🔗 Share this article

The tally of First Nations people dying while in detention in Australia has hit its highest point since records started in 1980.

New data indicate that 33 of the 113 people who passed away in detention in the 12-month period ending in June were of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. This represents an uptick from 24 fatalities in the previous corresponding period.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system. They constitute more than one-third of all prisoners, even though representing less than four per cent of the country's people.

These disturbing figures come to light more than three decades after a seminal royal commission into First Nations deaths in custody, which put forward hundreds of proposed changes.

Detailed Analysis of the Latest Statistics

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

A single death was in a juvenile facility, and the vast majority of the deceased were male.

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

The main reason of Indigenous deaths was classified as "self-inflicted," with "illness." The report noted that asphyxiation was the method in eight of the cases.

Geographic Breakdown

The state of New South Wales recorded the greatest number of Indigenous deaths in correctional facilities with nine, followed by Western Australia with six. Queensland, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory each had three deaths.

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

In October, Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan stressed that this upward trend was not "mere statistics" and that these deaths demanded "independent and careful examination, respect and accountability."

Profile Details and Expert Response

The average age of those who died was 45, and eleven of the deceased were still waiting for a court sentencing.

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

Ms. Porter, who has been present at several coronial inquests with bereaved families, said little has improved since the 1991 national inquiry that was established to tackle this issue.

"It's maddening to see the number of investigations I attend, the number funerals families have to attend, and the fact that we are 30 years past the royal commission, and the problem is getting progressively worse," she commented.

Since the landmark inquiry, a approximately 600 First Nations people have lost their lives in detention, which encompasses six in youth detention, according to the findings.