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An analysis of vehicle theft charges and their court outcomes in NSW

Background

Published: March 2021

During the last decade we have seen motor vehicle thefts (MVT) decline by 41 per cent in Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales (NSW). While there are a number of factors that could have contributed to this significant reduction, it is worth considering the impact of rising offender apprehension rates and court outcomes in the state.

This research examines alleged offender and criminal courts data from NSW to explore possible links between a decline in MVT numbers and an increase in offender apprehension and sentencing rates.

Methodology

Motor vehicle theft data for NSW was taken from the CARS database for the 2009 to 2019 calendar years.

Alleged offender and sentencing data were obtained from the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) for ANZSOC 0811 (motor vehicle theft) or 0812 (illegal use of a motor vehicle) by jurisdiction (court type). More specifically, the following variables were collected:

  • Alleged offender data available from 2006/07 and analysed to 2019/20.
  • Criminal Courts Statistics is available and reported from calendar years 2008 to 2019. The data collected includes:
    • Finalised charges and charge outcome
    • Finalised court appearances where the principal offence or most serious unproven offence was 0811 or 0812 by:
      • jurisdiction
      • bail status at finalisation
      • age of the defendant
      • gender of the defendant
      • Aboriginal status of the defendant
    • Proven court appearances where the principal offence was 0811 or 0812 by jurisdiction and penalty

Conclusion

While motor vehicle thefts in NSW have dropped by 8 per cent since 2014, this has coincided with an increase in the number of alleged MVT offenders apprehended. In line with a higher apprehension rate, NSW Police alleged offender data showed that the proportion of theft offences resulting in court proceedings almost doubled between 2013/14 (10%) and 2019/20 (19%). The increased number of alleged offender apprehensions confirms that the increase in court appearances is not simply a result of clearing court-hearing backlogs.

Following on from this, the number of finalised charges of motor vehicle theft in all courts has also increased by 61 per cent with a larger increase seen in local courts (99 per cent). These finalised charges comprised a 63 per cent increase in illegal use charges and a 47 per cent increase in theft charges. Additionally –

  • A larger proportion of offenders are still in custody at the time of their final court appearance (up from 38 per cent in 2014 to 50 per cent in 2019).
  • In the higher court, there was a 42 per cent increase in charges resulting in a guilty finding (up from 33 to 47 per cent) while there was no change in the proportion found guilty in either the local or children’s courts.
  • In the local courts, there has been a 114 per cent increase in the number of custodial sentences handed since 2014 however the average sentence length has declined. Local courts also experienced a 94 per cent increase in custody alternatives and 48 per cent increase in non-custodial community-based orders.

In addition, there were demographic changes seen in the offenders appearing in court including:

  • A large increase in adults (59 per cent increase since 2014 compared to only 3 per cent increase in juveniles). Nonetheless, juveniles are massively overrepresented as rate per 100,000 population.
  • While males attributed to 82 per cent of all finalised court appearances, the proportion of female defendants had a larger increase in court appearances (91 per cent increase since 2014 compared to a 38 per cent increase in males).
  • This increase in females has been across both adults and juveniles (88 and 100 per cent increase, respectively). However male adults had a 55 per cent increase while there was a 12 per cent reduction in juvenile offenders.
  • Finalised appearances increased 58 per cent amongst Aboriginal people and 35 per cent for non-Aboriginal people.

This research suggests that the considerable decline in theft numbers in NSW may in part be due to increases in police apprehension rates and court proceedings across the spectrum of motor vehicle theft offending, with the introduction of specific rebirthing legislation a likely contributor to increased guilty charges in the higher courts. While adult males continue to be responsible for the majority of motor vehicle theft offending, considerable increases in female juvenile offenders and Aboriginal people appearing in court highlights the importance of a sustained focus on diversion for all young offenders.

Alleged Offender Data

Before delving into the NSW courts statistics, it is important to consider the number of alleged offenders proceeded against by NSW Police as this impacts the number of court cases. The alleged offender data is available from 2006/07 and has been analysed until 2019/20.

As shown in figures 1 and 2, the number of alleged offenders apprehended increased from 2013/14 while motor vehicle theft continued to decline over the same period. The data in table 1 shows that the rate of persons of interest who had a legal action commenced against them between 2006/07 and 2013/14 mirrored the trends in the theft rates. During this time, the proportion of incidents resulting in a legal action remained relatively stable (approximately 10 per cent). However, after this point the proportion of incidents resulting in legal action rose and had almost doubled to 19 per cent (Table 2) by the end of the decade. It is unclear from this data if this is because NSW Police is:

  • apprehending a higher proportion of alleged offenders,
  • commencing more legal actions against alleged offenders, or
  • a combination of both a higher apprehension rate and a higher proportion of offenders for whom legal action was commenced.

