FEMALE CRIMINALS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVII, Issue 17528, 11 July 1917, Page 4

FEMALE CRIMINALS.

SOME FACTS AND FIGURES

INCREASE OF CRIME DUE TO WAR CONDITIONS.

The Hon J. A. Hanan, Minister for Justice, has been interesting himself lately in the question of female crime. Recently the Minister, who has been making some important, investigations in the matte/, gave the following results. For the year ending December 31 last there were in the gaols 808 male prisoners and 82 females. "Is the number of female prisoners sentenced to imprisonment increasing?" tho Minister was asked. The Minister answered in the affirmative In the year 1912, ho said, there were 58; in 1913, 54; in 1914, 78; in 1915, 82; and in 1916, 82. Asked for what offence the majority of the females wore imprisoned, Mr Hanan stated that in 1916 the principal .offences were as follow:—lncorrigible rogue, 19; rogue and vagabond, 14; idle and disorderly, 12; conducting or assisting houses of ill-fame, 10; soliciting prostitution, 4; theft, 4; procuring abortion,' 4; other offences, 15. The first five cases, he said, came much within the one category.

'"What is the average age of prisoners?" was the next question addressed to tho Minister, who stated that it was about forty, slightly under half, namely, forty of the prisoners be-' ing under thirty-seven years of age and the other forty-two over thirtynine. Referring to the Addington.. prison, which was opened on April 17, 1913, Mr Hanan stated, that female prisoners were drafted to Addington from all tho other prisons. . A large proportion of the increase was thought to be due to war conditions bringing about an.increase in the ■number, of disreputable women in tho large centres and in. the neighbourhood of the camps. Tn all the centres drastic police action had been taken during the past two years to round up and segregate this class. Asked as to the average standard of education reached by female prisoners, Mr Hanan said the only statistics available showed that during 1910 there wore 244 women received into prison. Of these nons> were of superior education—233 could read arid write; two could read only, and nine were unable to read. Experience showed that, speaking generally, women of the lowest'.class formed the bulk of the female prison population. " Do used women criminals outnumber the men?" was tho next question. "The statistics for 1916," replied the Minister, "show that women of sixty years and over constituted 16.24 per cent of the female prison population. On the malo side the proportion of men over sixty was 18.31 per cent. If the ages-were taken in each case as being' fifty years of age and over it is found that the old men still predominate on a percentage basis."