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Aboriginal deaths in custody is a political and social issue in
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It rose in prominence in the early 1980s, with
Aboriginal activists campaigning following the death of 16-year-old
John Peter Pat in 1983. Subsequent deaths in custody, considered suspicious by families of the deceased, culminated in the 1987
Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody
The Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC) (1987–1991), also known as the Muirhead Commission, was a Royal Commission appointed by the Australian Government in October 1987 to Federal Court judge James Henry Muirhead, ...
(RCIADIC).
The final RCIADIC report, published in 1991, did not find higher rates of death of Aboriginal people compared to non-Aboriginal people; however, it did highlight deficiencies in care, both systemic and individual, and disproportionate rates of imprisonment due to historical and social factors. , Aboriginal people maintain a disproportionate level of exposure to the justice system and
incarceration in Australia. One of the recommendations of the RCIADIC was that statistics and other information on Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal deaths in custody should be monitored nationally on an ongoing basis, by the
Australian Institute of Criminology
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) is Australia's national research and knowledge centre on crime and criminal justice. The Institute seeks to promote justice and reduce crime by undertaking and communicating evidence-based research ...
(AIC). As
Australian census
The Census in Australia, officially the Census of Population and Housing, is the national census in Australia that occurs every five years. The census collects key demographic, social and economic data from all people in Australia on census nig ...
and prison statistics include both Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander
Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grouped ...
people, the counts have included both groups, as
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
.
The Australian Institute for Health and Welfare reports that the total Indigenous age specific deaths in 2018 were 164 per 100,000 for 25-34 year olds, and 368 for 35-44 year olds. These are the most relevant age groups for the current 12,000 Indigenous prisoners, with a median age of 32. In a group of 12,000 Indigenous 25-44 year olds, an average yearly death rate of around 32 per year occurs even outside prison. The Indigenous death rate in prison is about 15 per year, or half of this.
As of June 2021 the AIC had recorded 489 Indigenous deaths in custody since the Royal Commission (June 1991). The majority (65%) had been prison deaths with almost all the rest of the deaths in police custody or custody related operations. The AIC's monitoring program reports Indigenous Australians have made up 18% of prison deaths
and 20% of deaths in police custody or custody related operations in this time. This is well above their proportion in the general population that was 3.3% in the 2016 national census.
Although the majority of deaths occurring in prison custody have been of natural causes (58%), hanging deaths accounted for 32%, but the latter have shown a marked decrease in recent years. Although they are greatly over-represented in the prisons, Indigenous prisoners have had a lower death rate than non-Indigenous prisoners since 2003. In 2020-21 the death rate for Indigenous prisoners was 0.09 per 100 compared to the non-Indigenous rate of 0.18. Unfortunately, for technical reasons it is not possible to calculate death rates of Indigenous or non-Indigenous people in police custody or custody related operations. Of deaths in police custody, the total between mid-1991 and mid-2016 was 146, with 47% attributed to accidental death (with most of these happening under police pursuit). 21% were attributed to natural causes, with self-inflicted deaths accounting for 19%. There is, however, a number of cases in which calls have been made for greater scrutiny, as avoidable deaths, such as those of
Ms Dhu, Tanya Day,
David Dungay and Rebecca Maher. Additional protests focusing on Aboriginal deaths in custody, accompanied by renewed media attention, were triggered by the
murder of George Floyd
On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's n ...
in the US as part of the June 2020
protests in Australia.
Aboriginal deaths in custody and
high incarceration rates were originally absent from the
Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...
's "
Closing the Gap
The Closing the Gap framework is an Australian government strategy that aims to reduce disadvantage among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, based on seven targets. From adoption in 2008, after meetings with the Close the Gap social ...
" strategy. As part of a 2018 pivot to a new phase, the
Council of Australian Governments
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) was the primary intergovernmental forum in Australia from 1992 to 2020. Comprising the federal government, the governments of the six states and two mainland territories and the Australian Local G ...
(COAG) drafted targets to reduce Aboriginal custody rates by 2028.
Background
Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody
Concern about the high number of Aboriginal people who had died in custody in the 1980s led to the establishment of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC) in 1987, to investigate and report upon the underlying social, cultural and legal issues behind the deaths, including allegations of mistreatment of prisoners which may have led to their deaths. It ran from 1987 to 1991, investigating the period between 1 January 1980 and 31 May 1989, producing its final report in April 1991.
[ Includes links to each segment of the report.]
The 1988
Australian Institute of Criminology
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) is Australia's national research and knowledge centre on crime and criminal justice. The Institute seeks to promote justice and reduce crime by undertaking and communicating evidence-based research ...
publication, ''Aboriginal Deaths in Custody'', says "The issue of Aboriginal deaths in prisons and holding cells is particularly complex". The report looks at the cases identified by RCIADIC by April 1988.
