Latest news with #deathincustody
ABC News
12 hours ago
- ABC News
Police ethical standards investigation underway after death in custody at Brisbane watch house
Queensland police are investigating a death of a 41-year-old man in custody at the Brisbane watch house on the weekend. Police say the man from Zillmere, in the city's north, was arrested on on July 16 over an outstanding warrant. Three days later, on Saturday July 19, he "became unresponsive", police said in a statement. According to the statement, first aid was rendered, but the man was declared dead around 6pm. "This matter remains under investigation by the Ethical Standards Command on behalf of the State Coroner, with independent oversight by the Crime and Corruption Commission," the police said. The death comes two weeks after a report into the state's watch houses identified capacity issues and prolonged detention as major hurdles to overcome. The report found some watch houses had ineffective CCTV systems, poor temperature control and ventilation, with some subject to rodent infestations. Deputy Commissioner Cameron Harsely led the report, and said adults were spending an average of 118 hours in custody in watch houses, while children were spending an average of 161 hours. "They are not custody facilities, they are processing facilities," he said after the report was released. The Queensland Police Minister Dan Purdie said he agreed with the report's 34 recommendations. "This report highlights some urgent things that can be done, probably some mid-term things and some longer, strategic things that can't be fixed overnight," he said.
SBS Australia
7 days ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
'Officially out of control': NT Police union warns of serious risk in overcrowded police watch house
Advocates believes a death in custody is imminent under the current conditions inside Northern Territory watch houses. Amongst other instances of overcrowding, Palmerston police watch house is currently being used to house an overflow of more than 70 correctional prisoners. NT Coordinator for the Justice Reform Initiative, Rocket Bretherton, says she fears for those currently caught up in the territory's justice system. "There is no privacy, no showers ... 10 to 15 people in a cell, sharing mattresses on the floor," the Noongar woman told NITV. "I've heard stories of [people] not being able to get life saving medication. "It's only a matter of time." Rocket Bretherton has deep subject matter expertise as a consequence of her own experience in the NT justice system and has been working since 2019 to raise public awareness of the failings of the justice system. Source: Emma Kellaway For years Ms Bretherton has campaigned and advocated for justice reform in the Northern Territory. Recounting stories of people recently released from the Palmerston Police Watch House, 20 kilometers southeast of Darwin, Ms Bretherton said the conditions were "disgusting". "Men can see straight over to the women. There is no privacy." "I've been told [there is] period-stained sheets just wrapped up in the corner. "That's disgusting, we need to be doing better." Police union calls out 'crisis point' It comes as the Northern Territory Police Association (NTPA) President, Nathan Finn, said the situation is putting police officers, prisoners, and the broader community at unacceptable risk. 'This is officially out of control," Mr Finn said in a statement. "The CLP Government has made repeated promises to stop using police facilities for correctional purposes, yet the Palmerston Watch House is now overflowing." 'It's not a matter of if, but when a serious custody incident occurs.' Mr Finn said the Palmerston Police Watch House has reached a "crisis point", with 92 detainees recorded in custody on Monday, including 76 correctional prisoners. The NTPA is calling on the NT Government to urgently invest in appropriate correctional infrastructure and stop relying on police watch houses as overflow prisons. 'If immediate action isn't taken, we're gravely concerned that someone - be it a police officer, a prisoner, or a member of the public, is going to be seriously injured or worse,' Mr Finn said. Since coming to power in August last year, the NT Country Liberal Party Government has enacted a string of "tough-on-crime" policies, including the tightening of bail laws. On Wednesday there were a total 2842 people incarcerated across the Northern Territory, an increase of more than 600 prisoners since the CLP came to power. That includes a record number of inmates not yet convicted, with 49 per cent of those on remand awaiting sentencing. 88 per cent of those incarcerated in the NT are Indigenous. 'No alternative' in Government response In a statement Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Corrections, Gerard Maley, told NITV there is "no alternative" and the solution to overcrowding is for "individuals to stop breaking the law". "Police will continue arresting those who break the law, and corrections will continue expanding capacity to ensure those who are remanded or sentenced have a bed." The NT Government have created more than 500 new beds at Darwin and Alice Springs corrections facilities since taking office, with a further 238 beds expected to be added by August. "Whilst government can strengthen laws, adequately resource police and expand corrections capacity this needs to be matched with personal responsibility: individuals need to stop breaking the law," Mr Maley said in a statement. Rocket Bretherton urged the NT Government to "do better". "If we want people to stop the offending behaviour, we need to look at the root causes of the behaviour," Ms Bretherton said. "If we don't do that then there will be no change."
