The NSW Police Force acknowledges the recent figures released by the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research.
In most categories – including robbery, break and enter, stealing, and fraud – crime is reported as being either stable or down.
Some offences, such as drug and weapon offences, sexual offences, and domestic-violence assaults have increased; this can largely be attributed to proactive policing efforts and increased reporting.
Of particular note, reports of murder have significantly increased compared to statistics from 2018, with a large amount of these deaths considered to be domestic-violence related; however, when comparing murder rates over the past 10 years, this year’s figure is below average.
This discrepancy is due to murder rates in 2018 being uncharacteristically low, causing this year’s figure to appear to considerably increase.
NSW Police Force Corporate Spokesperson for Domestic and Family Violence, Assistant Commissioner Mark Jones, said that police will continue to work hard to combat domestic violence, and even one murder was one too many.
“Domestic and family violence is one of the most challenging crimes facing police and we are focusing our resources to target this specific area,” Assistant Commissioner Jones said.
“With this report, we have noted that domestic violence murder matters involving non-intimate relationships have increased more so than those in intimate relationships. These relationships include relatives, carers, and those who reside together.
“The NSW Police Force has introduced a number of initiatives in the fight against domestic violence,” he said.
These include:
– Domestic Violence Evidence in Chief (DVEC) launched in June 2015 which has assisted in increasing convictions for DV offences.
– Domestic Violence Safety Assessment Tool (DVSAT) and Safety Action Meetings (SAMS) launched state-wide in July 2015 and which involves the automatic referral by police of victims to support services.
– A Perpetrator Accountability Model with a three- tiered approach focusing on proactive policing measures:
1. Domestic Violence High Risk Offenders Teams (DV HROT) which commenced their roll out in 2016 and who are now operating in all police regions targeting the most serious and prolific offenders.
2. The Domestic Violence Suspect Target Management Plan (DVSTMP) which was launched state-wide in February 2016 and which involves Police Commands targeting serious repeat offenders.
3. The Apprehended Domestic Violence Order Compliance initiative which was launched state-wide in May 2017 and whose focus is on improving compliance with ADVO’s through proactive deterrence.
– The National Domestic Violence Order Scheme launched nationwide in November 2017.
– The referral of male defendants to the Men’s Telephone Counselling Referral Service which started in December 2018.
While police will continue to concentrate heavily on reducing domestic violence, Assistant Commissioner Jones has emphasised the need for a whole-of-community approach to break the cycle of domestic violence.
“In recent years, police have launched several public awareness and information campaigns; including You make the call – we will make it stop, No innocent bystanders, Not your fault, and Accountability starts with you” said Assistant Commissioner Jones.
“In the majority of these domestic-related murders reported over the past 12 months, there have been no previous domestic violence offences reported prior to the deaths”.
“These initiatives only work with a steady supply of information from the community. We all have a responsibility to report any suspected domestic violence incidents,” Assistant Commissioner Jones said.