Criminologist
Criminology (from Latin , "accusation", and Ancient Greek , ''-logia'', from λόγος ''logos'' meaning: "word, reason") is the study of crime and deviant behaviour. Criminology is an interdisciplinary field in both the behavioural and so ...
Duncan Chappell, in his introduction to the report, writes that while the "problem of death in custody is by no means limited to Aboriginals", the "problem of Aboriginal deaths in custody is linked to fundamental issues which go beyond matters of criminal justice. It would be unfortunate if, by focusing on the criminal justice system, we lost sight of the profound social, cultural and economic problems which confront Aboriginal people". At the time of RCIADIC, there was no ability to compare Aboriginal with non-Aboriginal deaths in custody because the information was not available from state and territory governments. At that time, the greatest number of Aboriginal deaths in custody had occurred in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
and
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, half of the victims were under 28 years old, and the most common cause of death was hanging. More detailed analysis was needed, for instance into the different factors operating in police custody compared with correctional facilities.
The term "death in custody" was defined in the RCIADIC report to include people under
arrest
An arrest is the act of apprehending and taking a person into custody (legal protection or control), usually because the person has been suspected of or observed committing a crime. After being taken into custody, the person can be questi ...
(in police custody) or during the process of attempted detainment (including under
police pursuit
A car chase or vehicle pursuit is the vehicular overland chase of one party by another, involving at least one automobile or other wheeled motor vehicle in pursuit, commonly hot pursuit of suspects by law enforcement. The rise of the automotive i ...
);
on remand (pre-trial detention), in
prison
A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correc ...
or
juvenile detention
In criminal justice systems, a youth detention center, known as a juvenile detention center (JDC),Stahl, Dean, Karen Kerchelich, and Ralph De Sola. ''Abbreviations Dictionary''. CRC Press, 20011202. Retrieved 23 August 2010. , . juvenile det ...
after sentencing, or attempting to escape from police or prison custody.
RCIADIC concluded that the deaths were not caused by deliberate killing by police and prison officers, but that "glaring deficiencies existed in the standard of care afforded to many of the deceased".
It reported that "Aboriginal people died in custody at the same rate as non-Aboriginal prisoners, but they were far more likely to be in prison than non-Aboriginal people", and that child removal (leading to what has since been dubbed the
Stolen Generation) was a "significant precursor to these high rates of imprisonment".
[ Many other historical and social factors were considered, showing a complex network of reasons as to why Aboriginal people were imprisoned at a higher rate.]
A 2018 review by Deloitte
Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (), commonly referred to as Deloitte, is an international professional services network headquartered in London, England. Deloitte is the largest professional services network by revenue and number of profession ...
commissioned in December 2017 by the then Indigenous Affairs Minister
The Minister for Indigenous Australians in the Government of Australia is a position which holds responsibility for affairs affecting Indigenous Australians. Previous ministers have held various other titles since the position was created in 196 ...
, Nigel Scullion
Nigel Gregory Scullion (born 4 May 1956) is a former Australian politician who was a Australian Senate, Senator for the Northern Territory from 2001 to 2019. He was a member of the Country Liberal Party (CLP) and sat with the National Party of A ...
, found that only 64% of the recommendations had been fully implemented. It reported that 14% were "mostly implemented", 16% were "partly implemented" and 6% not at all. It also found that monitoring of deaths in custody had decreased nationwide, and the quality of data on police custody was "an ongoing issue". Prison safety had increased, but more staff were needed for mental and other health issues of Aboriginal prisoners. Regular in-cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
Cell may also refer to:
Locations
* Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
checks, particularly in police watch houses, were still deficient in some jurisdictions.
Disproportionate rates of imprisonment
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often grouped ...
people made up approximately 3.3% of the Australian population (798,365) in the 2016 Australian census
The 2016 Australian census was the 17th national population census held in Australia. The census was officially conducted with effect on Tuesday, 9 August 2016. The total population of the Commonwealth of Australia was counted as – an incre ...
. As of June 2018, Indigenous Australians aged 18 years and over were approximately 2% of the total adult population, while Indigenous prisoners accounted for 28% of the adult prison population, meaning that Indigenous adults are 15 times more likely to be imprisoned than non-Indigenous adults.[
The rate of imprisonment of Indigenous Australians almost doubled between 1991 and 2018.][
Indigenous youth are 26 times more likely to be placed in detention.][ According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, in the June quarter of 2019 there was an average of 949 young people in detention per night: 90% of these were male, and 63% not yet sentenced. Indigenous youths made up 53% of the number. In the four years preceding June 2019, there were no clear trends shown in any of the statistical measures.][PDF]
/ref>
The Attorney-General for Australia commissioned the Australian Law Reform Commission
The Australian Law Reform Commission (often abbreviated to ALRC) is an Australian independent statutory body established to conduct reviews into the law of Australia. The reviews, also called inquiries or references, are referred to the ALRC by ...
