ANNUAL PRISONS REPORT

Hokitika Guardian, 13 October 1925, Page 4

ANNUAL PRISONS REPORT

‘■CRIME IS NOT INCREASING." ’I lie number ol distinct persons received into the prison institutions ol the Dominion during the year ended December :U'(. 1924. was 3993. com pared with 39.77 in 192.'! and 3>:’,<t in 1922. slates the ('out i oller-fieiieral of Prisons (Mr M. Hankins) ill his annual report.. The daily average number of prisoners ill custody in the whole ol the prison institutions for the year 1921 was 1Ri0.49. against 1127.17 in 1923- an increase of 09.02. Although the latter figures indicate an increase in the prison population, il is satislaetory to find Him the proportion of nlfenders to the Dominion's total population shows little or no jnerease. In 191! the' proportion of eriminal- t excluding Maoris) per 10.02. i ot liman population was ;11.P7>, a- eoninarrd with 1,.,S in H'2l. |, will he observed that last year tin-re were fewer offenders under Haage of twenty years than in either 1923 or 1922.’ but as a set-off against this there is a marked increase in the number of etfemlers ulw were over tillage of forty years. It is difhrult to a.cunt for tho increase in older olfemlers, and more particularly as a large proporton of them had not previously been convicted of any offence. It is evident that crime ill proportion to population is not increasing. Youthful nlfenders I.llly have been dealt with at the Invercargill Borstal Institution, but men of all ages-•prin-cipally well-rondm led prisoners and first-olfenders—havo been in detention at W'ailcetia. The departmental statistic.- show that of youths who served terms of reformative' detention at the Invercargill institution between .January Ist. Rill), and December 31-1. 192-1. only (i.t;3 per cent, were re-eon-vieted for Inn Iter offenees. Ol those who served terms of hard labour to be followed by reformative detention during the same period 11.11 per cent, were re-i onvreted. During the nine years to December ,31st last. 1217 youths pas-ed through the Invercargill Borstal Institution, and, ol these. ~

only were ro-eniivictod. making the percentage of successes (*3 .S 3 and failures 0.17. , WATKERIA IXSTI7TTJOX. The results obtained from the Wnikerift institution are even move satisfactory, Inti this is explained by the fact that in the past, numerous offenders of the more hopeful type were detained there, while, all classes of young offenders were given a trial at Invercargill before being translerred to other prison institutions when fount! incorrigible. All sucli offenders go through the Invercargill institution's records, and accordingly help to swell the number of failures. A summary of the figures for the Waijteria institution for Hie past nine years shows that 971 men serving terms of reformative detention, hard labour, or both, passed through the institution, and of these -It) only have been re-con-victed for fun her offences In the Dominion. making the percentage of failures 4.-70. KXPEXDITFRE AND RECEIPTS. The gross expenditure for the past financial year under all heads amounted to £144.484, as against L131,fi09 for the preceding year, an increase of £12.78.7. The items which contributed most largely towards the increase were:—Salaries and allowances £4-197, I prisoners’ industry earnings £3:72-7. payments to prisoners' dependents C1(127. expenditure on prison farms £1046. and briekmaking expenses £1721. The receipts for the past financial year constitute a record, being £14.944 in excess of the highest revenue obtained during any previous year. The greater portion of the additional receipts was obtained from the quarry at Mount Eden, where the annual income increased from £1:7..7-78 to £2l- - The Invercargill, NYaikeria. and Paparua farms produced satisfactory returns, and the road-making work carried on for the Public M orks Department in the Waimarino district substantially increased the annual revenue. The hootmaking, tailoring, and mail-bag industries at ibc Auckland Prison produced £-1.790. which is very satisfactory tu view of the many difficulties experienced by the prison officials in adapting the available labour to these occupations.