Women on remand in Victorian jails costing government $111k a year
NEARLY half of all female inmates in Victoria are currently on remand, with many to never be convicted of their alleged crimes, costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
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NEARLY half of all female inmates in Victoria are on remand, with many never to be convicted of their alleged crimes, costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
Corrections Victoria confirmed to the Herald Sun that 46 per cent of all female inmates were behind bars while on remand, each costing the government $110,960 a year.
“As at 30 April 2018, remandees made up 45.7 per cent of Victoria’s female prisoner population, amounting to 244 of the 534 women in the system,” a Corrections Victoria spokeswoman said.
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The proportion of unsentenced female inmates has increased substantially recently, with the number remaining below 30 per cent until 2015.
The surge in numbers has coincided with an overall growth of the women’s prison population, which has roughly doubled over the past decade.
Stricter bail laws, an increase in police numbers and the prevalence of the drug, ice, are all believed to have contributed to the rise.
Laws introduced in 2016 made it harder for those charged with serious offences to obtain bail and broadened the categories of offenders who have to appeal for bail.
The number of inmates on remand in the male prison system has also increased substantially in recent years, and sits at 34 per cent of the prison population.
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