“What this policy does for Aboriginal families is destructive. While the national rate of Indigenous over-representation in police custody reduced between 1988 and Other data has shown Indigenous Australians were remarkably over-policed for public nuisance offences in Queensland. 37 Further, Indigenous people account for 81.6 per cent of those in police custody. Affairs and Northern Development’s (DIAND) 1971 Circular 55 policy on policing Aboriginal communities, and (3) the First Nations Policing Policy (FNPP) approved by the federal government in 1991. Other data has shown Indigenous Australians were remarkably over-policed for public nuisance offences in Queensland. Video footage also showed an Aboriginal man being arrested and hit by police in Adelaide, in June 2020. Available for everyone, funded by readers. “If that legislation is by their own admission resulting in discriminatory outcomes where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults are less likely to receive a caution than non-Aboriginal people, why has there not been reform to get rid of that systemic discrimination?”. None of this is new to Julie Tongs, the chief executive of the ACT’s Winnunga Nimmityjah Aboriginal Health Service, which does outreach in Canberra’s jail and runs drug counselling and support programs. The relationship between Aboriginal communities and police continues to be a pressing issue in contemporary debates about criminal justice reform in Australia. “Bringing young people before the court for minor offending risks entrenching them in the criminal justice system.”. The 98% — over-policing, suicide and Aboriginal youth in the NT. Other reasons varied over a range of factors with recruitment by a member of the police force and self- 185 policing agreements, policing a population of approximately 432,000 people; and. “But we’ve got a lot of very angry young people and there will be an uprising. There have been financial, consultative, and democratic efforts geared towards addressing the … Only about 3.5% of the Queensland population is Indigenous. 1299 police officers in over 450 First Nation and Inuit communities. He explores police history and police culture, the nature of Aboriginal offending and the prevalence of over-policing, the use of police discretion, the particular circumstances of Aboriginal youth and Aboriginal women, the experience of community policing and the key police responses to Aboriginal … ACT Policing has dedicated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Liaison Officers (ALOs) who are part of our Community Safety – Community Engagement Team. She said academics were asked to sign deeds around how they would use the information before it was released, and that it was virtually impossible for the public to navigate the system. The Program operates in accordance with the First Nations Policing Policy, a national framework for the provision of policing services in First Nation and Inuit communities. there was a decline in both services in 2007, marginal among the sas but more among rcmp. These examples have occurred over the past few months, but police brutality is a practice that has occured since colonisation. But despite those attempts to deflect criticism, the Guardian this week revealed an extraordinary disparity in the way Indigenous Australians were treated when caught with small amounts of cannabis. There have been financial, consultative, and democratic efforts geared towards addressing the issue not only by the Federal Government but also the State. It takes over-policing it to the next level and formalises it," she said. The rate was 63.73% for non-Indigenous people. That includes decisions by police on who they target, who they stop and search, and who they offer warnings, cautions, and other diversions away from the courts. He explores police history and police culture, the nature of Aboriginal offending and the prevalence of over-policing, the use of police discretion, the particular circumstances of Aboriginal youth and Aboriginal women, the experience of community policing and the key police responses to Aboriginal … During the 1980s, there was renewed concern over Aboriginal deaths in police custody. One part of this depressing and seemingly inexorable process is the behaviour of police. 12. “It’s our kids, it’s our mums and our dads [and] we all know that once people have that contact with the justice system they are just so much more likely to get stuck in that quicksand.”. Providing this level of policing in remote communities is estimated to require an Much has changed in the policing world since the early 1990s, when the First Nations Policing Policy was first introduced. Aboriginal Offenders, Report 96, NSWLRC, Sydney 2000, para 1.46. 