In Australia Aboriginal people are far more likely to be arrested than non-Aboriginal people, and account for a quarter of all deaths in custody. It has been said that “the Justice system of Australia still has a long way to go in responding effectively to the needs of Indigenous people trapped in the cycle of the criminal justice system and, more particularly, in preventing deaths in custody (Corrin and Douglas, 2008, p.531). Reasons for this can be attributed to the mistrust of the police, laws around drinking that are seen as unfair by the community, perceived double standards of those working in the police force, the failure of the justice system to implement alternatives to detaining and holding arrested people in custody, failure of police to assess health of people being detained, investigations that seem to be biased and not carried out ethically, and the failure of the justice system to act upon recommendations made to them. The article states that there is a longstanding resentment and mistrust of the police by members of Aboriginal communities, this is understandable as the police were often the frontline workers responsible for enforcing laws set by the government around removal of people (especially children) and enforcement of drinking laws and bans. The article states that Aboriginal people are more likely to drink in public than non-Indigenous Australians due to exclusions from drinking venues. This, in turn, makes them more likely to be arrested for being drunk in public. Some have questioned the legitimacy of the law against drinking in public. If it was not against the law to drink in public in Queensland, as it is not it other states, Mulrunji may not have been picked up in the first place. There are also impressions of double standards; Mulrunji was originally picked up, not only for being drunk, but for swearing. Officer Bengaroo stated that people on Palm Island, including members of the police force often swear but the only time they were arrested for this is if they swore at police; and he had never heard of a police officer being arrested for swearing. This perceived double standard could further enhance tensions between the police and the rest of the community. Aside from arresting Mulrunji, there are other procedures that could have been implemented that could have helped prevent Mulrunji’s death. Officers have the option to serve a letter to offenders and have them appear in court on a later date, this means that there is no need for the person to be detained at all. If. There are also other alternatives such as diversion centres, people who are arrested are cared for by health professionals, or, having detainees returned home to be cared for family members. In the Mulrunji case however, neither of the above alternatives were considered by Hurley when making the arrest. The fact that Hurley went out of his way to arrest and detain Mulrunji, rather than explore additional options, could indicate that Hurley did not care about what was best for Mulrunji. There have been investigations into Aboriginal deaths in custody deaths; however, these investigations have been seen as being flawed.
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The investigation in to the Mulrunji case was performed by friends of Hurley, he had picked them up from the airport, made them lunch and drank with them before the investigation commenced; these officers were not detached from the case. Aside from this, these police officers were seen to make “errors of judgment”, and the investigation was not thorough for reasons such as the cell was never being declared a crime scene. Further to this police are the main informants to the coroner completing the inquest. It also seems that the police handling of the case was biased and unethical, this can further enhance the distrust that people in the community have of the police. These elements led to calls for the case to be looked into again. The next inquisition showed the justice system had failed to implement recommendations made by both the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and from the coroner, both prior to, and after Mulrunji’s death. This article demonstrates how inadequacies within the criminal justice system can hinder relationships between police and Aboriginal communities. Laws need to
The investigation in to the Mulrunji case was performed by friends of Hurley, he had picked them up from the airport, made them lunch and drank with them before the investigation commenced; these officers were not detached from the case. Aside from this, these police officers were seen to make “errors of judgment”, and the investigation was not thorough for reasons such as the cell was never being declared a crime scene. Further to this police are the main informants to the coroner completing the inquest. It also seems that the police handling of the case was biased and unethical, this can further enhance the distrust that people in the community have of the police. These elements led to calls for the case to be looked into again. The next inquisition showed the justice system had failed to implement recommendations made by both the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and from the coroner, both prior to, and after Mulrunji’s death. This article demonstrates how inadequacies within the criminal justice system can hinder relationships between police and Aboriginal communities. Laws need to