Demographic statistics:

The number of alleged offenders who had legal action commenced against them increased by 57 per cent between 2013/14 and 2019/20 despite the number of motor vehicle theft incidents declining by 16 per cent. Demographic statistics revealed that since 2013/14:

  • Males continue to dominate the offender numbers and increased by 54 per cent (from 1,347 in 2013/14 to 2,075 in 2019/20). Female offenders increased by 73 per cent to 343 in 2019/20 (Table 3 & 4).
  • Most offenders were adults, increasing by 68 per cent to 1,671. Juvenile offenders increased by 36 per cent to 742 (Table 5 & 6).
  • A closer look at age and gender shows that offenders were predominately adult males with 1,440 in 2019/20. However, the number of adult female offenders increased by 87 per cent (Table 7). Nonetheless, juvenile males had by far the largest offender rate (162.7 per 100,000 population) and as a rate, juvenile males are hugely overrepresented despite a percentage swing over the period (Figure 5).
Figure 1: Number of motor vehicle theft incidents and alleged offenders apprehended, 2006/07 to 2019/20
Figure 2: Rate of motor vehicle theft incidents and alleged offenders apprehended, 2006/07 to 2019/20

Table 1. Number and rate of motor vehicle theft and alleged offenders apprehended, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Financial Year Number of MV thefts recorded in Rate per 100,000 population
MV Theft Incidents Alleged Offenders MV Theft Incidents Alleged Offenders
2006/07 27,053 2,340 398.5 39.6
2007/08 25,727 2,388 373.5 39.8
2008/09 22,914 2,283 327.5 37.4
2009/10 21,811 2,212 307.3 35.7
2010/11 19,671 1,844 273.9 29.4
2011/12 19,042 1,981 262.2 31.3
2012/13 16,959 1,771 230.7 27.6
2013/14 15,050 1,545 201.9 23.8
2014/15 15,089 1,673 199.6 25.4
2015/16 13,207 1,726 172.1 25.8
2016/17 13,412 1,899 171.9 27.9
2017/18 12,960 1,952 163.5 28.2
2018/19 13,279 2,081 166.2 29.8
2019/20 12,596 2,419 157.7 34.7
Note: Alleged offenders are recorded in the year that the legal proceedings are commenced. This maybe a different year to the date of the offence.

Table 2. Proportion of incidents resulting in an offender have legal action commenced against them, 2006/07 to 2019/20

Financial Year % of incidents resulting in an offender have legal action commenced against them
2006/07 8.6%
2007/08 9.3%
2008/09 10.0%
2009/10 10.1%
2010/11 9.4%
2011/12 10.4%
2012/13 10.4%
2013/14 10.3%
2014/15 11.1%
2015/16 13.1%
2016/17 14.2%
2017/18 15.1%
2018/19 15.7%
2019/20 19.2%
Figure 3: Rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by gender, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)
Figure 4: Rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by age, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Table 3. Number and rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by gender, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Financial year Number of offenders Rate of offenders
Male Female Total Male Female Total
2006/07 2,107 233 2,340 72.3 7.8 39.6
2007/08 2,118 270 2,388 71.5 8.9 39.8
2008/09 2,065 218 2,283 68.6 7.1 37.4
2009/10 1,996 216 2,212 65.3 6.9 35.7
2010/11 1,664 180 1,844 53.8 5.7 29.4
2011/12 1,764 217 1,981 56.4 6.8 31.3
2012/13 1,578 193 1,771 49.9 6.0 27.6
2013/14 1,347 198 1,545 42.0 6.0 23.8
2014/15 1,465 205 1,673 45.1 6.1 25.4
2015/16 1,516 208 1,726 46.0 6.1 25.8
2016/17 1,648 247 1,899 49.1 7.2 27.9
2017/18 1,686 266 1,952 49.4 7.6 28.2
2018/19 1,738 342 2,081 50.5 9.7 29.8
2019/20 2,075 343 2,419 60.3 9.7 34.7

Table 4. Percentage change in the number and rate of offenders by gender, 2013/14 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Gender % change between 2003/04 and 2019/20
Number of offenders Rate of offenders
Males 54.0% 43.6%
Females 73.2% 61.7%
Total 56.6% 45.8%

