Top minister rejects external death in custody probe
Growing calls for an independent investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man have been strongly rejected by a territory's chief minister.
A lawyers' group has called for an independent probe to also investigate the Northern Territory government's failure to provide its duty of care to the man who was on the NDIS and under state care.
Kumanjayi White, a mentally disabled 24-year-old, died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers at a supermarket in Alice Springs on May 27.
Police allege the young man, originally from the desert community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him.
Police are investigating but calls have been growing for an independent inquiry to ensure impartiality and avoid issues concerning officers investigating their own.
NT Police have already ruled out an external inquiry and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro on Tuesday backed that up, saying people could have full confidence in police "to do their job".
"This now needs to take its course and I urge everyone to respect the process," she told ABC Radio Darwin.
Police investigations of deaths in custody were entirely appropriate and that was "consistent nationally", Ms Finocchiaro said.
Advocacy groups including Amnesty International and Justice Not Jails, along with Kumanjayi White's grandfather, Warlpiri elder Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, have been calling for an external inquiry.
The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest.
Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death.
The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody.
Mr Hargraves has also called for CCTV and security guard body-worn camera footage to be released to Kumanjayi White's family, saying "we do not trust police".
Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said last week an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation".
Ms Finocchiaro said she had spoken to Senator McCarthy about her comments, which she described as "entirely unhelpful".
"If she wants to support the people of Yuendumu and people concerned about this, then the best thing she can do is use her powerful voice to call for calm and confidence in the NT Police Force," she said.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance on Tuesday added its voice to calls for an external investigation to include the failure of the NT government's duty of care to Kumanjayi White.
National criminal justice spokesman Greg Barns SC said the investigation needed independent oversight.
"Unfortunately, police cannot be trusted to investigate their own, particularly in a small jurisdiction, and neither can the NT government be trusted to investigate its duty of care failure," he said in a statement.
NT Police have said their investigation would abide by strict protocols with full transparency and be independently reviewed by the coroner.
"We ask the community to allow the investigation to take its course," Acting Commissioner Martin Dole said in a statement.
"We are committed to a full and fair examination of the facts."
13YARN 13 92 76
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beyondblue 1300 22 4636
Growing calls for an independent investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man have been strongly rejected by a territory's chief minister.
A lawyers' group has called for an independent probe to also investigate the Northern Territory government's failure to provide its duty of care to the man who was on the NDIS and under state care.
Kumanjayi White, a mentally disabled 24-year-old, died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers at a supermarket in Alice Springs on May 27.
Police allege the young man, originally from the desert community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him.
Police are investigating but calls have been growing for an independent inquiry to ensure impartiality and avoid issues concerning officers investigating their own.
NT Police have already ruled out an external inquiry and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro on Tuesday backed that up, saying people could have full confidence in police "to do their job".
"This now needs to take its course and I urge everyone to respect the process," she told ABC Radio Darwin.
Police investigations of deaths in custody were entirely appropriate and that was "consistent nationally", Ms Finocchiaro said.
Advocacy groups including Amnesty International and Justice Not Jails, along with Kumanjayi White's grandfather, Warlpiri elder Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, have been calling for an external inquiry.
The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest.
Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death.
The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody.
Mr Hargraves has also called for CCTV and security guard body-worn camera footage to be released to Kumanjayi White's family, saying "we do not trust police".
Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said last week an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation".
Ms Finocchiaro said she had spoken to Senator McCarthy about her comments, which she described as "entirely unhelpful".
"If she wants to support the people of Yuendumu and people concerned about this, then the best thing she can do is use her powerful voice to call for calm and confidence in the NT Police Force," she said.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance on Tuesday added its voice to calls for an external investigation to include the failure of the NT government's duty of care to Kumanjayi White.
National criminal justice spokesman Greg Barns SC said the investigation needed independent oversight.
"Unfortunately, police cannot be trusted to investigate their own, particularly in a small jurisdiction, and neither can the NT government be trusted to investigate its duty of care failure," he said in a statement.