(ALRC) in October 2016 to examine the factors leading to the disproportionate numbers of Indigenous peoples in Australian prisons, and to look at ways of reforming legislation which might ameliorate this "national tragedy". The result of this in-depth enquiry was a report titled ''Pathways to Justice – Inquiry into the Incarceration Rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples'', which was received by the Attorney-General in December 2017 and tabled in Parliament on 28 March 2018. The report made 13 recommendations, covering many aspects of the legal framework and police and justice procedures, including that fine default should not result in imprisonment.
Qualified improvement in death rate
Overall, the rate of Indigenous deaths in custody has reduced since 1991, lower than the rate of death of non-Indigenous people, which the AIC attributes to improved care by police and corrective services. However the rate of imprisonment of Indigenous people has climbed steeply, which is related to the higher number of deaths when compared with the 10 years examined by the RCIDIAC (99 in 10 years, compared with about 437 in 29 years). Non-Indigenous people have died in custody in greater numbers and at a higher rate than Indigenous people, since 1991; however, with the much higher numbers of imprisonment of Indigenous people, there are more deaths as a proportion of their total population.
Issues in WA
Attorney-General for Western Australia
The Attorney-General of Western Australia is the member of the Government of Western Australia responsible for maintenance and improvement of Western Australia's system of law and justice. Before the advent of representative government in 1870, ...
, John Quigley, said in June 2020 that there was "systematic discrimination" against Indigenous people in the Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
n justice system. Statistically, Indigenous people were far more likely to be stopped and questioned by police than non-Indigenous, more likely to be charged if arrested by police and less likely to get bail. Imprisonment of Indigenous people in WA was 4.1 per cent, compared with 2.6 nationally. The number of Indigenous adults going to prison, and young people being held in detention was still increasing, although the rate of imprisonment had slowed. He said that legislative reforms were being planned. WA has a higher number of Aboriginal deaths in custody since 1991 than any other state or territory.
On 17 June 2020 reforms to the legislation relating to jail sentences for unpaid fines, long a bone of contention, spurred on by the death of Ms Dhu and finally introduced into Parliament in September 2019, was passed in WA. Between 1 July 2018 and 30 June 2019, 430 people spent time in custody for unpaid fines. Under the new legislation, most fine defaulters will do community service
Community service is unpaid work performed by a person or group of people for the benefit and betterment of their community without any form of compensation. Community service can be distinct from volunteering, since it is not always performed ...
if they fail to pay, with imprisonment a last resort, by order of a magistrate
The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...
only. The change was recommended by RCIADIC in 1991.
Definition
The RCIDIAC's Recommendation No. 6 in its final report stipulated that "death in custody" includes at least the following categories when considering post-death investigations:[ (Als]
here
)
The Police Association of South Australia proposed a change to the legal definition in June 2020. PASA President Mark Carroll said that police were only involved in "very few" of these cases, with most of them occurring through natural causes
In many legal jurisdictions, the manner of death is a determination, typically made by the coroner, medical examiner, police, or similar officials, and recorded as a vital statistic. Within the United States and the United Kingdom, a distinct ...
, suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...
or violence between prisoners, and that several had occurred when the subjects had tried to flee from police and come to harm, including fatal car crashes. However this idea was opposed by the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM) and the opposition (Labor
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the la ...
) Aboriginal Affairs spokesperson Kyam Maher
Kyam Joseph Maher is an Australian politician who has been Attorney-General of South Australia and the Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council since March 2022. He was appointed to a casual vacancy in the South Australian Legislati ...
, who said that it was important to keep consistency in the statistics for comparison purposes.
Statistics
Sources
Statistics on deaths in custody are extracted from different sources; there is no single authoritative list of deaths in custody, of any race. Under Australia's federal system, each state or territory has responsibility for criminal justice
Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the Rehabilitation (penology), rehabilitation of o ...
in their jurisdiction.[ Those held in prison custody (including institutions such as remand) are the responsibility of a state or territory department overseeing correctional services; ]youth detention centre
In criminal justice systems, a youth detention center, known as a juvenile detention center (JDC),Stahl, Dean, Karen Kerchelich, and Ralph De Sola. ''Abbreviations Dictionary''. CRC Press, 20011202. Retrieved 23 August 2010. , . juvenile det ...
s are overseen by a variety of types of departments (such as human/community services or youth justice),[ and those occurring in police custody during operations are the responsibility of each state or territory's ]police force
The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...
, or alternatively the Australian Federal Police
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is the national and principal federal law enforcement agency of the Australian Government with the unique role of investigating crime and protecting the national security of the Commonwealth of Australia. Th ...