Table 5. Number and rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by age, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Financial year Number of offenders Rate of offenders
Adults Juvenile Adults Juveniles
2006/07 1,241 1,097 23.9 151.6
2007/08 1,297 1,087 24.6 150.3
2008/09 1,176 1,106 21.9 153.5
2009/10 1,122 1,090 20.5 151.5
2010/11 1,004 840 18.1 116.7
2011/12 1,116 863 19.9 120
2012/13 1,137 633 20.0 88.2
2013/14 996 547 17.2 76.3
2014/15 1,112 561 19.0 78.0
2015/16 1,253 469 21.0 64.7
2016/17 1,306 590 21.5 80.3
2017/18 1,272 678 20.6 90.9
2018/19 1,526 554 24.5 73.7
2019/20 1,671 742 26.9 98.8

Table 6. Percentage change in the number and rate of offenders by age category, 2013/14 to 2019/20

Financial year % change between 2013/14 and 2019/20
Number of offenders Rate of offenders
Adults 67.8% 56.4%
Juveniles 35.6% 29.5%
Figure 5: Rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by age and gender, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Table 7. Number and rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by age and gender, 2006/07 to 2019/20 (per 100,000 population)

Financial year Number of offenders Rate of offenders
Juvenile Male Juvenile Female Adult Male Adult Female Juvenile Male Juvenile Female Adult Male Adult Female
2006/07 973 124 1,132 109 262 35.2 44.5 4.1
2007/08 948 139 1,167 130 255.5 39.5 45.1 4.8
2008/09 990 116 1,074 102 267.5 33.1 40.7 3.7
2009/10 952 138 1,044 78 257.4 39.4 38.8 2.8
2010/11 742 98 922 82 200.5 28.0 33.8 2.9
2011/12 770 93 993 123 208.3 26.6 36.0 4.3
2012/13 546 87 1,031 106 148.1 24.9 36.9 3.7
2013/14 472 75 873 123 128.1 21.5 30.8 4.2
2014/15 467 92 998 113 126.3 26.3 34.7 3.8
2015/16 400 69 1,112 139 107.4 19.6 38.0 4.6
2016/17 513 77 1,132 170 135.7 21.6 38.0 5.5
2017/18 569 109 1,115 157 148.4 30.1 36.8 5.0
2018/19 453 101 1,284 241 117.2 27.7 42.0 7.6
2019/20 629 113 1,440 230 162.7 31.0 47.1 7.3

Table 8. Percent change in the number and rate of alleged motor vehicle theft offenders by age and gender, 2013/14 to 2019/2020 (per 100,000 population)

% change between 2013/14 and 2019/20
Number of offenders Rate of offenders
Juvenile Male 33.3% 27.0%
Juvenile Female 50.7% 44.2%
Adults Male 64.9% 52.9%
Adults Female 87.0% 73.8%

Criminal Courts Statistics

* Please note: charges may not be finalised in court in the same year as the offending occurred. As a result, any changes in the level of offending may not be reflected in the court trends until a subsequent year.

A breakdown of the number of finalised charges by the specific sections of NSW law is attached in Appendix 1.

Number of Finalised Charges versus Number of Offences Recorded by Police:

Despite motor vehicle thefts remaining low from 2014 (and reducing by 8 per cent between 2014 and 2019), the number of finalised charges for motor vehicle thefts increased by 61 per cent (Table 9, 10 & 11, Figure 6). This increase occurred in all courts but was most notable in the local court where there was a 99 per cent increase (Table 10 and 11, Figure 7).

Overall, the proportion of charges where the offender was found guilty remained stable (up 1 per cent), but there were some differences between the courts (Table 12). In the higher courts, the percentage of guilty charges increased from 33 to 47 per cent between 2014 and 2019 (Table 10, Figure 8). This may be in part due to the introduction of legislation specifically organised motor vehicle theft in the state in 2006. Advice from the NSW Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) is that increasingly detailed briefs in relation to vehicle rebirthing and/or theft as well as access to a broader range of lesser charges and the fact that multiple offenders are often involved in organised vehicle crime leading to flow-on guilty pleas is likely to contribute to the increased proportion of guilty charges in the higher courts.

Overall, the increase in finalised charges was comprised of a 63 per cent increase in illegal use charges and a 47 per cent increase in theft charges (Table 13, Figure 9).

Table 9. Number of thefts and finalised charges for motor vehicle theft, 2008 to 2019.

