Local Aboriginal leaders condemn failure to implement visitor schemes after death at Albany Regional Prison

Local Aboriginal leaders have slammed poor in-prison support as a “grave injustice” after an Aboriginal man died in custody on Thursday afternoon, saying the failure to implement visitor schemes has worsened the mental health of prisoners. The 41-year-old Aboriginal man was found by prison officers in his cell at Albany Regional Prison at about 1.20pm. Prison staff provided first aid until paramedics arrived at the site. St John WA confirmed the inmate was taken to Albany Health Campus and arrived just after 2pm but was unable to be revived. In a statement on Friday morning, the Department of Justice Corrective Services confirmed the death. “As is mandatory for all deaths in custody, WA Police will investigate and provide a report to the State Coroner,” the statement said. “Support services have been offered to staff and prisoners.” In 2021–22, the Australian Institute of Criminology recorded 106 deaths in custody of which 84 were in prison. Indigenous people made up 19 per cent of prison deaths in custody, despite only representing 3.8 per cent of the Australian population. Menang woman and human rights activist Megan Krakouer, who is the director of the National Suicide Prevention and Trauma Recovery Project, said the “catastrophic failure” of the implementation of recommendations from the royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody was leading to more deaths in custody. “In the royal commission into Aboriginal deaths in custody in 1991, there were 339 recommendations, all recommendations that have yet to be implemented,” she said. “That is a catastrophic failure, and it gives rise to more people passing in the prison system.” Ms Krakouer also said inmates had not been given access to counselling and support services in the days following the death. “A prison usually goes into lockdown when there’s been a person that’s passed away.” “I’m told that the boys in unit three were not able to access any counselling whatsoever until this week.” “That is a grave injustice, and it goes to the heart of mental health and also trauma recovery to be denied.” Ms Krakouer was critical of the lack of implementation of Aboriginal visitor schemes as a result of the royal commission and is concerned about the impact of “excessive” lockdowns on the mental health of inmates. “The Aboriginal resource scheme needs to be mandated and properly resourced,” she said. “They need to be able to go into prisons and provide support to the people in prisons on a daily basis. “It is a fact that it does have an impact on a person’s mental health, you see the decline, you see the trauma becomes unaddressed because the trauma is not able to be validated. “In terms of the amount of people that are passing away in prison, it’s catastrophic. “And already we have seen since the royal commission over 550 souls passed away in custodial settings, whether it be in prison or in police watch houses.” Activist and Ngalla Koort founder and managing director Mervyn Eades echoed Ms Krakouer’s sentiments, remarking on the anger felt by the Aboriginal community. “They’re angry that he’s passed away, and they’re angry at corrective services,” he said. “None of the support recommendations of the royal commission are being implemented, it’s like it’s falling on deaf ears.” Mr Eades also said the failure to implement the recommendation to require community access to prisons has contributed to the rising number of Aboriginal deaths in custody. “It was to allow community access to prisons to have yarns with boys and girls,” he said. “This is not happening anymore, and that’s why there’s been such a rise in deaths in custody. “It’s just repetitive and it’s hard to keep going, and it will keep happening until they start having input from the community. “This is a prevention measure that should be taken very, very, very seriously.” A spokesperson for the Department of Justice denied the claims that prisons did not have access to support. “Since Friday morning, prisoners have been able to access counselling and pastoral services, including an Aboriginal Prison Support Officer and the Prison Chaplain,” they said. “Some prisoners were afforded additional time out of cell on Friday to support each other and there are also plans to carry out a traditional cultural ceremony and memorial service at the prison. “All prisoners are able to self-refer for support services.” The spokesperson went on to detail the “significant resources and staff” that the department devotes to prisoner mental health and wellbeing, including 24-hour CCTV monitoring and hourly observations for at-risk prisoners, a Suicide Prevention Governance Unit to improve suicide prevention practices in prisons, and visitor and peer support programs to provide support and cultural expertise to people in custody at higher risk of self-harm or suicide. Lifeline: 13 11 14