🔗 Share this article Indigenous Deaths in Detention in the Nation Climb to Highest Number Since 1980 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners account for over 30% of the country's total prison inmates. The count of First Nations people dying while in custody in Australia has reached its record point since records began in 1980. Fresh statistics indicate that 33 of the 113 individuals who died in custody in the year ending in June have been identified as of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. This marks an uptick from 24 deaths in the prior equivalent period. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people remain grossly represented in the justice system. They make up over 33% of all incarcerated individuals, despite comprising under 4% of the national population. These sobering statistics emerge over three decades after a pivotal inquiry into First Nations deaths in custody, which put forward hundreds of recommendations. Breakdown of the Latest Statistics Of the 33 Indigenous deaths in custody recorded between last July and this June, twenty-six took place while in prison custody, which is an increase from 18 in the previous year. One death was in youth detention, and all except one of the individuals were male. The other six fatalities happened in police custody, defined as a situation where someone dies while police are detaining them. The leading reason of First Nations deaths was classified as "self-harm," with "natural causes." The report noted that asphyxiation was the method in eight of the cases. Geographic Breakdown The Australian state of New South Wales had the greatest number of Indigenous deaths in prison custody with nine, followed by 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 tragedy," the state's coroner has stated. In a recent statement, Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan stressed that this upward trend was not "just statistics" and that these deaths demanded "independent and careful examination, dignity and responsibility." Profile Details and Expert Response The average age of those who died was 45, and eleven of the individuals were still waiting for a sentence. A university associate professor, Amanda Porter, characterised the data as reflecting a "national emergency" that needs "decisive action and government action." Ms. Porter, who has been present at multiple official inquiries with bereaved families, said little has changed since the 1991 national inquiry that was established to address this crisis. "It's infuriating to see the quantity of inquests I attend, the many funerals families have to attend, and the fact that we are 30 years after the royal commission, and the problem is getting progressively worse," she noted. Since the landmark inquiry, a total of 600 First Nations people have lost their lives in custody, which encompasses six in juvenile detention centers, as per the report.