1 / 47

Institute for Security Studies

Explore the latest crime trends, budget allocation, and performance evaluations of the criminal justice system through the Institute for Security Studies' comprehensive monitoring service. Analyze key factors affecting crime statistics and system efficiency, and gain valuable insights to improve operations.

mikele
Download Presentation

Institute for Security Studies

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Institute for Security Studies Criminal justice monitoring service Review of criminal justice performance

  2. The CJM service aims to: • Simplify crime information for easy access & understanding • Look beyond crime statistics to performance of criminal justice system • Consider the context: budgets, capacity & workload • Develop indicators of capacity, workload & performance • Assist in improving operations

  3. Briefing outline • Overview of latest crime trends and CJS budgets • Review of performance of the criminal justice system: police, courts & prisons

  4. Number of crimes recorded, 1994/95 - 2001/02

  5. % change in selected crimes recorded, 2001/02

  6. Crime rates in the provinces, 2000/01 - 2001/02

  7. How are the police, courts and prisons performing? • What was promised in 2001/02? • What budget did the department get? • What resources were available? • What workload was the department facing? • How did the department perform? • Issues to watch in 2003

  8. How much money did the CJS get to do the job? [Rbn]

  9. How much money did the CJS? (% of national budget)

  10. ISS Criminal justice monitoring service Department of Safety and Security

  11. What was promised? • Reduce recorded crime • Specifically, by end 2003, to ‘stabilise’ recorded crime in 145 station areas producing 50% of South Africa’s crime (Operation Crackdown)

  12. How much money did S&S get to do the job?

  13. What resources were available? • As of January 2003, 129,722 members, of which about: • 80,000 uniformed (62%) • 22,000 detectives (17%) • 27,000 civilians (21%) • One sworn cop for every 439 South Africans • Plans to increase with 40,500 by 2005 including replacing attrition: • About 18,000 cops trained per year • One cop for every 373 citizens

  14. Police per 100,000 population

  15. Number of sworn SAPS members and civilians

  16. What workload was the department facing? • About 2.5 million crimes recorded • 31 recorded crimes per uniformed member per year, or about one every eight working days • 115 recorded crimes per detective per year, or about one every other work day

  17. Comment on the numbers issue • Less a matter of raw numbers than distribution and training • Reduction in academy time is worrying • Need to ensure that new recruits are mentored

  18. What was the strategy? • 2000-2003 Strategic Plan • Organised crime • Serious and violent crime • Crimes against women and children • Service delivery • National Crime Combating Strategy • Organised Crime • Serious & violent crime (‘geographic approach’)

  19. How did they perform?(Organised crime) • ‘21 undercover operations conducted, 230 syndicates exposed & 85 syndicate leaders prosecuted’ • Compare: 54 ops, 388 syndicates, 233 leaders in 2000/2001 • 2,887 drug cases disposed of, 34% conviction rate; drug value down from 1.4 in 2000/01 to 1.1 in 2001/02 • Lots of arrests and seizures

  20. How did they perform?(Serious and violent crime) • Murder has been coming down since 1994 • Crime rates in 145 stations? • Huge rise in cases to court • Quality of arrests? • Consequences for CJS?

  21. How did they perform?(Crimes against women & children) • ‘Less policeable’ • No separate indicators • No anti-rape strategy • FCS: • 32,518 dockets for 727 members (about 50 dockets apiece) • 2,490 convictions (8% conviction rate) • Almost 3.5 convictions per detective

  22. How did they perform?(Service delivery) • No ongoing measures • ISS 2000 study gave good results • Deaths of suspects are down 13% between 2000/01 & 2000/02 • Criminal offences down 4% • Misconduct allegations steady

  23. Issues to watch • Training • Sector policing & the deployment of new recruits • Resolution 7 and detective restructuring • AFIS and IJS? • Implementation of Firearms, Domestic Violence, Child Justice, and Sexual Offences Acts

  24. ISS Criminal justice monitoring service Department of Justice and Constitutional Development National Prosecuting Authority