Calendar Year Thefts Finalised Charges
2008 23,752 na
2009 21,450 2,626
2010 19,537 2,531
2011 18,647 2,220
2012 17,381 2,520
2013 14,908 2,269
2014 13,709 1,878
2015 12,863 2,181
2016 11,910 2,184
2017 12,228 2,591
2018 12,187 2,724
2019 12,560 3,025

Table 10. Number of finalised charges for motor vehicle theft and proportion guilty by court type, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar Year Finalised Children's Court Local Court Higher Courts All Courts
Finalised charges % Guilty Finalised charges % Guilty Finalised charges % Guilty Finalised charges % Guilty
2009 1,051 78.1% 1,310 67.8% 265 50.6% 2,626 70.2%
2010 1,120 79.3% 1,214 70.8% 197 42.6% 2,531 72.4%
2011 895 75.4% 1,130 64.6% 195 33.8% 2,220 66.3%
2012 934 76.4% 1,347 64.7% 239 27.6% 2,520 65.5%
2013 706 78.0% 1,322 65.7% 241 48.5% 2,269 67.7%
2014 607 75.9% 1,031 66.4% 240 32.9% 1,878 65.2%
2015 633 76.0% 1,325 63.2% 223 37.2% 2,181 64.3%
2016 578 80.4% 1,391 66.1% 215 51.6% 2,184 68.5%
2017 746 74.1% 1,608 66.9% 237 39.2% 2,591 66.4%
2018 778 68.3% 1,620 66.4% 326 51.8% 2,724 65.2%
2019 705 70.4% 2,048 67.0% 272 46.7% 3,025 66.0%

Table 11. Per cent change in the finalised charges for motor vehicle theft by court, 2014 to 2019.

% change in finalised charges between 2014 and 2019
Children’s Court 16.1%
Local Court 98.6%
Higher Courts 13.3%
All Courts 61.1%

Table 12. Per cent change in the proportion of finalised charges found guilty for motor vehicle theft by court, 2014 to 2019.

% change in proportion found guilty between 2014 and 2019
Children’s Court -7.4%
Local Court 0.8%
Higher Courts 41.8%
All Courts 1.1%

Table 13. Number of thefts and finalised charges for illegal use and theft of a motor vehicle, 2009 to 2019

Calendar year Number of finalised charges in Court
Illegal use of a motor vehicle Theft of a motor vehicle Grand Total
2009 2,290 336 2,626
2010 2,257 274 2,531
2011 1,932 288 2,220
2012 2,174 346 2,520
2013 1,957 312 2,269
2014 1,636 242 1,878
2015 1,885 296 2,181
2016 1,885 299 2,184
2017 2,236 355 2,591
2018 2,345 379 2,724
2019 2,669 356 3,025
Figure 6: Number of thefts versus finalised charges for motor vehicle theft, 2009 to 2019
Figure 7: Number of finalised charges for motor vehicle theft by court type, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 8: Proportion of finalised charges found guilty for motor vehicle theft by court type, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 9: Number of finalised charges across all courts, 2009 to 2019
Finalised Appearances:

When one or more charges relating to a single individual is finalised by a court on the one day it is counted as a finalised appearance. This is not a count of distinct individuals as a person may have more than one finalised appearance in a year.

In 2019, there were 1,009 finalised appearances representing an increase of 45 per cent since 2014 (695). Demographic findings revealed that:

  • Since 2014 there has been a 58 increase in Aboriginal defendants and a 35 per cent increase for non-Aboriginal defendants. The ratio by Aboriginal status is now almost identical (49 per cent each) (Table 14, Figure 10).
  • In 2019, eight in ten (82%) finalised appearances were for male offenders (increasing by 38 per cent). While representing a lower proportion overall, the number of female finalised appearances increased by 91 per cent (Table 15, Figure 11).
  • In 2019, 83 per cent of finalised appearances were adults (increasing 59 per cent), while juveniles in finalised appearances increased by just 3 per cent (Table 16, Figure 12).
    • Female adults dominated the finalised appearances of females (88 per cent increase). Despite a low number of juvenile female finalised appearances (under 18 years), the number doubled since 2014 (Table 17, Figure 13)
    • Adult males not only dominated the finalised appearances, they also recorded a 55 per cent increase. In contrast, males under 18 years old recorded a 12 per cent decrease (Table 17, Figure 13)
  • Local courts have historically accounted for most finalised appearances of motor vehicle theft. Since 2014, there has been a 60 per cent increase in the local court to 781 appearances in 2019 (Table 18, Figure 14)
  • In 2019, the majority of offenders were on bail at the finalised appearance (304 offenders), an increase of 30 per cent since 2014. This was followed by 260 offenders with bail refused (102 per cent increase from 2014). A slight increase was seen in offenders with bail dispensed (3 per cent to 205) and a 23 per cent decrease in warrant executed- police custody.
  • The proportion of individuals in custody (i.e. bail refused, in custody for prior offence, warranted executed-police custody) at their final court appearance has increased from 38 per cent in 2014 to 50 per cent in 2019.
  • The increase in the proportion of offenders in custody was most noticeable in the local court (from 43 per cent in 2014 to 56 per cent in 2019).

Demographic statistics
Figure 10: Number of finalised appearances by Aboriginal status, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 11: Number of finalised appearances by gender, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 12: Number of finalised appearances by age category, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 13: Number of finalised appearances by age category and gender, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 14: Number of finalised appearances by court, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 15: Number of finalised appearances by bail status, 2009 to 2019.

