Magistrates or justices of the peace decide and impose sentence on most cases, while in serious charges such as murder, the court conducts a preliminary hearing to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to warrant a higher court trial. The 12,977 cases handled between July and December represented a slight increase over the previous 6 months, but this occurred largely in minor offense categories such as shoplifting. Drug offenses, offenses against the person, and driving offenses declined. Almost 40 percent of the defendants were unemployed, compared to 6 percent of South Australia's adult population. Decreases in defendants appearing on drunk driving charges and the percentage of accident victims found to have consumed alcohol indicated that the random breath testing system introduced in October 1981 was having a deterrent effect. Significant differences appeared between court proceedings in Adelaide and other regions. Justices of the peace dealt with one-third of all cases outside the metropolitan area compared to 2 percent in Adelaide. Aboriginal defendants charged with drunkenness and vagrancy in courts outside Adelaide were 2.5 times more likely to receive a jail sentence. Statistics in the report categorize cases by offense and detail the characteristics of hearings with regard to pleas entered, legal representation, outcomes, penalties, and bail status of defendants. They also describe the defendants' age, sex, marital status, employment status, and previous criminal history. Appendixes contain a glossary, a list of contributing courts, and references. (Author summary modified)