  25. What was promised in 2001/02? • Decrease case backlog in courts • Reduce average length of trials • Increase number of finalised trials • Increase number of court hours • Increase number of completed asset forfeiture cases • Increase satisfaction of court users

  26. What budget did the department get for 2002/03? • R4.3 bn, or 14% of criminal justice system budget • Increase of 17%, compared to 2001/02 budget • 31% increase for NPA • 30% increase for Scorpions • 50% of budget allocated to personnel-related expenditure (down from 78% in 1996/97)

  27. What workload was the department facing? • 26% increase in number of case referrals between 2000-01; and 47% increase in 2001-02 • Uncompleted cases: 182,000 end 2000 & 2001, and 200,000 end 2002 • 358,000 prosecutions in 2001, and 403,000 in 2002 (12 % increase) • 9,900 diversions during 2002

  28. How did the department perform? • About a third of serious cases referred to court result in a conviction • Between 2001/02 cases referred to court increased by 47%, prosecutions by 12% • Increase in number of finalised cases, but also in outstanding cases • Increase in period average awaiting trial prisoner is incarcerated

  29. Cases resulting in a conviction as a proportion of cases referred to court, 2000

  30. Cases processed by the prosecution service, 1996-2002

  31. Average period awaiting trial prisoners incarcerated, 1996-2002

  32. No. of cases finalised with a verdict & outstanding cases, 1999-2002

  33. Summary of department’s performance • Significant increase in finalised cases, but average court finalising too few cases with a verdict • Number of cases withdrawn by prosecution stabilising • Slight increase in outstanding cases - would be worse without Additional and Saturday courts • Courts remain a bottleneck in the criminal justice process --> increase in awaiting trial period

  34. Issues to watch in 2003 • Child Justice legislation & diversion • Progress of Scorpions • Roll out of Legal Aid system • Effectiveness of plea bargaining • Case backlogs in ‘Crackdown’ areas • Implementation of IJS-related technology systems • Appointment of maintenance investigators

  35. ISSCriminal justice monitoring service Department of Correctional Services

  36. What was promised in 2001/2? • Focus on rehabilitation • Reduce overcrowding • New prisons - Unit Management • Community corrections, parole • Good governance - combat corruption • White Paper process • HIV/Aids policy 2002

  37. How much money did the department get in 2002/03?

  38. What resources were available? • 241 prisons • 2 privately run prisons • 8 facilities for women • 13 for youth • 72 for men and women • 14 temporarily closed • 132 for men • Designed to hold 110,000 inmates • 33,475 corrections officials in 2002

  39. Number of DCS personnel and prisoners, 1994-2003

  40. Number of DCS personnel and prisoners, 1994-2003

  41. Number of DCS personnel and prisoners, 1994-2003

  42. Ratio of prisoners to corrections officials

  43. What workload was the department facing? • 185,000 inmates in prisons designed to hold 110,000 = 70% overcrowding • Unsentenced prisoners increased by 134% between 1995-2002 • Children (<18 years) in prison increased since 1995 • Deaths in prison due to natural causes increased by 600% between 1995 and 2001

  44. Performance indicators • Number of prisoners released on community corrections • Exposing corruption • Existence of Independent Prison Visitors • Escapes from custody • Assaults & unnatural deaths in prison

  45. Summary of prison performance • Workload increasing faster than capacity • Overall, performance is positive • Reduction in escapes • Reduction in incidence of violence • Corruption charges • Policy focus on rehabilitation gaining momentum • Key challenges • To reduce overcrowding • Health of prisoners

  46. What to look out for in 2003 • Completion of White Paper by end of the year • Implementation of HIV/Aids policy and the National prevalence study • Strengthening of anti-corruption • Increase community corrections forum • Unit management • Monitoring & accountability of private prisons

  47. Key requirements for SA’s crime response • Improve the functioning of the criminal justice system • More resources for crime prevention, prosecution and diversion, and less for corrections? • Better understand of offending patterns to reduce the number of people entering the system

More Related