NT Police have said their investigation would abide by strict protocols with full transparency and be independently reviewed by the coroner.
"We ask the community to allow the investigation to take its course," Acting Commissioner Martin Dole said in a statement.
"We are committed to a full and fair examination of the facts."
13YARN 13 92 76
Lifeline 13 11 14
beyondblue 1300 22 4636
Growing calls for an independent investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man have been strongly rejected by a territory's chief minister.
A lawyers' group has called for an independent probe to also investigate the Northern Territory government's failure to provide its duty of care to the man who was on the NDIS and under state care.
Kumanjayi White, a mentally disabled 24-year-old, died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers at a supermarket in Alice Springs on May 27.
Police allege the young man, originally from the desert community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him.
Police are investigating but calls have been growing for an independent inquiry to ensure impartiality and avoid issues concerning officers investigating their own.
NT Police have already ruled out an external inquiry and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro on Tuesday backed that up, saying people could have full confidence in police "to do their job".
"This now needs to take its course and I urge everyone to respect the process," she told ABC Radio Darwin.
Police investigations of deaths in custody were entirely appropriate and that was "consistent nationally", Ms Finocchiaro said.
Advocacy groups including Amnesty International and Justice Not Jails, along with Kumanjayi White's grandfather, Warlpiri elder Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, have been calling for an external inquiry.
The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest.
Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death.
The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody.
Mr Hargraves has also called for CCTV and security guard body-worn camera footage to be released to Kumanjayi White's family, saying "we do not trust police".
Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said last week an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation".
Ms Finocchiaro said she had spoken to Senator McCarthy about her comments, which she described as "entirely unhelpful".
"If she wants to support the people of Yuendumu and people concerned about this, then the best thing she can do is use her powerful voice to call for calm and confidence in the NT Police Force," she said.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance on Tuesday added its voice to calls for an external investigation to include the failure of the NT government's duty of care to Kumanjayi White.
National criminal justice spokesman Greg Barns SC said the investigation needed independent oversight.
"Unfortunately, police cannot be trusted to investigate their own, particularly in a small jurisdiction, and neither can the NT government be trusted to investigate its duty of care failure," he said in a statement.
NT Police have said their investigation would abide by strict protocols with full transparency and be independently reviewed by the coroner.
"We ask the community to allow the investigation to take its course," Acting Commissioner Martin Dole said in a statement.
"We are committed to a full and fair examination of the facts."
13YARN 13 92 76
Lifeline 13 11 14
beyondblue 1300 22 4636
Growing calls for an independent investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man have been strongly rejected by a territory's chief minister.
A lawyers' group has called for an independent probe to also investigate the Northern Territory government's failure to provide its duty of care to the man who was on the NDIS and under state care.
Kumanjayi White, a mentally disabled 24-year-old, died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers at a supermarket in Alice Springs on May 27.
Police allege the young man, originally from the desert community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him.
Police are investigating but calls have been growing for an independent inquiry to ensure impartiality and avoid issues concerning officers investigating their own.
NT Police have already ruled out an external inquiry and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro on Tuesday backed that up, saying people could have full confidence in police "to do their job".
"This now needs to take its course and I urge everyone to respect the process," she told ABC Radio Darwin.
Police investigations of deaths in custody were entirely appropriate and that was "consistent nationally", Ms Finocchiaro said.
Advocacy groups including Amnesty International and Justice Not Jails, along with Kumanjayi White's grandfather, Warlpiri elder Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, have been calling for an external inquiry.
The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest.
Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death.
The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody.
Mr Hargraves has also called for CCTV and security guard body-worn camera footage to be released to Kumanjayi White's family, saying "we do not trust police".
Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said last week an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation".
Ms Finocchiaro said she had spoken to Senator McCarthy about her comments, which she described as "entirely unhelpful".