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- The Guardian
For the remote community of Yuendumu, there's no justice until its people stop dying
As the sun starts to fall over Yuendumu, boys descend on the football oval. They take miraculous shots at goal from the boundary, puffs of orange dust sent into the air with every kick. Earlier that day, with the desert sun still high in a cloudless sky, the Northern Territory coroner, Elisabeth Armitage, spoke in the centre of a semi-circle of plastic chairs about another Warlpiri boy, Kumanjayi Walker. She spoke of how his struggles in childhood led to trouble as a young man, trouble that led constable Zachary Rolfe, who knew none of the hardship of Walker, but had been shaped by his experiences nonetheless, to Yuendumu. 'The life experiences of Mr Rolfe are far removed from those of Kumanjayi Walker, the young man he killed during the ill-fated arrest,' Armitage said on Monday. 'That is part of the reason why neither understood why or how the other would react that day.' From the middle of the local oval you can see the red house, house 511, where Walker was shot three times by then-NT Police constable Zachary Rolfe in November 2019. Rolfe was found not guilty in March 2022 of charges of murder and manslaughter relating to Walker's death. Yuendumu is processing the coroner's 683-page findings from the inquest into Walker's death, while dealing with the death in custody of another of its young men, Walker's cousin, Kumanjayi White. White, 24, lost consciousness in the Coles supermarket in Alice Springs, surrounded by juice and chocolates, after off-duty police officers restrained him on the ground. His death is being investigated by NT police, despite calls from his family and the federal Indigenous affairs minister for an independent inquiry. Like Walker, who Armitage found was disabled, White too had disabilities and was an NDIS recipient. The remote community is trying to stay strong, buoyed up by the future – and the possibility, as outlined in Armitage's recommendations – of moving closer to local autonomy, such as community leaders say existed before the Howard government's 2007 intervention. 'The coroner talked about the racists in the Northern Territory … she has told the truth,' Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, senior Warlpiri elder and the grandfather of White, said. 'In future, when we work with the police, it needs to be two ways of working and understanding. 'The First Nations, Indigenous people, we have the first solution. We need to take back our rights, our rights to run the community and to have peace … and run business … ourselves.' Sitting to Hargraves' right as he spoke to visiting reporters was Samara Fernandez-Brown, Walker's cousin. While the pair spoke briefly on the day the findings were handed down, they spoke at greater length the next day. 'We are in a really interesting position now, where as a community we can move towards the future. And like Ned was saying, it's now our opportunity to take back control,' Fernandez-Brown said on Tuesday. 'There were recommendations around reforming authority within Yuendumu that existed prior to the intervention that stripped our community of its power. 'We look forward to having those conversations and seeing … how community is going to thrive under control of Warlpiri again and that's something that we really, really look forward to.' The pair spoke in the grounds of PAW Media, a community organisation. Shortly before they started, local kids filled the air with keyboards and drumming, jams starting again and again in the music room underneath the large antenna in the centre of town. 'No music for a little,' Hargraves shouts over his shoulder before the press conference, which he started in Warlpiri. 'We'll only be really quick. You can rip the guts out of it later.' As they spoke, loud bangs echoed through the town. It was one week after Territory Day, the only day Territorians can buy fireworks, and some that were left over were being ignited. There were also events for Naidoc week, which fell during school holidays this year. Local girls showed off new fake nails from a hair and beauty clinic that had been held in town, and makeshift games of basketball and cricket went on outside the local stadium. The Warlukurlunga Gallery, on the eastern edge of town, teamed with women painting. Others came and went, checking on their work, and showing it off, or proudly pointing out the canvases of their daughters. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion Armitage recommended creating a 10-year plan for youth in Yuendumu; an expanded night patrol in the remote community; and a review of the availability of youth services, including the provision of on-country rehabilitation and diversion services. She recommended that the Northern Territory government consult with the Yuendumu community to determine whether there is broad support for the establishment of a single, elected, remunerated, leadership group in Yuendumu as a means of providing community control over the provision of services. The model was proposed by the Parumpurru committee, made up of Yuendumu residents, who were represented at the inquest. If the creation of a leadership group was supported by the community, then Armitage recommended that the NT government implement it, including by providing governance training and support, and consider specific requirements for good governance. It should also work with the group's elected leadership to co-design its terms of reference. The NT's Country Liberal party, which won government last year after a campaign marked by promises to crack down on crime, said it 'welcomes the conclusion of this lengthy process, which has taken a significant toll on the community and the NT Police Force'. 