b "Household Crime Summary". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 20 February 2012. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ "Monthly verified crime statistics 2009/2010". Western Australia Police. 5 October 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ "Personal Crime Summary". Australian Bureau of Statistics. 20 February 2012. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ "Monthly verified crime statistics 2010/11". Western Australia Police. 5 October 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ "Monthly verified crime statistics 2011/12". Western Australia Police. 24 September 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2013.
- ^ a b https://www.police.wa.gov.au/404?item=%2fcrime%2fcrime-statistics-portal%2fcrime-statistics-portal%2fmonthly-and-annual-crime-statistics&user=extranet%5cAnonymous&site=wwwPolice. Retrieved 13 March 2019.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ "Monthly and annual crime statistics". Western Australia Police. Archived from the original on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ Georgatos, Gerry. "Aboriginal deaths in custody bring focus to disturbing rate of imprisonment". ABC (Interview). 7:30 with Leigh Sales. Interviewed by Bronwyn Herbert. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 10 October 2019.
External links
[edit]- "Crime statistics". Western Australia Police Force. 6 November 2023.
Further reading
[edit]- N S N Loh; M G Maller; J A Fernandez; A M Ferrante; M R J Walsh (March 2007). "Crime and Justice Statistics for Western Australia 2005" (PDF). Crime Research Centre, University of Western Australia. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 2 July 2008.