"If she wants to support the people of Yuendumu and people concerned about this, then the best thing she can do is use her powerful voice to call for calm and confidence in the NT Police Force," she said.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance on Tuesday added its voice to calls for an external investigation to include the failure of the NT government's duty of care to Kumanjayi White.
National criminal justice spokesman Greg Barns SC said the investigation needed independent oversight.
"Unfortunately, police cannot be trusted to investigate their own, particularly in a small jurisdiction, and neither can the NT government be trusted to investigate its duty of care failure," he said in a statement.
NT Police have said their investigation would abide by strict protocols with full transparency and be independently reviewed by the coroner.
"We ask the community to allow the investigation to take its course," Acting Commissioner Martin Dole said in a statement.
"We are committed to a full and fair examination of the facts."
13YARN 13 92 76
Lifeline 13 11 14
beyondblue 1300 22 4636
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Call for federal police to examine death in custody
Federal police should take over the investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man as a "step towards healing and justice", an Indigenous MP says. Northern Territory MP Marion Scrymgour said a criminal investigation was a job "only police can undertake" but it did not have to be conducted by NT detectives when federal police could step in. Her call comes amid growing pressure for an independent investigation into the death of mentally disabled man Kumanjayi White on May 27. He died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers in a supermarket in Alice Springs. Police allege the 24-year-old, originally from the outback community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him in the confectionery aisle. NT Police and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro have strongly rejected calls for an external investigation, saying police are the right authority to carry out an investigation coupled with a coronial inquiry. Ms Scrymgour, the federal member for Lingiari, said at the end of the day it had to be a police decision whether to lay criminal charges. "But it doesn't have to be NT Police officers who undertake the task," she said in a statement. Having the AFP take over would extract NT detectives from a role which would subject them to scrutiny and criticism as well as enable the Yuendumu community to have full confidence in the process, the MP said. "Just as happened during the COVID lockdown period, police officers from outside the NT can be brought in." Meanwhile, outspoken senator Lidia Thorpe said Friday marked five years since the global Black Lives Matter mobilisation sparked by the police killing of George Floyd in the US, with an officer's knee on his neck. "Kumanjayi White died the same way," she said in a statement on Thursday, citing an eyewitness account of the supermarket incident. "Since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1991 at least 595 of our people have died in custody ... and not a single police or prison officer has ever been held criminally accountable," the senator said. On Wednesday evening, hundreds of people attended a candle-lit vigil outside the NT parliament in tribute to Mr White and to support his grieving desert community. A large banner stating "We stand with Yuendumu" was displayed in front of the parliament's entrance while another banner laid on the ground read "Justice for White". Organisers invited people to light candles or lay flowers following speeches highlighting the mistrust of police in Aboriginal communities and the need for an external inquiry into Mr White's death. Justice Not Jails spokesperson Jade Richie said "no police should be investigating police" in a death-in-custody case. Her group is organising a "national week of action" in response to Mr White's death, with vigils planned across the country. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest. Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death. The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody. Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said on Thursday an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation". 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636 Federal police should take over the investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man as a "step towards healing and justice", an Indigenous MP says. Northern Territory MP Marion Scrymgour said a criminal investigation was a job "only police can undertake" but it did not have to be conducted by NT detectives when federal police could step in. Her call comes amid growing pressure for an independent investigation into the death of mentally disabled man Kumanjayi White on May 27. He died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers in a supermarket in Alice Springs. Police allege the 24-year-old, originally from the outback community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him in the confectionery aisle. NT Police and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro have strongly rejected calls for an external investigation, saying police are the right authority to carry out an investigation coupled with a coronial inquiry. Ms Scrymgour, the federal member for Lingiari, said at the end of the day it had to be a police decision whether to lay criminal charges. "But it doesn't have to be NT Police officers who undertake the task," she said in a statement. Having the AFP take over would extract NT detectives from a role which would subject them to scrutiny and criticism as well as enable the Yuendumu community to have full confidence in