A group representing victims of crime has said increasing delays in prosecuting perpetrators of domestic abuse is “concerning” for those who report the abuse.
New figures from the Department of Justice show the average time for domestic abuse cases to conclude is now 139 days, 31 days higher than the year before.
The data also shows just over half of all domestic abuse cases brought to court in Northern Ireland result in a conviction.
The figures show that 55% of all domestic abuse cases which were prosecuted in 2023/24 ended in a conviction. In 2022/23, that conviction rate was even lower at 51.7%.
The figures published by the Stormont department are the first since the introduction of new domestic abuse legislation in 2022.
Geraldine Hanna, Commissioner Designate for Victims of Crime NI, welcomed the publication of the new data but that unnecessary delay in prosecutions was concerning for victims.
“I welcome the publication of this bulletin today, we need to capture appropriate and useful data to improve our criminal justice system for victims of crime.
“The victims of these crimes need our support and need to know that our society will have a zero tolerance approach to domestic abuse.
“It is concerning that the number of days it takes for these cases to be dealt with across all courts has risen by over 30 days from one year to the next.
“Unnecessary delay is one of the most serious issues consistently raised to me by victims of crime and tackling it must be the key priority of the criminal justice agencies, the Department of Justice and the wider Executive.
In 2023/24 and 2022/23 respectively, 55.5% (1,515 out of 2,728) and 51.7% (840 out of 1,625) of all domestic abuse related cases under the Act resulted in a conviction. 302 cases in the last year were dealt with by out of court disposal, compared to 211 a year previously.
The figures also show the vast majority of domestic abuse offences are committed by men.
In the last year, 92% of domestic abuse offences were committed by men, down from 95% the previous year.
The figures show that in the last year, less than a third of the convictions for domestic abuse charges saw the perpetrator sent to prison.
A custodial sentence was the main outcome in 30.6% (463) of cases in 2023/24.
In terms of age group, the highest number of perpetrators of domestic abuse came from the 30-39 bracket.
Justice minister Naomi Long says the new figures will be used to “analyse the effectiveness of the new legislation”.
“The new offences sent out a clear message that all forms of domestic abuse, physical and non-physical, are wrong and won’t be tolerated,” Ms Long said.
“I am pleased that we are now starting to see some data coming through which will enable us to analyse the effectiveness of the new legislation and identify any areas for improvement.”
