These statistics are categorised as Under Reservation. This categorisation indicates that the quality of these statistics do not meet the standards required of official statistics published by the CSO. An Garda Síochána have undertaken to introduce an effective data quality management system for the production of crime statistics and this work is underway. The categorisation of Statistics Under Reservation applies to all statistical outputs sourced from PULSE in the interim.
For further information please refer to the Under Reservation FAQ page.
CSO statistical release, , 11am
Recorded Crime Detection statistics provide a snapshot of the extent to which crime incidents reported to An Garda Síochána (AGS) have been detected. A crime is considered detected when AGS have identified and sanctioned a suspected offender for the crime. The publication is based on data recorded by AGS on its PULSE (Police Using Leading Systems Effectively) and FCPS (Fixed Charge Penalty System) databases.
Recorded Crime Detection 2019 is the second annual publication of statistics on crime detection since AGS introduced new data governance controls targeted at improving data quality in the recording of detections in 2018. Details on the compilation of these statistics is provided in the Background Notes.
The data governance controls introduced by AGS in 2018 support more reliable statistical outputs. The changes, however, also represent a break-in-series for measuring crime detection rates in Ireland. Detection rates for time periods prior to the introduction of the controls are not comparable with figures published since. Indeed, the timing of the changes (25th Feb 2018) mean that data for reference year 2018 includes a portion of the year where the old system was still in use. Users of the statistics published here should consider this when comparing 2018 with subsequent years.
A crime is considered detected when AGS have identified and sanctioned a suspected offender for the crime. Valid sanctions may include charges and summons, formal and informal cautions, and fixed penalties depending on the offence type. There are some limited circumstances where a detection is permitted even though no suspected offender has been sanctioned. The rules governing crime incident detection are outlined in the Guide to How Crime is Recorded and Counted by An Garda Síochána.
Crime incidents where a suspected offender has not been sanctioned are considered to be ‘not detected’. This occurs in a variety of scenarios, including where no suspect has been identified, where a suspect has been identified but there is insufficient evidence to support prosecution, or where a victim does not support further action. AGS are currently considering changes to how data is collected which could permit a more complete representation of crime incident outcomes. However, this is not possible based on the data currently available.
The time gap between an offence being recorded and a suspected offender being sanctioned is influenced by a variety of factors (e.g. gathering evidence, awaiting laboratory results or awaiting a direction for prosecution), and varies by crime offence type. Hence, crime incident detection rates tend to increase over time before settling. This may take longer than a year for some crime types.
Recorded Crime Detection 2019 publishes ‘initial’ crime incident detection rates for crime incidents recorded in 2019 based on data extracted on the 1st September 2020. See Table 1.1. The gap of eight months following the end of the reference year has been selected to allow publication of statistics in a timely manner while recognising that reasonable time must be allowed for investigations to reach conclusion and for detection rates to begin to settle. The ‘initial’ crime incident detection rates for 2018 incidents, as published last year, are included in Table 1.1 for convenient reference and comparison.
‘Updated’ detection rates for crime incidents recorded in 2018 are also published in Table 1.1. These figures are based on the latest available data. In this case, twenty months have passed since the end of the reference period, allowing more time for additional crimes to become detected. The difference between the 'initial' and 'updated' figure for crimes reported in 2018 reflects additional crimes which were detected between September 2019 and September 2020. This is an important feature in understanding these statistics.
CSO continues to publish recorded crime statistics using the category 'Statistics Under Reservation'. This category is used to reflect ongoing concerns regarding the quality of the data source. See: Statistics Under Reservation FAQs
X-axis label | Detection Rate |
---|---|
01 Homicide Offences | 65.5 |
02 Sexual Offences | 12 |
03 Attempts/threats to murder, assaults, harassments and related offences | 33 |
06 Robbery, extortion and hijacking Offences | 26.3 |
07 Burglary and related Offences | 14.6 |
08 Theft and related Offences | 32.8 |
10 Controlled drug Offences | 87.9 |
12 Damage to property and to the environment | 20.4 |
13 Public order and other social code offences | 84 |
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