Table 14. Number of finalised appearances by Aboriginal status, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar Year Aboriginal defendant Non-Aboriginal defendant Unknown Total
2009 522 624 19 1,165
2010 462 563 10 1,035
2011 408 473 12 893
2012 440 509 9 958
2013 377 437 15 829
2014 314 371 10 695
2015 384 430 6 820
2016 348 458 19 825
2017 407 469 9 885
2018 436 477 15 928
2019 497 499 13 1,009

Table 15. Number of finalised appearances by gender, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year Female Male Total
2009 130 1,035 1,165
2010 127 908 1,035
2011 100 793 893
2012 120 838 958
2013 100 729 829
2014 95 600 695
2015 124 696 820
2016 144 681 825
2017 156 729 885
2018 142 786 928
2019 181 828 1,009

Table 16. Number of finalised appearances by age category, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year Adult Missing / unknown Under 18 Total
2009 789 1 375 1,165
2010 678 0 357 1,035
2011 604 1 288 893
2012 673 3 282 958
2013 618 0 211 829
2014 524 2 169 695
2015 643 0 177 820
2016 666 1 158 825
2017 695 0 190 885
2018 727 2 199 928
2019 834 1 174 1,009

Table 17. Number of finalised appearances by age category and gender, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar Year Female - Adult Female - Under 18 Male - Adult Male - Under 18
2009 96 34 693 341
2010 75 52 603 305
2011 69 30 535 258
2012 73 46 600 236
2013 77 23 541 188
2014 72 23 452 146
2015 87 37 556 140
2016 111 33 555 125
2017 123 33 572 157
2018 110 32 617 167
2019 135 46 699 128

Table 18. Number of finalised appearances by court, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year Children's Court Local Court Higher Court Total
2009 454 692 19 1,165
2010 420 589 26 1,035
2011 342 529 22 893
2012 324 617 17 958
2013 247 554 28 829
2014 194 487 14 695
2015 225 581 14 820
2016 187 619 19 825
2017 216 644 25 885
2018 236 661 31 928
2019 209 781 19 1,009

Table 19. Number of finalised appearances by bail status, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year Bail dispensed with Bail refused In custody for a prioroffence On bail Warrant executed - Policecustody
2009 305 352 81 427 0
2010 287 219 108 400 21
2011 232 173 88 388 12
2012 240 228 95 374 21
2013 232 184 120 283 10
2014 200 129 110 234 22
2015 210 212 125 249 24
2016 218 229 115 243 20
2017 238 199 142 274 32
2018 208 271 185 246 18
2019 205 260 223 304 17

Table 20. Number of finalised appearances by custody status, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year In Custody Not in Custody
2009 433 732
2010 348 687
2011 273 620
2012 344 614
2013 314 515
2014 261 434
2015 361 459
2016 364 461
2017 373 512
2018 474 454
2019 500 509
Figure 16: Number of finalised appearances by custody status, 2009 to 2019.
Most serious penalty handed down:

(where theft or illegal use was the most serious offence that received the most serious penalty)

  • Since 2014, there was a 114 per cent increase in the number of custodial sentences handed in the local courts with little change seen in the higher courts (Table 21 & 23).
  • The average sentence length for theft of a motor vehicle in the local courts has declined from 10.2 months in 2014 to 7.7 months in 2019 but remained similar for illegal use of a motor vehicle (Table 21).
  • In the local courts, there was a 94 per cent increase in custody alternatives and a 48 per cent increase in non-custodial community-based orders. In both cases, the increase was mainly seen in the illegal use of a motor vehicle (Table 22).

Table 21. Number of custodial sentences (major penalty) by offence type in the local courts, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year Theft of a motor vehicle Illegal use of a motorvehicle
Custody - No Average sentence length(non-parole period, months) Custody - No Average sentence length(non-parole period, months)
2009 25 8.9 173 6.7
2010 21 7.9 168 6.7
2011 21 9.3 122 5.8
2012 35 8.9 154 6.2
2013 23 9.2 160 6.4
2014 19 10.2 127 6.8
2015 36 8.3 169 6.5
2016 32 7.9 186 6.1
2017 32 7.0 204 6.0
2018 41 6.4 244 5.6
2019 46 7.7 266 6.3

Table 22. Number of custody alternatives and non-custody community based orders by offence type in the local courts, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar year Custody Alternatives Non-custodial communitybased orders
Theft of a motor vehicle Illegal use of a motorvehicle Total Theft of a motor vehicle Illegal use of a motorvehicle Total
2009 10 66 76 26 159 185
2010 13 42 55 20 155 175
2011 5 25 30 17 146 163
2012 5 48 53 27 161 188
2013 4 36 40 9 143 152
2014 11 36 47 22 116 138
2015 10 36 46 13 128 141
2016 14 48 62 13 149 162
2017 16 45 61 21 146 167
2018 17 38 55 27 133 160
2019 15 76 91 24 180 204

Table 23. Number of custodial sentences (major penalty) by offence type in the higher courts, 2009 to 2019.

