Issue # 1412      27 May 2009

Fall in custody deaths – but imprisonment levels high

Darren Coyne

Aboriginal people remain seriously over-represented in Australian jails but fewer are dying in custody, according to new figures. The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) has released the 2007 Deaths in Custody in Australia report, which shows a decline in the number of recorded Indigenous deaths in prison, or police custody since 1997.

The report found that five of 45 deaths in prison custody in 2007 were Indigenous people, while four of 29 deaths in police custody were Indigenous people. Of seven hanging deaths in prison, one was an Indigenous person.

AIC General Manager of Research Judy Putt said the report’s overall findings were generally positive, with 2007 recording the smallest proportion of self-inflicted deaths in prison, and the smallest number of hangings in overall custody since data collection began.

“The findings also indicate a decrease in overall Indigenous deaths since 1980. However, the period following release is discussed as a critical factor in a prisoner’s risk of death,” she said. Of concern, the report acknowledges that Indigenous people remain over-represented in the criminal justice system.

The Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1987 found that Indigenous people were over-represented in prisons and their rate of death was relatively high.

“As was the case during the years of the Royal Commission, Indigenous people continue to be over-represented in custody in all Australian states and territories,” the report said.

“Indigenous people comprise almost three percent of the total Australian population but account for over half (54 percent) of youths in juvenile detention, just over one quarter (26 percent) of people involved in police custody incidents and almost one quarter (24 per cent) of the prison population,” the report said.

The report said recent statistics showed that Indigenous juveniles were 21 times more likely to be detained than non-Indigenous juveniles.

“Rates of detention for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous juveniles have decreased since 1994, although the decrease for non-Indigenous juveniles is considerably greater than that of Indigenous juveniles (38 percent versus 24 percent),” it said.

“Similarly, Indigenous persons were 17 times more likely than non-Indigenous persons to be arrested or detained by police and accounted for 26 percent of all police custody incidents across Australia in 2002.

“In the most recent prison census data, the rate of imprisonment of Indigenous persons was 13 times higher than the rate of imprisonment of non-Indigenous persons.”

In New South Wales, which has an Indigenous population of 2.5 percent, 20 percent of prisoners were Indigenous, 16.3 percent of police custody incidents involved Indigenous people, and 45.4 percent of juveniles in detention were Indigenous.

Staggering

In the Northern Territory, which has an Indigenous population of 29.2 percent, 81.6 percent of police custody incidents involved Indigenous people, a staggering 96 percent of juveniles in detention were Indigenous, and 84 percent of the prison population was Indigenous.

And in Western Australia, which has an Indigenous population of 3.8 percent, Indigenous juveniles accounted for 67.6 percent of those in detention, 42.9 percent in prison, and 45.9 percent in police custody.

Figures from the other states and territories also show Indigenous people are more likely to be locked up at a greater rate than non-Indigenous people. Despite the shocking figures, Dr Putt said there were some positives.

“The proportion of Indigenous to non-Indigenous deaths in police custody dropped to one in ten deaths in 2007, its lowest point since 2001,” she said. “The report also showed the smallest proportion of self-inflicted deaths in prison and the smallest number of hangings in custody since the program’s establishment in 1980.”

The full report can be viewed by visiting the Australian Institute of Criminology website –
www.aic.gov.au.

The Koori Mail

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