Suicide and self-harm among people in contact with the justice system

The following summary is based on data released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) from the National Suicide and Self-Harm Monitoring System (the System): Suicide and self-harm among people in contact with the justice system.

The System was established as part of the national effort to address suicide and self-harm in Australia by improving the quality, accessibility and timeliness of data on deaths by suicide and on self-harming and suicidal behaviours.

For guidance on reporting on suicide and self-harm data, please refer to the Mindframe quick reference guide.

What is included in the release?

The data released by AIHW brings together data from multiple sources to explore:

• Suicide among adults in custody (National Deaths in Custody Program). This includes deaths in prison custody, police custody and custody-related operations.
• Self-harm among adults in prison (National Prisoner Health Data Collection 2022)
• Psychosocial and mental and behavioural risk factors among people who died by suicide and had legal system contact (National Mortality Database).

Technical notes provide more detailed information about the release, including data sources, codes and classifications, and statistical methods.

What are the key findings?

The number of suicide deaths in custody has been steadily decreasing since 2004-2005. The table below summarises key findings for age, First Nations people and men in 2012-2017, and over time.

*Note: 2017-22 proportions are subject to change and should be interpreted with caution. Data do not include people aged under 18 years.

• Overall, suicide in prison custody was higher among people awaiting trial or sentencing compared to those who were sentenced. In 2017-22, 22% of deaths amongst unsentenced people who died in custody were due to suicide, compared to 7% of those sentenced.

• Overall, substance-related mental health and behavioural disorders were more common among those who died by suicide and had contact with the legal system.
• Between 2017 and 2022, mood disorders (38%) were most common mental health conditions among people with legal system contact, followed by alcohol disorders (25%), anxiety disorders (19%) and stimulant disorders (14%).
• A history of self-harm was more commonly reported by women entering prison (42%) compared to men (17%).
• A history of self-harm was more common people aged 18-24 (29%) and 25-34 (28%) and generally decreased with age.
• Recent thoughts of self-harm were more commonly reported by women entering prison (30%) compared to men (13%).

What does this mean for policy and practice?

People who are, or have previously been, in contact with the criminal justice system are identified as a priority population for suicide prevention in the National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement.

The data released by AIHW helps to improve understanding of suicide and self-harm in this population and provides insight into where suicide prevention efforts can be focussed, including:

• Developing interventions that target groups disproportionally impacted by suicide in contact with the criminal justice system, such as men, younger adults and First Nations people.
• Building supports for people in contact with legal services, awaiting trial, sentencing or going through other stressful transition points.
• Ensuring people in contact with the justice system have adequate access to support for mental health concerns, alcohol and other drug concerns and suicidal distress.
• Developing pathways for help-seeking and offering, including improving suicide literacy amongst other inmates.
• Addressing social determinants of justice such as, childhood maltreatment, experiences of violence and trauma, systemic racism and discrimination and poverty.¹
• Embedding suicide prevention interventions at points of contact within legal, court, and prison systems and services.