Children as Victims

Since 1989 the Australian Institute of Criminology has been examining the characteristics of all homicide incidents reported to or coming to the attention of police, and of the victims and offenders involved in these incidents. An important objective of this ongoing study, known as the Homicide Monitoring Program, is to provide data which will, over time, permit the detection of patterns and trends in Australian homicide. Such information not only provides for better public understanding about homicide risk, but can also serve as the foundation for the rational formulation of public policy in such areas as family law, firearms and, importantly, child protection. Australia’s overall homicide rate is around 2 per 100 000, and this figure has remained fairly stable over the past twenty years. However, aggregate figures mask large differential risks between identifiable groups. For example, information relating to the age of homicide victims in Australia reveals a phenomenon found in a great many countries, namely the enhanced risk for children under the...