Justice Action

Intellectual disability & the criminal justice system

Beyond Bars - Fact Sheet 10
People with an intellectual disability are being drawn into the criminal justice system at an alarming rate. People with intellectual disability make up between 1 and 3% of the general population, but represent between 9 and 13% of the NSW prison population. As many as 23% of people appearing before NSW Local Courts on criminal charges may have a mild intellectual disability or borderline intellectual disability.

Valuable NSW Research Publications and Resources

For Further Information, contact: HYPERLINK "mailto: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it "John Murray

The following is a listing of resources that are very well researched and go beyond the hype given in most publications dealing with youth crime and violence. Whilst they may not be applicable in your geographic location they could probably give a better representation of the realities than most documentation put out by your local law enforcement bodies.