Table 7
Sentencing outcomes upon conviction for First Nations, Métis and Inuit accused relative to White accused in adult criminal court, Canada, 2016/2017 to 2020/2021

Table 7
Sentencing outcomes upon conviction for First Nations, Métis and Inuit accused relative to White accused in adult criminal court, Canada, 2016/2017 to 2020/2021 Table summary
The information is grouped by Indigenous groups (appearing as row headers), Type of sentence , Custody, Conditional sentence, Probation and Fine, calculated using adjusted relative rate index1 units of measure (appearing as column headers).
Indigenous groups Type of sentence
Custody Conditional sentence Probation Fine
adjusted relative rate index Table 7 Note 1
Note 1

The adjusted relative rate index (ARRI) measures the likelihood of Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit and Métis) accused encountering a sentence relative to White accused encountering the same sentence, controlling for the severity of the most serious offence in the case. Severity is based on the crime severity weight that is used in calculating the Crime Severity Index. The ARRI is a relative measure. For example, an ARRI of 0% means that Indigenous accused have the same likelihood of encountering the same sentence as their White counterpart. Furthermore an ARRI larger or smaller than zero means that Indigenous accused have a higher or lower likelihood of encountering the same sentence than White accused.

Return to note 1 referrer

Note 2

Sex is defined as female or male in the 2016 Census.

Return to note 2 referrer

Note 3

Age at date of offence. Excludes calculated age under 18 years and older than 100 years. When the date of the offence was missing, age was calculated using the case start date.

Return to note 3 referrer

Notes: Only individuals who had a completed court case in the Integrated Criminal Court Survey (ICCS) and were linked to the 2016 Census of Population long-form questionnaire were retained for analysis. Calibrated weights were developed for this dataset so that the sum of these weights equalled the total population of accused before the courts. Weights were calibrated to ensure consistency between the linked ICCS population and the total ICCS population in terms of key sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., age, gender and criminal history). Calibrated weights were developed independently for each fiscal year of ICCS data. Results for each year are produced using these calibrated weights. The results presented in this table are the averaged ARRIs from 2016/2017 to 2020/2021.
Source: Statistics Canada, Canadian Centre for Justice and Community Safety Statistics, Linked 2016 Census of Population long-form questionnaire and Integrated Criminal Court Survey.
First Nations  
All 47 33 -20 -22
Sex Table 7 Note 2  
Female 47 27 -21 -18
Male 48 36 -19 -25
Age group (years) Table 7 Note 3  
18 to 24 44 35 -22 -22
25 to 34 42 31 -21 -20
35 to 44 43 30 -22 -17
45 and older 52 32 -18 -19
Métis  
All 26 12 -18 -7
Sex Table 7 Note 2  
Female 25 8 -14 -9
Male 28 13 -19 -7
Age group (years) Table 7 Note 3  
18 to 24 26 12 -19 -8
25 to 34 25 14 -17 -7
35 to 44 24 10 -18 -3
45 and older 23 7 -21 1
Inuit  
All 60 25 22 -69
Sex Table 7 Note 2  
Female 57 17 19 -60
Male 62 28 24 -73
Age group (years) Table 7 Note 3  
18 to 24 59 29 14 -68
25 to 34 55 21 21 -70
35 to 44 50 18 20 -65
45 and older 70 27 31 -67
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