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Institute for Security Studies. Criminal justice monitoring service Review of criminal justice performance. The CJM service aims to:. Simplify crime information for easy access & understanding Look beyond crime statistics to performance of criminal justice system
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Institute for Security Studies Criminal justice monitoring service Review of criminal justice performance
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
Briefing outline • Overview of latest crime trends and CJS budgets • Review of performance of the criminal justice system: police, courts & prisons
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
ISS Criminal justice monitoring service Department of Safety and Security
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)
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
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
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
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’)
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
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?
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
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
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
ISS Criminal justice monitoring service Department of Justice and Constitutional Development National Prosecuting Authority
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
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)
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
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
Cases resulting in a conviction as a proportion of cases referred to court, 2000
Average period awaiting trial prisoners incarcerated, 1996-2002
No. of cases finalised with a verdict & outstanding cases, 1999-2002
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
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
ISSCriminal justice monitoring service Department of Correctional Services
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
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
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
Performance indicators • Number of prisoners released on community corrections • Exposing corruption • Existence of Independent Prison Visitors • Escapes from custody • Assaults & unnatural deaths in prison
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
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
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