Calendar Year Theft of a motor vehicle Illegal use of a motorvehicle
Custody Average sentence length(non-parole period, months) Custody Average sentence length(non-parole period, months)
2009 13 31.8 2 19.0
2010 18 21.3 3 6.3
2011 9 30.2 2 9.5
2012 7 18.7 2 9.0
2013 22 21.2 2 16.5
2014 9 25.7 0 -
2015 4 23.8 5 12.0
2016 9 18.8 4 20.3
2017 15 25.8 2 9.5
2018 14 20.9 4 13.3
2019 11 26.3 2 15.5
Figure 17: Number of proven court appearances with a custodial penalty, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 18: Average custodial sentence length (months) in the local courts, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 19: Number of proven court appearances with a custodial alternative, 2009 to 2019.
Figure 20: Local court - Number of proven court appearances with a non-custodial community based order, 2009 to 2019.

BOCSAR - Definitions

Aboriginality

Whether a defendant has ever identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin. The status is determined by self-identification. This data is sourced from the latest version of BOCSAR's Reoffending Database (ROD) and applied to all years. ROD contains "Aboriginality ever recorded" which is set to 'Aboriginal' for any person who had identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin in their contact with Police in relation to any charges finalised since 1994. Note that separate figures are not available for Aboriginal defendants and Torres Strait Islander defendants.

Incident

The default counting unit for BOCSAR's crime data is recorded criminal incidents rather than recorded offences (except for murder and manslaughter where the counting units are victims).

A criminal incident is defined as an activity detected by or reported to police which:

  • involved the same offender(s);
  • involved the same victim(s);
  • occurred at the one location;
  • occurred during one uninterrupted period of time;
  • falls into one offence category; and
  • falls into one incident type (for example, 'actual', 'attempted', 'conspiracy').

One incident may involve two offenders assaulting the same victim. This would be recorded as one assault incident. Alternatively, suppose a man reports to police that he found his neighbour in the process of damaging his car and, when confronted, the neighbour assaulted him. For such an event, two criminal incidents are recorded because two distinct offence types are involved (malicious damage to property and assault) even though the same parties were involved at the same time and in the same place.

Offenders

Persons of interest who have a legal action commenced against them by the NSW Police Force. Legal actions can include: referral to court, caution, youth justice conference, criminal infringement notice, other infringement notice and/or cannabis or other drug caution. Persons of interest issued warnings by the NSW Police Force are excluded from the Crime Mapping Tool because the recording of warnings changed in late 2008 such that there is no continuity in the warnings series.

Motor Vehicle Theft

Taking of another person's motor vehicle illegally and without permission with the intent of temporarily or permanently depriving the owner or possessor of the use of the motor vehicle (ANZSOC, 2011). Includes the police incident category of 'stolen vehicle/vessel'.

Charges

A charge refers to an instance of a particular type of offence being charged against a defendant. A finalised charge is one which has been fully determined by the court and for which no further court proceedings are required. Charges: A charge refers to an instance of a particular type of offence being charged against a defendant. A finalised charge is one which has been fully determined by the court and for which no further court proceedings are required. Before looking at the NSW courts statistics it is important to consider the police apprehension statistics as this impacts the number of cases proceeding through the courts.

Finalised appearances

A person charged refers to a group of one or more charges, against a single individual, which are finalised by the court on a single day. Such a group of finalised charges against a single individual is also referred to as a finalised court appearance. (A company charged with an offence is treated as a person.)

This report does not distinguish ‘distinct’ persons within the counting period. If a person is a defendant in more than one court appearance during the counting period, such a person will be counted more than once in the report.

Bail status at finalisation

Refers to the bail status of the defendant at their final court appearance. Those remanded in custody are separated into ‘bail refused’, ‘in custody for a prior offence’ or ‘Warrant executed – Police custody’. Corrective Services NSW and Juvenile Justice NSW custody data have been merged with court data to identify those persons who were ‘bail refused’, ‘in custody for a prior offence’ or ‘Warrant executed – Police custody’. Those not in these groups were ‘on bail’ or ‘bail dispensed with’.

