🔗 Share this article

The tally of First Nations people losing their lives while in custody in Australia has climbed to its highest point since official data began in 1980.

New data show that 33 of the 113 people who died in detention in the 12-month period ending in June have been identified as Indigenous. This marks an rise from 24 fatalities in the previous equivalent period.

Indigenous Australian people are disproportionately represented in the justice system. They make up more than one-third of all incarcerated individuals, despite comprising under 4% of the national people.

These sobering figures come to light over three decades after a landmark inquiry into Indigenous deaths in custody, which put forward hundreds of proposed changes.

Detailed Analysis of the Recent Figures

Of the 33 Indigenous deaths in custody logged between last July and this June, 26 occurred while in prison custody, which is an rise from 18 in the previous year.

A single death was in youth detention, and all except one of the individuals were men.

The remaining six deaths happened in the custody of law enforcement, defined as when someone passes away while police are detaining them.

The leading reason of Indigenous deaths was classified as "self-harm," with "illness." The data found that asphyxiation was the method in eight of the deaths.

Geographic Breakdown

The state of New South Wales recorded the highest number of Aboriginal deaths in prison custody with nine, then Western Australia with six. Queensland, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory each had three deaths.

The growing number of First Nations deaths in custody in New South Wales is a "profoundly distressing reality," the state's chief medical examiner recently stated.

In a recent statement, Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan stressed that this upward trend was not "mere statistics" and that these deaths required "independent and careful examination, respect and responsibility."

Profile Details and Expert Response

The mean age of those who died was 45, and 11 of the deceased were awaiting a sentence.

A criminal law associate professor, Amanda Porter, characterised the data as representing a "country-wide crisis" that requires "decisive action and government action."

Ms. Porter, who has attended multiple official inquiries with bereaved families, stated little has improved since the 1991 royal commission that was established to address this issue.

"It's maddening to witness the quantity of inquests I attend, the number memorials families have to attend, and the fact that we are three decades after the inquiry, and the problem is getting progressively worse," she commented.

Since the royal commission, a approximately 600 First Nations people have lost their lives in custody, which encompasses six in youth detention, according to the report.