Summary

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A number of observations can be made concerning the prisoner cohort released in 2002/03:

  • About half of the prisoners were Maori.
  • About two in every three prisoners had been previously imprisoned.
  • About five in every six prisoners had been previously convicted and served community sentences.
  • Around 51 percent of prisoners were first imprisoned at the age of 19 or under.
  • 75 percent of prisoners were first imprisoned at the age of 24 or under.
  • 57 percent of Maori prisoners were first imprisoned at the age of 19 or under.
  • 80 percent of Maori prisoners were first imprisoned at the age of 24 or under.

In relation to the recidivism amongst these prisoners:

  • One in every two prisoners were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • About two in every three prisoners were reconvicted within four years of release.
  • About 70 percent of prisoners under age 20 at release were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • About two in every three prisoners who were imprisoned for dishonesty offences (such as burglary, car conversion and theft) were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • About one in every two prisoners who were imprisoned for violent offences were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • About one in every four prisoners who were imprisoned for sexual offences were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • The more often someone has been in prison, the more likely they are to return to prison following release.

Prisoners deemed to be “recidivists” in the 2002/03 release cohort (two or more previous sentences) also displayed some interesting characteristics:

  • About 60 percent of recidivist prisoners were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • About 78 percent of recidivist prisoners were reconvicted within four years of release.
  • About three in every four prisoners who were imprisoned for dishonesty offences were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release.
  • About one in every two recidivist prisoners who were imprisoned for sexual offences were reconvicted and re-imprisoned within four years of release; this rate of re-imprisonment for recidivist sex offenders is not lower than for other offence types.
  • About one in every two recidivist female prisoners are reconvicted and
  • re-imprisoned within four years of release: this rate of re-imprisonment is not significantly lower than that of recidivist male prisoners.
  • About four in every five recidivist female prisoners are reconvicted within four years of release. The rate of reconviction for recidivist female prisoners is the same as for recidivist male prisoners.

References

Reconviction Patterns of Released Prisoners (March 2007), Policy Strategy and Research, Department of Corrections.

Annual Report 2005/06 (2006), Department of Corrections.

Census of Prison Inmates and Home Detainees (2003), Department of Corrections.