the process, the MP said. "Just as happened during the COVID lockdown period, police officers from outside the NT can be brought in." Meanwhile, outspoken senator Lidia Thorpe said Friday marked five years since the global Black Lives Matter mobilisation sparked by the police killing of George Floyd in the US, with an officer's knee on his neck. "Kumanjayi White died the same way," she said in a statement on Thursday, citing an eyewitness account of the supermarket incident. "Since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1991 at least 595 of our people have died in custody ... and not a single police or prison officer has ever been held criminally accountable," the senator said. On Wednesday evening, hundreds of people attended a candle-lit vigil outside the NT parliament in tribute to Mr White and to support his grieving desert community. A large banner stating "We stand with Yuendumu" was displayed in front of the parliament's entrance while another banner laid on the ground read "Justice for White". Organisers invited people to light candles or lay flowers following speeches highlighting the mistrust of police in Aboriginal communities and the need for an external inquiry into Mr White's death. Justice Not Jails spokesperson Jade Richie said "no police should be investigating police" in a death-in-custody case. Her group is organising a "national week of action" in response to Mr White's death, with vigils planned across the country. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest. Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death. The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody. Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said on Thursday an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation". 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636 Federal police should take over the investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man as a "step towards healing and justice", an Indigenous MP says. Northern Territory MP Marion Scrymgour said a criminal investigation was a job "only police can undertake" but it did not have to be conducted by NT detectives when federal police could step in. Her call comes amid growing pressure for an independent investigation into the death of mentally disabled man Kumanjayi White on May 27. He died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers in a supermarket in Alice Springs. Police allege the 24-year-old, originally from the outback community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him in the confectionery aisle. NT Police and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro have strongly rejected calls for an external investigation, saying police are the right authority to carry out an investigation coupled with a coronial inquiry. Ms Scrymgour, the federal member for Lingiari, said at the end of the day it had to be a police decision whether to lay criminal charges. "But it doesn't have to be NT Police officers who undertake the task," she said in a statement. Having the AFP take over would extract NT detectives from a role which would subject them to scrutiny and criticism as well as enable the Yuendumu community to have full confidence in the process, the MP said. "Just as happened during the COVID lockdown period, police officers from outside the NT can be brought in." Meanwhile, outspoken senator Lidia Thorpe said Friday marked five years since the global Black Lives Matter mobilisation sparked by the police killing of George Floyd in the US, with an officer's knee on his neck. "Kumanjayi White died the same way," she said in a statement on Thursday, citing an eyewitness account of the supermarket incident. "Since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1991 at least 595 of our people have died in custody ... and not a single police or prison officer has ever been held criminally accountable," the senator said. On Wednesday evening, hundreds of people attended a candle-lit vigil outside the NT parliament in tribute to Mr White and to support his grieving desert community. A large banner stating "We stand with Yuendumu" was displayed in front of the parliament's entrance while another banner laid on the ground read "Justice for White". Organisers invited people to light candles or lay flowers following speeches highlighting the mistrust of police in Aboriginal communities and the need for an external inquiry into Mr White's death. Justice Not Jails spokesperson Jade Richie said "no police should be investigating police" in a death-in-custody case. Her group is organising a "national week of action" in response to Mr White's death, with vigils planned across the country. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest. Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death. The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody. Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said on Thursday an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation". 