Each state and territory runs its own department to oversee correctional services; for example the South Australian Department for Correctional Services is responsible for prisoners and the provision of the rehabilitation opportunities in
South Australia.
Number of prisoners In June 2022, there were 40,591 people imprisoned in Australia, and an incarceration rate of 201 prisoners per 100,000 adult population.
Males In 2017 males made up 91.9% of prisoners, Until amendments to legislation were introduced in 2020, many women in
Western Australia were imprisoned for non-payment of fines. The amendments were partly the result of recommendations of the coronial inquest into the
death of Ms Dhu, who
died in police custody. In 2021 the female imprisoned population in Australia was 7.7% of the total adults who are incarcerated. The percentage of the total female prison population rose from 7.2% of the population in 2000 to 12.8% in 2021 (from 1,385 to 3,302 per 100,000), based on the national population (with these figures approximately doubling if based on the national female population).
Debbie Kilroy, founder of Sisters Inside, is a well-known advocate for prison reform for female prisoners, who has noted several ways in which the current criminal justice system has failed in its mission to punish and rehabilitate women.
Indigenous Australians From 2008 to 2017 there was an increase in the rate of Indigenous people imprisoned, from 1.8% of the
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population to 2.43%. In 2017, Indigenous people were over 15 times more likely than non-Indigenous people to be imprisoned. As of June 2022, the total
Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander population in Australia aged 18 years and over was approximately 2%, while Indigenous prisoners accounted for 32 percent of the adult prison population. , 40 per cent of
women in prison in the state of
New South Wales are Indigenous women. The report listed 13 recommendations, covering many aspects of the legal framework and police and justice procedures, including that fine default should not result in the imprisonment. Various programs in New South Wales have been having a positive effect on keeping Indigenous people out of prison. In
Bourke, a project called Maranguka Justice Reinvestment has police officers meeting with local Indigenous leaders each day, helping to identify at-risk youth, and includes giving free driving lessons to young people. There have been reductions in domestic violence and juvenile offending (such as driving without a license), and an increase in school retention. Project Walwaay in
Dubbo sees an Aboriginal youth team help to build relationships and engage young people in activities on a Friday night, which is now the second lowest day of crime, compared with being the busiest day before. The activities are also a pathway to the Indigenous Police Recruitment Delivery Our Way (IPROWD), an 18-week program run through
TAFE NSW, which encourages young people to become police officers. This was first run in Dubbo in 2008 and has now been expanded to other locations across the state. Since 2021,
yarning circles have been introduced in men's and women's prisons across NSW, starting with
Broken Hill Correctional Centre, in a bid to connect Indigenous inmates with their culture, and reduce reoffending and the high rates of
incarceration of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
State and territory prison populations According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, as of June 2022, the number of adult prisoners according to each state and territory were as follows:
State and territory incarceration rates As of June 2022, the Northern Territory had by the country's highest incarceration rate at 1,027 per 100,000 adult population, which is over five times the incarceration rate of the country overall and an increase from 2017, when the territory's incarceration rate was 878 per 100,000. With the exception of the Northern Territory and Queensland, all other states and territories saw a decrease in incarceration rate over the same time period. The incarceration rate differed depending on country of birth. People born in Australia,
New Zealand,
Vietnam,
Lebanon,
Iran,
Iraq,
Somalia,
Sudan,
South Sudan,
Samoa,
Afghanistan and
Tonga all had incarceration rates higher than the national average. Meanwhile people born in
China,
Hong Kong,
India,
Sri Lanka,
Philippines,
South Africa,
United States, United Kingdom,
Canada,
Italy,
Turkey,
Greece,
Germany,
Taiwan,
South Korea and
Fiji had incarceration rates lower than the national average. However, these rates are not age-standardised, meaning they do not account for the fact that different groups tend to be younger or older on average. This matters, because teenagers and young adults are much more likely to commit crime than older adults. For instance the Sudanese-born population tends to be much younger on average, and this can help to explain their over-representation in the prison population.
Life imprisonment in Australia In Australia,
life imprisonment is of indeterminate length. The sentencing judge usually sets a non-parole period after which the prisoner can apply for release under parole conditions, or in the case of a criminal who has committed particularly heinous crimes, the sentencing judge may order that the person is "never to be released". ==Prisons==