The Royal Commission

In August 1987 the Royal Commission Into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody was set up to investigate the large numbers of Indigenous people who had died while in police custody, or in prison, since the beginning of that decade. By the late 1980s, Indigenous Australians were more likely to go to jail than white Australians. They were also more likely to be given a custodial sentence for a first offence. As a part of the investigation, the commission was asked to look into the underlying causes as to why these numbers were so high.

The report, published in April 1991, focused on the deaths of 99 Aboriginal people who had died in custody between January 1980 and May 1989. They had all died for different reasons but the report showed that there was an overall deficiency of care among the custodians (police and prison guards) for the Indigenous detainees. Written by five commissioners and led by Elliot Johnson QC the commission made over 330 recommendations to the federal government. While it showed that the numbers of Indigenous and non-Indigenous deaths in custody were similar, it also showed that Aboriginal peoples were over-represented in the criminal justice system and they were more likely (than white offenders) to be given a prison sentence for a minor offence. See image 1

Of the 99 Indigenous people who died in that period, 63 were held in police custody, 33 were held in prison custody and 3 were held in juvenile detention centres. 40 were not educated beyond primary school level, 83 of them were unemployed, 43 had been removed from their families by the state as children, 74 of them had been in trouble with the police before they were 20 years old, and 59 of them had died in Western Australia or Queensland. The most frequent offence was public drunkenness.

The royal commission did not find that individual police or prison officers were responsible for any of the deaths in which foul play was suspected. But it did say that too many of them had died because custodial care was not what it should have been. It also condemned many of the police investigations into the deaths, saying they were incompetent and inadequate. In the case of one man who hanged himself in a police cell, the investigation had been closed within two hours. No statements were taken from other prisoners or photos taken, nor was any of the evidence kept, like the sheet used as a noose.

The report highlighted negative and racist attitudes towards Indigenous people among police officers and prison guards. It also confirmed the fact that areas where Indigenous people lived and gathered had a higher police presence than 'white' areas. See image 2

In respect of the deaths caused by suicide, the report also said that more should be done to asses the mental state of Aboriginal prisoners, especially with young men who were at more risk of killing themselves. It said that they should be monitored carefully and not left in a cell alone where there were obvious hanging points.

The over-representation of Indigenous people in police custody was a major factor highlighted by the Commissioners. This means that even though the Indigenous population is much lower than the white population, when the numbers of each group who were in custody were compared, Aboriginal peoples were 29 times more likely to end up in custody. 32 out of the 99 Indigenous people who died were from Western Australia, yet Aboriginal peoples only made up 2.7 per cent of the state's population. Out of a population of only just over 1000 Aboriginal people, 32 of them had died while in police custody. See image 3 and animation

The commission was also asked to look into the underlying reasons as to why such a disproportionate number of Indigenous Australians were ending up in the criminal justice system. It found:

'The most significant contributing factor is the disadvantaged and unequal position in which Aboriginal people find themselves in the society - socially, economically and culturally.'

Elliott Johnson and the other commissioners concluded that 200 years of white domination had played a major part in producing these shocking statistics. Their report stated Aboriginal society was plagued by alcohol abuse, drugs and crime, education and employment rates were extremely low and health issues were rife. These social factors were given as the main reason why more Aboriginal Australians became involved in crime. The publication of the report also helped to bring the plight of the 'Stolen Generations' into public knowledge for the first time. Nearly half of those who had died had been taken away from their families as children.

The report said that Indigenous Australians had been failed by successive State and federal governments. The protection and assimilation policies had served to destroy the traditional laws and values of Aboriginal society. Self-determination and empowerment of Aboriginal people was put forward as the way to end the destructive cycle in which many Aboriginal people seemed to live.

Diversionary programmes were recommended as a way to stop so many Aboriginal people ending up in custody. Some of those who had died had been in gaol over an unpaid fine. The commissioners said that in cases where minor offences had been committed, community service programmes should be implemented instead of custodial sentences.

In June 1992 the Keating government announced that $150 million was to be spent on implementing the recommendations in the royal commission report. Programmes concentrating on drug and alcohol abuse in Indigenous communities were also introduced. Deaths in custody still continue (in the white community as well as the Aboriginal), but as a result of the royal commission report they are now less frequent.