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636 Federal police should take over the investigation into the death in custody of a young Aboriginal man as a "step towards healing and justice", an Indigenous MP says. Northern Territory MP Marion Scrymgour said a criminal investigation was a job "only police can undertake" but it did not have to be conducted by NT detectives when federal police could step in. Her call comes amid growing pressure for an independent investigation into the death of mentally disabled man Kumanjayi White on May 27. He died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers in a supermarket in Alice Springs. Police allege the 24-year-old, originally from the outback community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him in the confectionery aisle. NT Police and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro have strongly rejected calls for an external investigation, saying police are the right authority to carry out an investigation coupled with a coronial inquiry. Ms Scrymgour, the federal member for Lingiari, said at the end of the day it had to be a police decision whether to lay criminal charges. "But it doesn't have to be NT Police officers who undertake the task," she said in a statement. Having the AFP take over would extract NT detectives from a role which would subject them to scrutiny and criticism as well as enable the Yuendumu community to have full confidence in the process, the MP said. "Just as happened during the COVID lockdown period, police officers from outside the NT can be brought in." Meanwhile, outspoken senator Lidia Thorpe said Friday marked five years since the global Black Lives Matter mobilisation sparked by the police killing of George Floyd in the US, with an officer's knee on his neck. "Kumanjayi White died the same way," she said in a statement on Thursday, citing an eyewitness account of the supermarket incident. "Since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1991 at least 595 of our people have died in custody ... and not a single police or prison officer has ever been held criminally accountable," the senator said. On Wednesday evening, hundreds of people attended a candle-lit vigil outside the NT parliament in tribute to Mr White and to support his grieving desert community. A large banner stating "We stand with Yuendumu" was displayed in front of the parliament's entrance while another banner laid on the ground read "Justice for White". Organisers invited people to light candles or lay flowers following speeches highlighting the mistrust of police in Aboriginal communities and the need for an external inquiry into Mr White's death. Justice Not Jails spokesperson Jade Richie said "no police should be investigating police" in a death-in-custody case. Her group is organising a "national week of action" in response to Mr White's death, with vigils planned across the country. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest. Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death. The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody. Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said on Thursday an independent death in custody probe might be warranted "in the interest of having some separation". 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636
West Australian
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Darwin Candle-lit vigil for man who died in police custody, calls for inquiry into Kumanjayi White's death
Hundreds of people have attended a candle-lit vigil outside a territory's parliament in support of a desert community which has lost a second young man in a death-in-custody incident. The vigil in Darwin was held on Wednesday night amid growing calls for an independent investigation into the death of mentally disabled man Kumanjayi White on May 27. He died shortly after being forcibly restrained by two plain-clothes police officers in a supermarket in Alice Springs. Police allege the the 24-year-old, originally from the outback community of Yuendumu, was shoplifting and had assaulted a security guard who confronted him in the confectionery aisle. At Wednesday's vigil a large banner stating 'We stand with Yuendumu' was displayed in front of the parliament's entrance while another banner laid on the ground read 'Justice for White'. Organisers invited people to put lighted candles or flowers on that banner following speeches about the mistrust of police in Aboriginal communities and the need for an external inquiry into Mr White's death. Several women elders of the Warlpiri people wailed in grief as the tributes were laid. Justice Not Jails spokesperson Jade Richie said 'no police should be investigating police' in a death-in-custody case. Her group is organising a 'national week of action' in response to Mr White's death in custody, with vigils planned across the country. NT Police and Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro have strongly rejected calls for an external investigation, saying police are the right authority to carry out an investigation coupled with a coronial inquiry. On Wednesday the Central Land Council (CLC) representing Indigenous people in the NT's dry desert centre called on the federal government to withhold funding from the NT government. The council wants an independent police conduct commission to be set up with adequate funding so an independent inquiry led by the NT coroner can be concluded within a year. 'Unlike most jurisdictions the NT lacks a body to investigate police misconduct and has failed to overhaul the culture of its police force,' CLC chair Warren Williams said in a statement. 'But let me be clear, only money will force the NT government to act. Our lives are worth less than a chocolate bar to those in power and money is the only language they understand.' Mr Williams said measures must target officers with 'a history of complaints and racist attitudes' so Indigenous communities could regain confidence in the police after trust has been eroded. The Yuendumu community also lost 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in 2019 when he was fatally shot by then NT police officer Zachary Rolfe during a bungled arrest. Mr Rolfe was in 2022 found not guilty of all charges over the death. The Kumanjayi Walker coronial findings have been postponed until July 7 after Kumanjayi White's death in custody. Federal Indigenous Australians Minister Malarndirri McCarthy said on Thursday an independent death in custody probe might be warranted 'in the interest of having some separation'. 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14 beyondblue 1300 22 4636
