A report released last week by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), found that almost a fifth of police proceedings against people under the age of 18 in 2023 were for those in the 10 to 13 age group.

This equates to 4,500 legal proceedings against young people below the age of 14.

Other confronting statistics include that more than half the children facing court in this age cohort had been a victim of violence and about a third had accessed homelessness services. Aboriginal children and children living in regional and remote NSW are disproportionately affected.

The rate of legal proceedings against young people under 14 years of age was more than three times as high in regional/remote/very remote areas compared with major cities (1171.6 per 100,000 population vs 371.2 per 100,000 population).

The most common offences were theft, followed by violence, disorderly conduct (mostly trespass) and offences against justice procedures such as breach of bail. 

Gerard Lawson is based at Bourke and holds the role of Superintendent - District Commander of the Central North Police District. He said the report represents the reality of the situation.

Superintendent Lawson has a huge area in his command and can speak from experience on the report findings, saying the majority of children between 10 and 13 who were subject to police proceedings in his region were Indigenous.

“I cover 24 per cent of state, so it’s a large area, and I am involved in a range of juvenile offences” he said.

“This age group has been a high demographic in the past but at the moment we are experiencing a hiatus.

“This is because there have been interventions which include offenders being in custody and unable to mix within their cohort.”

A look at BOSCAR statistics affirms Superintendent Lawson’s observations.

Over the two years from April 2022 to March 2024, shires including Bourke, Brewarrina, Cobar, Bogan, Lachlan, Coonamble, Warren, Warrumbungle, Gilgandra and Walgett were listed as being stable or showing no change in regard to theft offences.

Narromine Shire is the exception, showing the worst increase in theft offences in the state, up 41.2 per cent.

The BOCSAR report has reignited discussions about the minimum age of criminal responsibility. In NSW, the minimum age is 10 years, meaning that a child aged under 10 years cannot be found guilty of a criminal offence.

In recent years there have been discussions across Australia about raising the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 12 or 14 years. Victoria, the ACT, and the Northern Territory have each made commitments to do this.

"While the number of young people offending at a very young age is small, these children have overwhelmingly experienced significant childhood trauma and disadvantage prior to their contact with the justice system,” Executive Director of the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, Jackie Fitzgerald, said. 

Key findings of the report state illustrate the adverse childhood experiences of young people aged 10 to 13 years with a court appearance. Of these, 82 per cent had been identified in a child protection report as at risk of significant harm (ROSH) while 60 per cent had received 10 or more ROSH reports.

Displacement from home was also a contributing factor. The report found one in four children had been in Out of Home Care and more than a third had accessed specialist homelessness services. Of the child offenders, 56 per cent had been recorded by NSW Police as victim of violence and 66 per cent had a parent who had appeared in court, with 40 per cent having had a parent who had been in custody.

“The challenge is to identify an appropriate response to their offending behaviours that can keep both the child and the community safe, while attempting to address the longer-term complex needs of these young people and prevent future offending," Ms Fitzgerald said.