The Indigenous people, mental health, cognitive disability and the criminal justice system brief from the Indigenous Justice Clearinghouse examines current research into the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians with mental health issues and cognitive disabilities in the Australian criminal justice systems. The brief suggests that Indigenous people with cognitive disability are more likely to come to the attention of police, more likely to be charged and imprisoned, and less likely to be granted parole. The brief also notes that Indigenous young people, despite constituting a minority of the Australian population, represent more than half of the juvenile population in custody, with two to three times the rate of mental or cognitive disability as non-Indigenous young people in custody. The brief suggests a dire need for holistic, targeted programs with ongoing evaluation for Indigenous people in contact with the criminal justice system. The brief concludes with a recommendation for five principles to underpin policy and program reform on this issue. Read the brief.