In 2016 the bail category of ‘Warrant executed – Police custody’ was implemented. These are persons in Police custody prior to finalisation after having been arrested on a warrant. Generally, these persons are in police custody for less than 24 hours before their court matter is finalised. Previously these persons were included in the ‘Bail refused’ category. This change affected Local and Children’s Court data only as any instance of an arrest warrant being executed in the District or Supreme courts is followed by a bail determination prior to the finalising appearance. This change has been made to BOCSAR's criminal court data back to 2010. Prior to 2010, the ‘Bail refused’ data includes both persons refused bail by the court and persons in Police custody prior to finalisation after having been arrested on a warrant. The ‘Bail refused’ data in these tables is not directly comparable with ‘Bail refused’ data released in previous years.

Custodial alternatives

Include Intensive Correction Orders, home detention and suspended sentences (pre-24 September 2018) and periodic detention (pre-October 2010). Intensive correction order (ICO): ICOs are served in the community for a period of up to two years. ICOs were reformed and expanded on 24 September 2018, replacing home detention and suspended sentences. An ICO is the most serious sentence that an offender can serve in the community. Supervision is mandatory and the court must impose at least one of the following conditions: home detention, community service work (up to 750 hours), GPS electronic monitoring, curfew, program treatment, alcohol/drug abstention, non-association or place restriction.

Non-custodial community based orders

Include Community Correction Orders, Conditional Release Orders with conviction, Children's Community Service Orders, juvenile probation orders, adult Community Service Orders (pre-24 September 2018) and good behaviour bonds (pre-24 September 2018).

Appendix

Number of finalised charges involving ANZSOC 0811 (Motor vehicle theft) or 8012 (Illegal use of a Motor vehicle) by lawpart. (Across all courts)

Lawpart and description 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
1157 Take conveyance (motorvehicle) without consent - - 1 - - - - - - - -
3018 Drive/use motorvehicle without consent of owner - - - - - 1 - - 1 - -
44558 Steal motorvehicle-T1 23 4 4 1 3 1 - - 1 1 1
44559 Assault with intentto take/drive motor vehicle-T1 11 14 8 10 10 8 14 5 11 18 5
44560 Unlawfully take/drivemotor vehicle with person in/on it-T1 6 2 10 9 3 10 4 12 7 6 7
44561 Agg assault w/i totake/drive m/v-in company-T1 5 22 10 10 3 15 10 5 4 15 12
44562 Agg assault w/i totake/drive m/v-armed with weapon-T1 8 8 5 5 12 6 10 1 15 9 12
44563 Agg assault w/i totake/drive m/v-inflict ABH-T1 2 4 8 6 5 5 7 2 4 8 7
44564 Agg take/drive m/vwith person in/on it-in company-T1 6 12 11 9 10 2 15 5 7 7 11
44565 Agg take/drive m/vwith person in/on it-armed with weapon-T1 10 3 4 2 7 6 2 10 10 6 12
44566 Agg take/drive m/vwith person in/on it-inflict ABH-T1 3 - 2 3 3 1 4 - 7 5 3
58180 Use motor vehicle,trailer without owner's consent 3 1 3 4 2 - - - - - -
59794 Steal motor vehicle-T1 254 193 215 276 251 184 228 254 278 298 279
59796 Knowingly facilitateorganised car rebirthing activity-SI 5 5 8 9 5 1 2 3 9 5 6
676 Take & driveconveyance w/o consent of owner-T2 1,167 1,215 1,046 1,160 1,139 921 1,009 1,127 1,120 1,172 1,301
678 Be carried inconveyance taken w/o consent of owner-T2 815 770 641 714 586 518 559 471 688 704 779
679 Drive conveyance takenw/o consent of owner-T2 305 271 241 296 229 193 303 282 421 468 583
680 Steal motor car / motorvehicle-T1 3 7 3 6 - 3 - 2 2 1 1
79252 Use motor vehicle ortrailer without consent of owner - - - - 1 3 14 5 6 1 6
Grand Total 2,626 2,531 2,220 2,520 2,269 1,878 2,181 2,184 2,591 2,724 3,025
Source: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research- Reference: sr20-19622.

Higher Court Penalties

Principal offence* Penalty 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Theft of a motor vehicle Custody - No 13 18 9 7 22 9 4 9 15 14 11
Theft of a motor vehicle Custody - Average sentencelength (in months NPP) 31.8 21.3 30.2 18.7 21.2 25.7 23.8 18.8 25.8 20.9 26.3
Theft of a motor vehicle Custodial alternatives 1 3 2 4 2 1 1 1 0 3 3
Theft of a motor vehicle Non-custodial communitybased orders 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Fine - No 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Fine - Average fine (in $) na na na na na na na na na na na
Theft of a motor vehicle Conviction only 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Conditional release withoutconviction 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle No conviction recorded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custody - No 2 3 2 2 2 0 5 4 2 4 2
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custody - Average sentencelength (in months NPP) 19 6.3 9.5 9 16.5 na 12 20.3 9.5 13.3 15.5
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custodial alternatives 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 2 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Non-custodial communitybased orders 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Fine - No 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Fine - Average fine (in $) na na na na na na na na na na na
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Conviction only 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Conditional release withoutconviction 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle No conviction recorded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
*Where a person has been found guilty of more than one offence, the offence which received the most serious penalty is the principal offence.
Source: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research- Reference: sr20-19622.