.
The Australian Institute of Criminology
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) is Australia's national research and knowledge centre on crime and criminal justice. The Institute seeks to promote justice and reduce crime by undertaking and communicating evidence-based research ...
(AIC) uses data from its National Deaths in Custody Program (NDICP), as laid out in Recommendation 41 of the final report of the RCIADIC.[ (Where other sources for the statistics quoted below vary from the RCIADIC definition given above, or need further clarification, this is noted.)
]
Historical
1980–1989: The ''National Report'' (1991) of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC) included a list of the deaths investigated by the commission, i.e. those occurring between 1980 and 1989.
1989–1996: A 1996 report prepared by prepared for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission
The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) (1990–2005) was the Australian Government body through which Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders were formally involved in the processes of government affecting ...
reported 96 Aboriginal deaths in custody in the seven years following the period examined by the RCIADIC, with a peak of 22 in 1995. A change in the definition of a death in custody in 1989 meant that only deaths in institutional settings (such as on remand, in prisons and youth detention centres), rather than police pursuit, could be examined when comparing the figures between the Royal Commission and post-Royal Commission periods.
1990–1999: A report comparing the number and circumstances of Indigenous deaths in custody during the 10-year period examined by RCDIAC with those in the following 10 years, found that the average annual rate of deaths has decreased from 4.4 deaths per 100,000 persons to 3.8 deaths per 100,000 people. As a proportion of ''all'' deaths in custody, those of Indigenous people had decreased from 21% to 18%. As a proportion of all deaths in custody, deaths in police custody (all races) had decreased, while prison deaths had increased.
2001–2011: A 2013 ''Monitoring Report'' by the AIC found that both Indigenous and non-Indigenous rates of deaths in custody had decreased in the ten years preceding 2011, including eight years in which the Indigenous rate of deaths in prison had been lower than non-Indigenous. Looking at police custody, those in institutional and close contact settings had been decreasing (attributed to better training of police and design improvements in holding cells), while "operational deaths" (such as pursuits) had shown an overall increase since the early 1990s, but some reduction between 2003 and 2011.
2013–2015: In the two years between 1 July 2013 and 30 June 2015, there was a total of 115 deaths (of all races) in prison custody, with over 70% of these due to natural causes
In many legal jurisdictions, the manner of death is a determination, typically made by the coroner, medical examiner, police, or similar officials, and recorded as a vital statistic. Within the United States and the United Kingdom, a distinct ...
, and 34 in police custody and related operations. 22% of the prison deaths and 19% of those in police custody were of Indigenous people.
2015–2017: In a ''Statistical Report'' looking at prison deaths between 2015 and 2016, the AIC reported that death rates of Indigenous prisoners " adbeen consistently lower than death rates of non-Indigenous prisoners since 2003–04". The death rate in 2015–2016 was 0.18 and 0.23 per 100 respectively, and in 2016–2017, 0.14 and 0.18 per 100 respectively.
1979–2018: The AIC's ''National Deaths in Custody Program report: Deaths in custody in Australia 2013–14 and 2014–15'', published in April 2018, reported a total of 2,608 deaths (of all races) in custody since 1979–80, with 1,600 deaths of those in prison and 985 in police custody. (In addition, 18 deaths had occurred in youth detention facilities and five in other justice facilities, but these were excluded from analysis in this report.) Of those 2,608 deaths, 500 had been Indigenous and 2,104 non-Indigenous people.[
1990–2004: A report spanning 25 years summarised the trends in deaths during this period. Compared with the RDDIAC period (1980–1989), in which the majority of deaths (61%) occurred in police custody, during this 15-year period most of the deaths occurred in prison custody (63%). Deaths in police custody had decreased, while the number of deaths occurring during police operations increased, but the latter deaths were mostly of non-Indigenous persons. "While the number of deaths of non-Indigenous prisoners has consistently exceeded deaths of Indigenous prisoners, the rate of Indigenous prisoner deaths exceeded the rate of non-Indigenous prisoner deaths in just over half of the 15 years since RCIADIC, reflecting the general over-representation of Indigenous persons in the prison population."]
1991–2016: A 2019 AIC ''Statistical Bulletin'', looking at 25 years of data since the Royal Commission (1 July 1991 to 30 June 2016), found that:
* With reference to prison custody, "Indigenous people are now less likely than non-Indigenous people to die in prison custody" including a decrease in the rate of hanging deaths. Death from natural causes was the most prevalent cause, at 58% (140), followed by hanging, at 32% (78); 5% (12) were due to drugs and/or alcohol, and 4% (9) were due to external trauma. from mid-2003 to mid–2016, deaths due to natural causes surpassed hanging deaths. Deaths in prison custody had decreased overall for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.
