❓ Hon. Robyn McSweeney questions the discrepancy in homicide statistics reported in the March 2004 and 2005 quarterly reports. The Minister explains that figures are preliminary and subject to revision due to ongoing investigations and data entry timing.
AnsweredQoN 1765Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to the ‘Western Australia Reported Offence and Clearance Statistics’ for the March 2004 quarter and the March 2005 quarter, and ask -
Can the Minister please provide a detailed response as to why and/or how the March 2004 quarterly report (page 15), states that the number of homicides for the nine months ending March 2004 was 62, whereas the March 2005 quarterly report (page 15) states that for the nine months ending March 2004, the number of homicides was 82 (an increase of 20)?
Can the Minister please provide a detailed response as to why and/or how the March 2004 quarterly report (page 15), states that the number of homicides for the nine months ending March 2004 was 62, whereas the March 2005 quarterly report (page 15) states that for the nine months ending March 2004, the number of homicides was 82 (an increase of 20)?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
18 May 2005
Responded by
Minister for Fisheries representing the Minister for Police and Emergency Services
Response time
13 days
As provided in Explanatory Note 1 on page three of the publication, the quarterly crime statistics are "preliminary and subject to revision". This is due to the following: · the classification of an offence is subject to the final outcome of the investigation, including the completion of coronial inquiries, for example, an offence may originally be classified and entered into the recording system as an assault, but upon completion of the investigation be re-classified to a murder; · the quarterly figures provided reflect those offences recorded in the system at the time the data were extracted and subsequently reported. On occasion, officers enter incident details into the recording system after the data has been extracted for a given period. The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
· the classification of an offence is subject to the final outcome of the investigation, including the completion of coronial inquiries, for example, an offence may originally be classified and entered into the recording system as an assault, but upon completion of the investigation be re-classified to a murder; · the quarterly figures provided reflect those offences recorded in the system at the time the data were extracted and subsequently reported. On occasion, officers enter incident details into the recording system after the data has been extracted for a given period. The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
· the quarterly figures provided reflect those offences recorded in the system at the time the data were extracted and subsequently reported. On occasion, officers enter incident details into the recording system after the data has been extracted for a given period. The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
· the classification of an offence is subject to the final outcome of the investigation, including the completion of coronial inquiries, for example, an offence may originally be classified and entered into the recording system as an assault, but upon completion of the investigation be re-classified to a murder; · the quarterly figures provided reflect those offences recorded in the system at the time the data were extracted and subsequently reported. On occasion, officers enter incident details into the recording system after the data has been extracted for a given period. The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
· the quarterly figures provided reflect those offences recorded in the system at the time the data were extracted and subsequently reported. On occasion, officers enter incident details into the recording system after the data has been extracted for a given period. The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
The above situations are quite normal in respect to the recording and reporting of data, hence the preliminary status assigned to monthly and quarterly statistics. A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
A recalculation of the monthly data is performed at the end of every financial year in readiness for publication in the Police Service's Annual Report to Parliament that is subject to audit by the Office of the Auditor General.
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