'The government will now take the time to consider the findings and recommendations, noting that much has changed over the last six years,' a government spokesperson said. Deep in the coronial findings were also several matters that helped the family reckon with the shooting that night. This included a finding from Armitage that she was 'firmly satisfied that the account given by Mr Rolfe about Kumanjayi's hand being on his Glock cannot be accepted'. This was the account Rolfe had given for the first time during his murder trial, and had again given evidence about during the inquest, in which he alleged Walker had touched his gun shortly before he fired it. The findings that Rolfe was racist, and not a 'bad apple', but rather part of an organisation infected with institutional racism, also gave the family some comfort, even if Armitage could not clearly say Walker died because of this racism. Armitage noted, with some irony, that after Rolfe resisted racism being part of the inquest for two years, he then gave evidence which uncovered 'grotesque' racist awards within the force's tactical officers. Rolfe, for his part, released a statement via his lawyer, Luke Officer, saying he 'does not accept many of the findings' and suggesting the NT supreme court should consider the proper scope of inquests, accusing the coroner of going beyond her remit. He specifically rejected her finding that he was racist, saying: 'Insofar as some may hold a view to the contrary, this was never about race'. Counsel for the NT Police also argued against the breadth of the inquiry, writing in their final submission that the coroner did not have powers to conduct 'a roving royal commission'. Armitage wrote that the Coroners Act required her to make recommendations to prevent future deaths in similar circumstances, and granted a 'broad discretion as to the matters to be considered'. The family were concerned, however, that Armitage did not make specific recommendations to reform police accountability, given her findings about Rolfe's previous uses of force. She was satisfied that on at least five occasions, he used a level of force that was unnecessary, had concerns about the force used on a further two occasions, and found there were other instances where the use of force was avoidable. 'There were instances where Mr Rolfe used force without proper regard for the risk of injury to persons, all of whom were Aboriginal boys or men, and significant injuries were caused to suspects because of his use of force,' Armitage found. More than three years ago, when Hargraves spoke outside the tall white walls of the NT supreme court in Darwin, after Rolfe's acquittal, he shouted: 'When are we going to get justice? When?' On Tuesday, he said it was hard to know if he was any closer to justice. 'We were coming that close to end it,' he said. 'But again, something happens. Another one gets killed.' In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Indigenous Australians can call 13YARN on 13 92 76 for information and crisis support. Other international helplines can be found at
SBS Australia
10-06-2025
- SBS Australia
Indigenous man who died in police custody was a dedicated educator
A Wadeye man who died after police prevented him from boarding a flight was a senior Wadeye Elder who lobbied for bilingual schooling and better education funding for his community. A death-in-custody investigation is under way after federal police stopped the 68-year-old from joining a flight out of Darwin on May 30, on reports he was intoxicated. He was taken into "protective custody" but on arrival at Royal Darwin Hospital he was found to be unconscious, prompting medical staff to commence CPR, with resuscitation efforts proving successful. He was transferred to the intensive care unit for ongoing treatment for a suspected medical event but died there on Saturday. "The cause of the man's death remains undetermined pending a postmortem," Northern Territory police have said. "The incident is being investigated as a death in custody as the man was in the custody of the AFP at the time of him first losing consciousness." The AFP has said the man was not arrested and was "not restrained at any point by AFP officers". Aboriginal leaders from the Top End's Daly region have expressed their communities' grief over the loss of the Elder. Thamarrurr Development Corporation representing Wangga, Lirrga, Wulthirri and Tharnpa peoples confirmed in a statement he was a "much loved and respected senior man, who was a mentor to us all". "A great visionary and educator, a campaigner for a better life for his community and a respected leader, he will be greatly missed." TN was a champion for bilingual education and had produced children's books in local tribal language. In 2007 he took part in a racial discrimination action in the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission arguing Wadeye children received less than half the school funding received by other NT children. Then-federal education minister Peter Garrett announced the community would get a $7.7 million funding package in exchange for dropping its complaint . Northern Land Council chair Matthew Ryan said TN, who had been a council member, was a "quiet achiever" whose legacy would live on. "My heart goes out to his loved ones and all mob across the Wadeye and Darwin Daly regions." Opposition leader Selena Uibo said TN's loss would be "be felt deeply across the territory". "He was a respected and strong leader - valued for the guidance he provided to those he worked alongside and the outcomes he helped deliver for his community," Ms Uibo said. NT Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro said her government recognised the "pain and grief being felt" and her thoughts were with the man's family and loved ones. Catholic Bishop of Darwin Charles Gauci said he had known the Elder for many years and he was "deeply saddened at his death". "I was able to accompany him on the last day of his life, I was in the hospital with his wife and family and to pray with him and to be there with them, walking with them at this very significant time," he told the ABC. "He believed in education as empowerment and he was an educator for many years himself. "He was co-principal at the school at Wadeye and really contributed deeply and widely there for the education of young people." NT Police will prepare a report for the coroner.