*With reference to police custody, it was not possible to calculate ''rates'' of death due to lack of reliable data, but there was no clear trend over the reference period based on raw numbers. The number of deaths in police custody in each year was "relatively small", with a total of 146 Indigenous deaths over the 25-year period. The largest number occurred in 2002–03 and 2004–05 (11 each), and the lowest in 2013–14 (1). As to the manner of death, 47% (68) of Indigenous deaths in police custody were classified as accidental with 57% (39) of these during motor vehicle pursuits and 19% (13) during another type of pursuit. Natural causes accounted for 21% (31), self-inflicted deaths 19% (28), "justifiable homicide" 7% (10) and "unlawful homicide" 5% (8). 56% (82) of Indigenous deaths were classified as deaths in which officers were not in close contact, while the remaining 44% (64) were deaths in which officers were in close contact with the deceased. This proportion was reflected similarly in the stats for non-Indigenous deaths in police custody (333 and 262 respectively).[
]
Recent totals and analyses
1991 – June 2020: A total of at least Indigenous 437 deaths in custody have been recorded since 1991.
2008 – June 2020: ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' ''Deaths Inside'' database, tracking all Indigenous deaths in custody between 1 January 2008 and 5 June 2020, was created by ''Guardian Australia
''Guardian Australia'' is the Australian website of the British global online and print newspaper, ''The Guardian''.
Available solely in an online format, the newspaper's launch was led by Katharine Viner in time for the 2013 Australian fede ...
'' reporters, using all available data available from coronial and other sources. It also includes all deaths that occurred in the presence of police officers, including those caused by self-inflicted injuries. It also includes deaths occurring during a police pursuit or traffic intercept by police.[
The total number is of deaths recorded is 164, with Western Australia recording the highest number for a state or territory (54). Of the total, 72 deaths were attributed to medical issues; 23 to ]self-harm
Self-harm is intentional behavior that is considered harmful to oneself. This is most commonly regarded as direct injury of one's own skin tissues usually without a suicidal intention. Other terms such as cutting, self-injury and self-mutilatio ...
and 23 to traffic accidents. Further analysis of the data showed that agencies "failed to follow all of their own procedures in 41% of cases where Indigenous people died"; and in the cases of 38% of Indigenous deaths, required medical care at some point was not given. In 42% of ''all'' deaths in custody (all races), "mental health or cognitive impairment was a factor", but Indigenous people with a diagnosed mental condition, including brain injury
An injury is any physiological damage to living tissue caused by immediate physical stress. An injury can occur intentionally or unintentionally and may be caused by blunt trauma, penetrating trauma, burning, toxic exposure, asphyxiation, or o ...
and foetal alcohol syndrome, did not receive the required care in 49% of cases. Another finding was that Indigenous women fared worse than men in terms of receiving all appropriate medical care and the authorities following procedures.[
July 2018 – June 2019: The AIC report published in December 2020 (the most recent ][) reports on deaths between July 2018 and June 2019.][ 781925304909 PDF/ref> The data tables in Appendices B, C and D can be downloaded in ]Excel
ExCeL London (an abbreviation for Exhibition Centre London) is an exhibition centre, international convention centre and former hospital in the Custom House area of Newham, East London. It is situated on a site on the northern quay of the ...
format. (See table below.)
Responses
In Australia, all deaths in custody
A death in custody is a death of a person in the custody of the police, other authorities or in prison. In the 21st century, death in custody remains a controversial subject, with the authorities often being accused of abuse, neglect, racism and ...
trigger an inquest
An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a coro ...
. By August 2018 it was found that there had been a lack of action on recommendations arising from inquests, including the recommendations made as part of the 1987 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. Over half of the Indigenous people who died in custody since 2008 had not been found guilty, as 56% were on remand, died while fleeing police or during arrest, or were in protective custody. Most were suspected of non-indictable offences, which typically carry sentences of less than five years.
Custody Notification Scheme
Custody Notification Schemes (CNS) have been set up in several states and territories. Implementation of a CNS has been shown to bring about a dramatic reduction in the numbers of Aboriginal deaths in police custody. In October 2016, the federal government offered funding for the first three years to the remaining states and territories which had not yet legislated a mandatory CNS; by July 2020, only Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
and Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
had not yet introduced such legislation.
Publicity and community action
Since the murder of George Floyd
On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's n ...
and the protests that followed in the US in the first week of June 2020, Aboriginal deaths in custody have come into focus again. The last day of National Reconciliation Week
National Reconciliation Week is intended to celebrate Indigenous history and culture in Australia and foster reconciliation discussion and activities. It started as the Week of Prayer for Reconciliation in 1993, developing into National Reconcili ...
was marked by a candlelight vigil in Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
's Musgrave Park on 3 June 2020, with 432 candles lit for the each of the Aboriginal deaths in custody since the 1991 end of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody
The Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (RCIADIC) (1987–1991), also known as the Muirhead Commission, was a Royal Commission appointed by the Australian Government in October 1987 to Federal Court judge James Henry Muirhead, ...
