Criminal justice
Examine over-representation of First Nations peoples in the criminal justice system and the systemic factors driving unequal outcomes in the 2026 assessment.
Summary
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to be overrepresented in prison and youth detention populations in Australia.
- Currently, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are around 15 times more likely to be in prison than non-Indigenous people.
- The rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people aged 10–17 years in detention on an average day was around 26 times the rate of non-Indigenous young people.
- Governments across Australia need to abandon harsh and often counterproductive criminal justice polices.
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Criminal justice
This fact sheet provides information on issues raised in the report card as well as findings from a range of reports and submissions made by the Commission over the past 12 months.
In 1991, the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody reported that the reason Aboriginal people were dying in custody at much higher rates than non-Indigenous people, was because governments were locking them up in prisons at much higher rates.
It found that too many Aboriginal people are in custody too often. It recommended changes to reduce Aboriginal overimprisonment and deaths in custody.
First Peoples are overrepresented in prison and youth detention in Australia
First Peoples' justice | Urgent human rights issues
Too many First Peoples continue to die in custody, with limited implementation of a multitude of reform recommendations. Trust in government within First Peoples communities is low, with a need for independent investigation processes, especially for police related deaths. |
In 1991, the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody reported that the reason Aboriginal people were dying in custody at much higher rates than non-Indigenous people, was because governments were locking them up in prisons at much higher rates. It found that too many Aboriginal people are in custody too often. It recommended changes to reduce Aboriginal overimprisonment and deaths in custody.
Since that landmark report, the rate of Aboriginal overimprisonment has worsened. Many of the report’s recommendations have not been implemented, including:
- the abolition of mandatory sentencing laws
- the establishment of independent mechanisms for investigating police misconduct, and
- addressing racism and a lack of cultural diversity within police services.
Australian governments have committed to reducing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander overimprisonment under the Closing the Gap Agreement. However, the imprisonment rates are worsening as governments prioritise criminal justice policies like harsh bail laws that result in more people being locked up unnecessarily. Currently, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are around 15 times more likely to be in prison than non-Indigenous people.
First Peoples' justice | Urgent human rights issues
State and territory governments, most notably NT and Queensland, continue to implement harsh and punitive criminal justice laws and policies that significantly impact on First Peoples’ children and young people and people with disability. Since 2024, Queensland, Victoria and the NT have passed legislation which means detention is no longer to be considered only as a last resort when sentencing children for some crimes. Children are regularly being held in solitary confinement. There is inadequate progress in developing and maintaining First Peoples-led diversionary and early intervention programs that address offending behaviour early.
Closing the Gap
Under the Closing the Gap Agreement, Australian governments have also committed to reduce the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people (10-17 years) in detention by at least 30 per cent by 2031. However, progress has not shifted from the baseline figure.
Youth detention
First Peoples children and young people make up 5.7% of the Australian population aged 10–17. Nationally in 2023-24, the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people aged 10–17 years in detention on an average day was around 26 times the rate of non-Indigenous young people.
The Australian Government has funded a range of justice reinvestment programs across Australia to reduce the rate at which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are involved in the criminal justice system.
Governments across Australia need to abandon harsh and often counterproductive criminal justice polices. Instead, they should work meaningfully with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to support programs that address the root causes of crime including by supporting families, supporting health, education and employment initiatives and addressing poverty and other disadvantage.
Priority action
The Australian government should abolish mandatory sentencing laws and expand the use of appropriate non-custodial measures. Expand justice reinvestment trials. Adequately fund Indigenous legal assistance programs. Introduce independent monitoring and complaint mechanisms for police.
