Collecting Data on Aboriginal People in the Criminal Justice System: Methods and Challenges

The goal of the new report Collecting Data on Aboriginal People in the Criminal Justice System: Methods and Challenges is to assess the status of national data on Aboriginal people who come into contact with the criminal justice system as either alleged perpetrators or victims of crime. Despite the recognized need for such data, there are several gaps in this information.

For example, according to a subset of police departments that report detailed data to Statistics Canada, there was no information about the Aboriginal or non-Aboriginal status for almost half of the charged or chargeable suspects in 2003.

Aboriginal people comprise 3% of Canada's population, yet they account for approximately 20% of people serving a sentence in custody.

Many studies, commissions of enquiry and public policy statements have referred to the need for data on Aboriginal people in the justice system so that trends can be monitored, and sound information can be provided to those who develop and evaluate policy and programs that affect Aboriginal people.

This report describes the challenges faced by the various justice sectors in collecting and reporting the Aboriginal identity of alleged offenders and victims to Statistics Canada. It also provides insight into how these challenges can affect the quality of the information.

Finally, the report proposes various strategies that would improve coverage and data quality.

The report briefly describes efforts in other parts of the world, like Australia and New Zealand, to improve information on their indigenous populations.

Definitions, data sources and methods: survey numbers, including related surveys, 3302, 3306, 3315, 3323, 3325, 4504 and 5035.

The report Collecting Data on Aboriginal People in the Criminal Justice System: Methods and Challenges (85-564-XIE, free) is now available. From the Our products and services page, under Browse our Internet publications, choose Free, then Justice.

For more information, or to enquire about the concepts, methods, or data quality of this release, contact Information and Client Services (1-800-387-2231; 613-951-9023), Canadian Centre for Justice Statistics.