, and an extra one for George Floyd. Protests planned in major cities on 6 June 2020 were met with differing responses by government and police in each state, owing to the social distancing
In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious disea ...
and other restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia
The COVID-19 pandemic in Australia is part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (). The first confirmed case in Australia was identified on 25 Januar ...
.
Closing the Gap
The federal government's Closing the Gap
The Closing the Gap framework is an Australian government strategy that aims to reduce disadvantage among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, based on seven targets. From adoption in 2008, after meetings with the Close the Gap social ...
strategy since 2008, which aims to reduce disadvantage among Indigenous Australians, had not addressed justice
Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...
issues during the first 10 years of its existence, but draft targets for 2019 created by the Council of Australian Governments
The Council of Australian Governments (COAG) was the primary intergovernmental forum in Australia from 1992 to 2020. Comprising the federal government, the governments of the six states and two mainland territories and the Australian Local G ...
(COAG) in December 2018 included one called "Justice (including youth justice)". This target aims to "Reduce the rate of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in detention by 11-19% and adults held in incarceration by at least 5% by 2028", and the outcome of the target is that "Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are not overrepresented in the criminal justice system". The new targets and an overhaul of the Closing the Gap framework were now being led by Indigenous people, with the project still under way as of February 2020, when the 12th Closing the Gap report was published.
The Minister for Indigenous Australians
The Minister for Indigenous Australians in the Government of Australia is a position which holds responsibility for affairs affecting Indigenous Australians. Previous ministers have held various other titles since the position was created in 196 ...
, the Hon. Ken Wyatt
Kenneth George Wyatt (born 4 August 1952) is a former Australian politician who was a member of the House of Representatives from 2010 to 2022, representing the Division of Hasluck for the Liberal Party. He is the first Indigenous Australian el ...
, said in early June 2020 that law reform alone cannot solve the justice problem: "We're working to address the factors that contribute to high incarceration rates". As one example, Wyatt cited the Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
n law which includes imprisonment as a punishment for not paying a fine. One of the RCIDIAC recommendations for state governments had been to review the offence of "public drunkenness
Public intoxication, also known as "drunk and disorderly" and "drunk in public", is a summary offense in some countries rated to public cases or displays of drunkenness. Public intoxication laws vary widely by jurisdiction, but usually require an ...
" as well as imprisonment for unpaid fines, as these played a large part in the number of Indigenous people in custody. The Victorian and Western Australian government
The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also commonly referred to as the WA Government o ...
s indicated these laws might soon be overturned, years after two women had died in custody in each state while being held for one of these reasons (Tanya Day and Ms Dhu), and WA effected the change on 17 June 2020.[
Senator ]Mick Dodson
Michael James Dodson (born 10 April 1950) is an Aboriginal Australian barrister, academic, and member of the Yawuru people in the Broome area of the southern Kimberley region of Western Australia.
His brother is Pat Dodson, also a noted Abor ...
, one of the Commissioners on the RCIDIAC, said in parliament that for too long there had been "nice words" and "good intentions", but there had been a lack of "action and commitment" to keeping Indigenous people out of prison.[
]
Individual cases and findings
Notable incidents
*1983: John Pat, a 16-year-old boy killed in Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
[Chapter 5: An Aboriginal death in custody: The case of John Pat]
/ref>
*1987: Kingsley Richard Dixon, a 19-year-old who died in Adelaide Gaol
Adelaide Gaol is a former Australian prison located in the Park Lands of Adelaide, in the state of South Australia. The gaol was the first permanent one in South Australia and operated from 1841 until 1988. The Gaol is one of the two oldest bui ...
, one of two cases which sparked the Royal Commission
*1989: David Gundy, an Aboriginal man who died aged 29, in Marrickville, Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
, New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, on 27 April 1989
*2004: Mulrunji Doomadgee, on Great Palm Island
Great Palm Island, usually known as Palm Island, is the largest island in the Palm Islands group off Northern Queensland, Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal community, the legacy of an Aboriginal reserve, the Palm Island Aboriginal Sett ...
, Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
*2014: Ms Dhu, in South Hedland, Western Australia
*2015: Kumanjayi or Kwementyaye Langdon, known in life as Perry Jabanangka Langdon, a Warlpiri artist whose work is held by the National Gallery of Victoria
The National Gallery of Victoria, popularly known as the NGV, is an art museum in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is Australia's oldest and most visited art museum.
The NGV houses an encyclopedic art collection across two ...