The Guardian
09-06-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
We asked every Australian state why ligature points in jails had not been removed. Here are their responses
Guardian Australia has this week published an investigative series revealing the shocking death toll from inaction on known hanging points in Australian prisons. The investigation found that 57 deaths have occurred using ligature points that were known to authorities but not removed, often despite stark warnings about the dangers they posed. In one case, the same hanging point was used in a Queensland prison in 10 hanging deaths across almost two decades, despite repeated calls for it to be addressed. Each state was asked why the hanging points were not removed and what it was doing to make prisons safe. Here are the responses in full: Queensland Corrective Services takes the safety and wellbeing of prisoners in custody very seriously and all deaths in custody are subject to police investigation and Coronial inquest. Several protective measures are in place to prevent prisoners from harming themselves, including comprehensive suicide risk assessment and management plans which inform where prisoners are accommodated. All frontline QCS officers undertake mandatory training in suicide prevention and QCS' Mental Health Strategy 2022-2027 is identifying people in custody or supervision with mental ill health and assessing them early, to provide them with the supports and services needed including necessary supervision, monitoring and access to medical, psychologist, and other relevant supports. In addition, QCS is always working to ensure the infrastructure in each correctional facility minimises risks for self-harm or suicide. In Queensland, 92.9% of all secure cells have a safer cell design and prisoners identified as being at risk of self-harm are placed in the most appropriate accommodation to keep them safe. This equates to 7,550 (95.7%) built beds within secure safer cells. When the new Lockyer Valley Correctional Centre comes on-line, 93.5% of Queensland secure cells will be safer cell design compliant. This will equate to 96.2% built beds within secure safer cells. Corrective Services NSW is committed to reducing all preventable deaths in custody and continually seeks to improve the design and safety of correctional centres. The NSW Government has invested $16 million to make our prisons safer by removing ligature points. This will continue the extensive work that has already been undertaken across several facilities as part of our coordinated statewide infrastructure program to refurbish cells and remove obvious ligature points or cell furniture that could pose a self-harm risk. This has included the removal of ligature points from almost 800 cells, as well as replacing cell doors, grills, beds, basins and tapware. An additional 145 cells are expected to be completed by July 2025. In addition to ligature removal and refurbishments, Corrective Services NSW has well-established policies and procedures for the care and management of inmates identified as being at risk of self-harm or suicide. The Department of Justice has been undertaking a comprehensive program of ligature minimisation in the State's prisons since 2005, noting that it is not possible to achieve the complete elimination of all ligature points. The program to increase the number of fully ligature-minimised cells across the custodial estate is ongoing, with priority given to facilities with the highest risk and need. This work is also complemented by suicide prevention programs and risk minimisation strategies. The Department is expanding the range of services provided to meet the needs of an increased prisoner population, including those with complex mental health issues. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email This includes the Casuarina Prison Stage 2 Expansion Project which will deliver critical new infrastructure to meet future demands of high-needs or at-risk prisoners and will house 36 special purpose beds in a Mental Health Support Unit with dedicated therapeutic accommodation for prisoners with psychiatric conditions. The Department also established the Clinical Workforce Committee to develop strategies to retain specialist health and mental health staff in Corrective services. The Department is continuously strengthening protocols for managing recommendations made by oversight bodies, including the Coroners Court of Western Australia. The Department is committed to addressing all supported Coronial recommendations and considers all recommendations on a case-by-case basis. If there are practical barriers to implementing proposed recommendations, the Department works with the Coroners Court to develop alternative strategies to achieve practical outcomes that address the intent of the original recommendation. Every death in custody is a tragedy for the person's family, friends and community. It is also extremely distressing for DCS staff and first responders. DCS recognises the importance of reducing risks associated with prisoner self-harm and suicide and is committed to enhancing safe accommodation at all sites. The Department has acted on Coronial recommendations to remove hanging points and over the last decade has invested about $200 million in new infrastructure and upgrades to existing infrastructure to ensure safe cell design in prisons across the state. