NCJ Number
91214
Date Published
1983
Length
62 pages
Annotation
These data tables and narrative descriptions compare criminal justice statistics in Scotland with those in England and Wales and explain the major methodological and definitional differences which influence the comparisons.
Abstract
Information on recorded crime focuses on total numbers, annual percentage increases, and crime rates per capita between 1969 and 1980. Additional data tables cover police positions, clearance rates, the major sentences and dispositions, and inmate populations. Major findings are that Scotland has a higher rate of recorded crime per capita than England and Wales, but that much of this results from the different counting methods used in Scotland. The ranking of different offense categories is similar, but within this order the fastest growing categories differ between the countries. The only category for which the rate is consistently higher in England and Wales is violence against the person. Scotland has more police officers per capita than England and Wales, but the increase in police staffing has been greatly outpaced by the increase in recorded crime. Scotland has consistently had a lower clearance rate than England and Wales. The countries have similar tendencies to use fines and currently have similar rates of incarceration per capita. Appendixes present data tables, figures, and lists of offense classifications.