, died in custody on 21 May 2015 of heart failure
Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...
in Darwin Watch House, around three hours after being detained under the "paperless arrest" powers for drinking alcohol in a dry zone in Darwin. There was a two-day inquest, which found that he had not been violent, and that while there had been "shortcomings" the process, Langdon had received adequate care and supervision. The coroner was critical of the paperless arrest system, saying that it could lead to more deaths in custody, but the Northern Territory Government
The Government of the Northern Territory of Australia, also referred to as the Northern Territory Government, is the Australian territorial democratic administrative authority of the Northern Territory. The Government of Northern Territory wa ...
did not take action to repeal the section of the ''Liquor Act'' (NT) that allowed for it.
*2015: David Dungay, who died aged 26 in Long Bay Hospital at Long Bay Correctional Centre in Sydney. Dungay had diabetes
Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a group of metabolic disorders characterized by a high blood sugar level ( hyperglycemia) over a prolonged period of time. Symptoms often include frequent urination, increased thirst and increased ap ...
and died after being held down by five guards who had asked him to stop eating biscuits, while being injected with a sedative by a prison nurse. A coronial inquest in November 2019 found that none of the guards should face disciplinary action, saying that their "conduct was limited by systemic efficiencies in training", but the professional conduct of the nurse should be reviewed by the Nursing Board.
*2016: Rebecca Maher, a Wiradjuri
The Wiradjuri people (; ) are a group of Aboriginal Australian people from central New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, ...
woman, found dead in Maitland, New South Wales
Maitland () is a city in the Lower Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Australia and the seat of Maitland City Council, situated on the Hunter River approximately by road north of Sydney and north-west of Newcastle. It is on the New England Hi ...
police cell in July 2016, after being arrested for public intoxication. The coroner found that she would have survived if police had followed procedures. This was the first time an Aboriginal person had died in custody in NSW or the ACT since the Custody Notification Service
A Custody Notification Service (CNS), sometimes referred to as a Custody Notification Scheme, is a 24-hour legal advice and support telephone hotline for any Indigenous Australian person brought into custody, connecting them with lawyers from th ...
was implemented. When Maher was taken into protective custody by police for being intoxicated, police were only obliged to call the CNS if an Indigenous person was taken into custody for an offence, not if they were detained as an intoxicated person, so they did not alert the CNS at the Aboriginal Legal Service (NSW/ACT). As a result of the coronial inquest
An inquest is a judicial inquiry in common law jurisdictions, particularly one held to determine the cause of a person's death. Conducted by a judge, jury, or government official, an inquest may or may not require an autopsy carried out by a coro ...
into her death, in October 2019 the NSW government implemented a change to extend the CNS to cover police custody of intoxicated persons.
*2016: Wayne Fella Morrison, a 29-year-old Wiradjuri, Kokatha
The Kokatha, also known as the Kokatha Mula, are an Aboriginal Australian people of the state of South Australia. They speak the Kokatha language, close to or a dialect of the Western Desert language.
Country
Traditional Kokatha lands extend ov ...
and Wirangu man died in the Royal Adelaide Hospital
The Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH), colloquially known by its initials or pronounced as "the Rah", is South Australia's largest hospital, owned by the state government as part of Australia's public health care system. The RAH provides tertiary hea ...
on 26 September 2016, after being held at Yatala Labour Prison
Yatala Labour Prison is a high-security men's prison located in the north-eastern part of the northern Adelaide suburb Northfield, South Australia. It was built in 1854 to enable prisoners to work at Dry Creek, quarrying rock for roads and con ...
and put in the back of a transport van in the prone position, with a spit hood, cuffed by his ankles and wrists, and with eight prison guards inside. He was pulled from the back of the van unresponsive and taken to hospital, where he died three days later after his life support machine was switched off. Morrison's death sparked the first national Black Lives Matter protests for Aboriginal lives in October, 2016. The state ombudsman
An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...
's report in September 2020 said that Morrison was failed by the Department for Correctional Services
The Department for Correctional Services is the department of the Government of South Australia responsible for adult prisoners, including supervision of offenders and their rehabilitation, in order to protect the public against further crime ...
(DCS), and made 17 recommendations, including that the use of body-worn video cameras for prison officers should be mandatory. DCS adopted some of the recommendations, and formed an agreement with Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement whereby all Aboriginal prisoners admitted to the Adelaide Remand Centre are able to access to the Aboriginal Visitors Scheme. The use of spit hood
A spit hood, spit mask, mesh hood or spit guard is a restraint device intended to prevent a person from spitting or biting. The use of the hoods has been controversial.