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion New builds at the Adelaide Women's Prison and Yatala Labour Prison which are currently underway also adhere to the safe cell standard. Upgrades to aging infrastructure and cells at various sites continue to be undertaken. A range of programs have also been implemented to identify those prisoners who are at most risk, which includes targeted culturally appropriate services for Aboriginal prisoners. The Tasmania Prison Service (TPS) has adopted a risk-based approach which has resulted in the removal of many hanging points across prisons. All new builds in the TPS comply with prison infrastructure standards and are constructed to ensure no hanging points exist. All cells for managing maximum-security prisoners and those considered to be at risk of SASH are constructed to ensure that no hanging points exist. The TPS takes an individualised approach to SASH risk and the safety of prisoners at risk of SASH is driven by structured professional judgment incorporating individual assessments, which takes into account evidence-based practice, research, and a personal assessment of the individual from a multi-disciplinary approach. Prisoners who are considered at risk of SASH following assessment are housed in units of the prison where the risk of self-harm is mitigated through various measures including decisions to limit a prisoner's movements or limit their access to clothing items, footwear, cutlery, linen or other items that may be used to cause harm. This approach is consistent with various human rights principles including treating each prisoner as an individual, minimising differences between prison life and liberty and not assuming that all prisoners are at risk of SASH. Prisoners at risk of SASH are provided mental health supports and regular interventions. We know that people coming into custody can have complex mental health issues. We take these risks very seriously and ensure prisoners are provided with the support they need and are housed in appropriate accommodation. We have strong measures in place to reduce self-harm and suicide, including specialist mental health services and clinicians on-site in prisons. Staff are also trained to identify at-risk people and make referrals. The Victorian Government continues to invest in modern prison facilities to improve the rehabilitation and safety of people in custody, such as the new Western Plains Correctional Centre opening in July. The ACT Government is committed to continuous improvement to minimise harm in our correctional facilities. ACT Corrective Services has rigorous processes in place to ensure it maintains the highest standards of care for all people in custody. The Alexander Maconochie Centre (AMC) has a Facilities Management team, which consists of highly experienced trade professionals who are well-versed in working with Custodial Operations to identify and address obvious ligature risks as part of routine maintenance and repair activities. Where ligature risks are identified, further assessments are conducted to determine remedial action required to suitably address the risk. Work required is predominantly managed by this team and frequently funded through existing operational expenditure allocations. It is therefore difficult to determine how much has been spent on ligature point prevention and remediation. However, where ligature risks have been addressed as part of a defined project, the associated costs/funding are included below. ACT Corrective Services had been provided separate reports by the ACT Coroners Court and ACT Inspector for Custodial Services into Mr Rich's death. These reports provided important insights to help prevent harmful and tragic outcomes from being repeated. Significant work has been undertaken to address the risks identified in the reports, including: upgrades to the Management Unit's rear cell doors, which were completed in May-June 2022 and cost approximately $3,500-$4,500. the commissioning of a further review into the Management Unit's rear cell doors, which is currently underway. As outlined in the ACT Government's Response to the Coroner's report, ACTCS is committed to publishing the findings to the greatest extent possible once the review is complete. release of an updated Intervention Hoffman Knife Operating Procedure, which became effective in November 2023 and states Hoffman knives are now personally issued to correctional officers. development of an ACT Corrective Services Suicide Prevention Framework, which was released in April 2025 and guides how ACT Corrective Services staff work with clients, both in the custodial and community correctional environments, to reduce suicide and suicidal behaviours, Other work to reduce cell ligature points that has been carried out or is being planned includes, but is not limited to: upgrades to cell furniture in the Management Unit, with $3,270 spent to repair identified ligature point risks. upgrades to cell furniture across various accommodation units, including to reduce potential ligature risks. This work is scheduled to be completed by May 2026, with a total estimated project cost of $174,440. Following recommendations from the NT Coroner in 2017, works to mitigate the risk of similar incidents by removing the ceiling fans [at Darwin Correctional Centre] was completed in September 2020.