Local Court Penalties

Principal offence* Penalty 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Theft of a motor vehicle Custody - No 25 21 21 35 23 19 36 32 32 41 46
Theft of a motor vehicle Custody - Average sentencelength (in months NPP) 8.9 7.9 9.3 8.9 9.2 10.2 8.3 7.9 7 6.4 7.7
Theft of a motor vehicle Custodial alternatives 10 13 5 5 4 11 10 14 16 17 15
Theft of a motor vehicle Non-custodial communitybased orders 26 20 17 27 9 22 13 13 21 27 24
Theft of a motor vehicle Fine - No 2 2 2 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Fine - Average fine (in $) 1600 800 200 na 1000 100 4000 500 na 1000 na
Theft of a motor vehicle Conviction only 1 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Conditional release withoutconviction 1 0 2 0 2 4 1 0 3 1 1
Theft of a motor vehicle No conviction recorded 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custody - No 173 168 122 154 160 127 169 186 204 244 266
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custody - Average sentencelength (in months NPP) 6.7 6.7 5.8 6.2 6.4 6.8 6.5 6.1 6 5.6 6.3
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custodial alternatives 66 42 25 48 36 36 36 48 45 38 76
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Non-custodial communitybased orders 159 155 146 161 143 116 128 149 146 133 180
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Fine - No 31 32 34 25 28 18 22 39 34 20 15
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Fine - Average fine (in $) 589 681 671 792 546 708 657 821 849 859 870
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Conviction only 5 3 2 4 3 7 3 6 6 1 4
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Conditional release withoutconviction 17 20 16 15 17 11 9 12 12 13 19
Illegal use of a motorvehicle No conviction recorded 4 7 2 3 2 0 6 1 4 1 1
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Other 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
*Where a person has been found guilty of more than one offence, the offence which received the most serious penalty is the principal offence.
Source: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research- Reference: sr20-19622.

Children’s Court Penalties

Principal offence* Penalty 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
Theft of a motor vehicle Custody - No 7 13 7 10 7 4 11 3 5 7 7
Theft of a motor vehicle Custody - Average sentencelength (in months NPP) 6.1 7.2 4.4 5.8 4.7 5.8 4.5 5.7 3.6 4.6 5.3
Theft of a motor vehicle Custodial alternatives 5 5 1 1 1 0 2 2 0 1 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Non-custodial communitybased orders 8 18 9 21 10 5 8 6 6 8 11
Theft of a motor vehicle Fine - No 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Fine - Average fine (in $) na na na 150 na na na na na na na
Theft of a motor vehicle Conviction only 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Conditional release withoutconviction 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle No conviction recorded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Theft of a motor vehicle Other 2 2 4 0 1 1 1 2 0 3 4
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custody - No 51 45 29 31 24 19 24 17 18 25 16
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custody - Average sentencelength (in months NPP) 4 4.2 3.3 3.7 3.9 2.6 4 4.6 3.8 3.4 4.3
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Custodial alternatives 16 14 12 10 6 6 2 6 2 6 5
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Non-custodial communitybased orders 180 180 128 127 108 83 96 72 93 80 76
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Fine - No 5 5 4 8 6 4 7 3 3 2 2
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Fine - Average fine (in $) 400 230 600 231 248 375 209 417 633 500 400
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Conviction only 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Conditional release withoutconviction 4 11 6 4 7 4 10 6 9 9 11
Illegal use of a motorvehicle No conviction recorded 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Illegal use of a motorvehicle Other 76 79 70 61 47 32 29 44 43 47 39
*Where a person has been found guilty of more than one offence, the offence which received the most serious penalty is the principal offence.
Source: NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research- Reference: sr20-19622.

The National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC) acknowledges all police services, registration authorities, participating insurers, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, Glass’s Information Services and Insurance Australia Group for the supply of the data on which this report is compiled. Theft incident data may be subject to later revision by the data providers. This work is copyright. Material may be reproduced for personal, non-commercial use or for use within your organisation with attribution to the NMVTRC (www.carsafe.com.au). © 2021 NMVTRC. All rights reserved.

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