Justification for use
Proponents, often including police unions and associa ...
s was banned in SA in September 2021 as a result of Morrison's family and supporters advocating for 'Fella's Bill' - a spit hood prohibition Bill, tabled by SA BEST's Connie Bonaros MLC. After a 5-year long inquiry into Wayne Fella Morrison's death, and multiple delays, officer's in the van maintained their right to claim the penalty privilege against self-incrimination; their right to silence on what happened in the van. South Australia will soon be first state in Australia to ban spit hoods in law.
*2017: Tane Chatfield, aged 22, at Tamworth Correctional Centre
Tamworth Correctional Centre, an Australian medium security prison for males, is located in Tamworth, New South Wales, north of Sydney. The facility is operated by Corrective Services NSW, an agency of the Department of Attorney General and Ju ...
on 22 September 2017 In August 2020 it was found by the coroner that he had committed suicide, but she criticised the inadequate care that he was given by the senior nurse in the hour before his death.
* 2017: Tanya Day, a 55-year-old Yorta Yorta
The Yorta Yorta, also known as Jotijota, are an Aboriginal Australian people who have traditionally inhabited the area surrounding the junction of the Goulburn and Murray Rivers in present-day north-eastern Victoria and southern New South Wales ...
woman, fell into a coma in a police cell in Castlemaine in Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
and later died in the Bendigo Base Hospital in December 2017. In April 2020 a coroner referred the case to prosecutors for further investigation, stating that her death was preventable. On 27 August 2020 Victoria Police
Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. It was formed in 1853 and currently operates under the ''Victoria Police Act 2013''.
, Victo ...
announced that they would not be laying charges against any officers, after receiving advice from the Office of Public Prosecutions.
*2018: Nathan Reynolds, a 36-year-old man, died in the last week of his four-month sentence after an asthma attack
Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, cou ...
in the minimum-security John Morony Correctional Centre
Francis Greenway Correctional Complex, formerly John Morony Correctional Complex is an Australian minimum security prison complex for males and females located in Berkshire Park, south of Windsor in New South Wales, Australia. The complex is ...
(now part of the Francis Greenway Correction Complex) in Sydney in September 2018. The coronial inquiry
A coroner is a government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death, and to investigate or confirm the identity of an unknown person who has been found dead within the coroner's juri ...
showed that the prison staff's response was "unreasonably delayed", and contributed to his death.
*2019: Kumanjayi Walker, a 19-year-old Warlpiri man, was shot and killed while resisting arrest on 9 November 2019 in the remote community of Yuendumu
Yuendumu is a town in the Northern Territory of Australia, northwest of Alice Springs on the Tanami Road, within the Central Desert Region local government area. It ranks as one of the larger remote communities in central Australia, and has a t ...
, Northern Territory
The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory ...
. His case drew national and international attention and media coverage after Constable Zachary Rolfe was charged with his murder soon afterwards, but was acquitted in March 2022.
Tables
Deaths in prison custody 2019 table
Table B1 (2019)shows:[
]
See also
*Age of criminal responsibility in Australia
The age of criminal responsibility in Australia is the age below which a child is deemed incapable of having committed a criminal offence. In legal terms, it is referred to as a defence of infancy. All states and self-governing territories of Au ...
*Closing the Gap
The Closing the Gap framework is an Australian government strategy that aims to reduce disadvantage among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, based on seven targets. From adoption in 2008, after meetings with the Close the Gap social ...
, a government strategy aimed at reducing disadvantage among Indigenous people
* Custody Notification Scheme
*Deaths in custody
A death in custody is a death of a person in the custody of the police, other authorities or in prison. In the 21st century, death in custody remains a controversial subject, with the authorities often being accused of abuse, neglect, racism and ...
* First Nations Deaths In Custody Watch Committee
*George Floyd protests in Australia
Shortly after protests began in the United States in late May 2020 seeking justice for George Floyd, an African-American who was murdered during an arrest by Minneapolis police, people in Australia protested to show solidarity with Americans ...
*Health Effects from Incarceration of Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are both convicted of crimes and prisons in Australia, imprisoned at a disproportionately higher rate in Australia, as well as being over-represented as victims of crime. , Aboriginal Australian, Aboriginal and Torres Strai ...
*Indigenous Australians and crime
Indigenous Australians are both convicted of crimes and imprisoned at a disproportionately higher rate in Australia, as well as being over-represented as victims of crime. , Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners represented 28% of the ...
*Punishment in Australia
Punishment in Australia arises when an individual has been accused or convicted of breaking the law through the Australian criminal justice system. Australia uses prisons, as well as community corrections (various non-custodial punishments suc ...
Footnotes
References
Further reading
General reference
* Details of all Indigenous deaths in custody 2008−June 2020.
**
''Google Scholar'' search results for "Aboriginal deaths in custody"
*
*
Articles and opinion
*
*
*
*
* – about Mulrunji Doomadgee on Palm Island
*
*
{{Authority control
Indigenous Australian politics
Australian people who died in prison custody