Report of the New Zealand Department of Justice
| Published date | 01 December 1971 |
| Date | 01 December 1971 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/000486587100400410 |
| Subject Matter | Original Articles |
250 AUST. &N.Z. JOURNAL OF CRIMINOLOGY (Dec., 1971): 4, 4
CURRENT COMMENT (3)
Report
of
the
New
Zealand
Department
of
Justice
THE
annual
report
of
the
New
Zealand
Justice
Department
for
the
year
ended 31st March, 1971,
contains
much
that
will be of more
than
passing
interest
to
readers
of
this
journal.
Clearly adetailed analysis of
the
report
is impossible
in
a
note
of
this
sort,
but
several
important
areas
need
brief
mention.
Since
its
first
tentative
beginnings in
1963,
New Zealand
has
been
justly
proud
of
the
sentence
of periodic detention.
It
is now quite clear
that
this
particular
form of
penalty
has
come of age.
In
1970
both
adult
and
juvenile receptions increased dramatically, rising,
from
288
in
1969 to 647
in 1970.
This
report
makes
it
quite
clear
that
this
expansion
is to continue.
Over
the
next
few years
it
is
planned
to open 12
new
centres
which
will
more
than
double
the
existing facilities. One of
the
most
important
aspects
of
the
proposed expansion is
that
it
will
apparently
be
concentrated
largely
in
the
adult
sector, which up to now
has
been decidedly
under-nourished.
The
further
development of periodic
detention
may
go some way
to-
wards relieving
the
pressure on
the
hopelessly overcrowded prison system.
Clearly
it
will
not
help very
much.
In
1969
there
was a
slight
lull in receptions
into
institutions,
but
1970 seems to
have
redressed
the
balance
with
a
vengeance. Since
last
year
the
prison
population
has
increased by
more
than
20
per
cent. New Zealand now imprisons
17.21
per
10,000 of population,
a
rate
unsurpassed
since
1931,
which
was a
freak
year
anyway.
Perhaps
the
most depressing aspect of
this
situation
is
that
much
of
the
increase seems
to be
the
result
of a surge in
the
borstal
population
and
an
increase in
the
percentage
of
the
total
prison
population
serving
sentences
of six
months
or less.
Apart
from
the
expansion
of periodic
detention
mentioned
earlier,
the
response to
this
increase seems to be
the
usual
one. Two new
medium
security
institutions
are
to be built, aspecial
remand
prison
is to be opened
in Auckland, anew women's
prison
is in
the
process of being,
built
and
tenders
have
at
last
been called
for
the
new
youth
prison, which is to form
the
apex of
the
New Zealand
borstal
system.
One
final
aspect of
this
report
which
has
aroused some
comment
con-
cerns
the
perennial
problem of
the
handling
of
petty
offences in
the
lower
courts. Congestion
at
this
level
has
increased in
recent
years
and
it
is
clear
that
fairly
radical
steps will be
needed
in
the
near
future
if
the
courts
are
to
retain
their
credibility. Some special measures
have
been
introduced
to
deal
with
minor
traffic
offences,
but
these
are
really only
tinkering
with
the
problem.
One proposal which
has
received some
support
from
the
department
relates
to
those
offences
which
do
not
carry
liability for imprisonment.
It
has
been proposed
that
the
only offences in
this
category
which should
in
future
be
dealt
with
by way of formal
court
hearing
would be
those
"where
the
defendant
has
informed
the
court
that
he wishes to defend
the
charge, or to
make
formal
submissions on some
aspect
such
as
penalty".
However, if
the
case is
such
that
the
magistrate
is of
the
opinion
that
a
court
hearing
is necessary,
either
in
the
public
interest
or
the
interests
of
To continue reading
Request your trial