13. Last modified on Fri 12 Jun 2020 21.01 BST. “I think it’s conscious, the withholding of data, because the police collect it but they don’t want that oversight. About 12.07% of Indigenous Australians caught with cannabis in regional NSW received a caution, significantly less than the 27.52% of non-Indigenous offenders. Recommendation 88 - Over-Policing That Police Services in their ongoing review of the allocation of resources should closely examine, in collaboration with Aboriginal organisations, whether there is a sufficient emphasis on community policing. In regional NSW, 80.57% of Indigenous Australians were taken to court for such offences. At the same time, Aboriginal people are also under-policed. Community policing has six characteristics which give it a great deal of potential for improving the policing of Aboriginal people: • Community policing is decentralized. Western Australian Police also issue Aboriginal drivers with more on-the-spot fines than other person in that state which suggests racist attitudes. She still remembers 40 years ago, when her children were targeted by police as they came home from school. This process included regional meetings, stakeholder-led events, and a national online survey. The federal and provincial/territorial governments each provide funding for these agreements. 4.1 Views on current policing in remote communities 43 4.2 Improving and enhancing policing in remote communities 45 Chapter 5 Service standards, models and strategies 49 5.1 Resource planning 49 5.2 Service models 56 5.3 Development of service delivery standards in the NT 62 5.4 Role of the community and service providers 66 Aboriginal Legal Service chief executive Karly Warner remembers sitting in a Victorian courtroom during one of her first cases as a lawyer in about 2014 and thinking “what are we doing here?”. Cunneen, (2001) in Australia, the Aboriginal Australians in prisons and courts are grossly over-represented. Over-Policing among the Australian Indigenous Communities. “Notwithstanding, policing approaches; the types of policing interactions that occur with Aboriginal people and their communities; and the mechanisms employed by the NSW PF to … Researchers like Anthony have had to fight for information, or otherwise rely on media reporting, like the Guardian Australia’s Deaths Inside project, a count of Indigenous deaths in custody. Police Act 1998 (SA) s 24. The consequences are still a blight on Indigenous communities more than ten years later, as is over-policing. The state also has a cannabis caution regime, designed to keep people out of the justice system for such minor offences. The relationship between Aboriginal communities and police continues to be a pressing issue in contemporary debates about criminal justice reform in Australia. Aboriginal drivers receive 3.2 times more fines from being pulled over than non-Aboriginal people. © 2021 Guardian News & Media Limited or its affiliated companies. OPI The Office of Police Integrity Police Aboriginal Liaison Officer This is a sworn member of Victoria Police whose role is to work with Aboriginal Community Liaison Officers and Koori communities to build strong relationships between operational police and Koori communities. The impact of over-policing is that Aboriginal people come before the court in large numbers because Aboriginal communities or communities where Aboriginal people live are policed more aggressively than other communities…. Aboriginal people are both over- and under-policed. Section 28 of the Summary Offences Act. Policing services are supported through tripartite policing agreements among the federal government, provincial or territorial governments, and First Nation or Inuit communiti… There must be careful consideration and consultation on the question of appointing Aborigines to perform a policing role within Aboriginal communities, especially traditionally oriented ones. PIAC’s Indigenous Justice Project, generously supported by law firm Allens, has sought to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in detention through strategic litigation in relation to police powers. Just this year, a four-month-old baby died following the arrest of her twenty-one-year-old mother by NT police. I really believe there will be a riot at this jail any day because of the racism.”. But if you compare fines issued based on traffic camera incidents, the proportions are almost even. Aboriginal drivers receive 3.2 times more fines from being pulled over than non-Aboriginal people. “And I remember, in that moment, just thinking why have we got this young person, taken out of school, not with their friends, their community, not safely with their family, why have we brought them into this formal court setting, using a bunch of taxpayer money, when instead we could very easily be putting things in place to support this child? Pandolfini said the high rate of incarceration for Indigenous Australians can only be reversed by tackling every decision made “at every step of the criminal justice system”. Stemming from the Permanent Bilateral Mechanisms, on June 12th, 2017, the Government of Canada and the Assembly of First Nations signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Joint Priorities. I still remember just thinking ‘why?’.”. So I don’t think it’s an accident or negligence, I actually think there’s a deliberate withholding of data, “The thing is, systematic racism is not someone else’s problem,” she said. Google Scholar | Crossref. The Black Lives Matter protests that swept the globe following the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in the US have cast a rare spotlight on the way Indigenous people are treated in Australia’s justice system. “All this stuff that’s been happening overseas, we’re a fairly placid mob, compared to over there,” Tongs said. Police Act 1998 (SA) s 24. Other Police Services when asked how they were recruited. But Warner questioned why the restrictions around the scheme still existed if it was leading to “discriminatory” outcomes. In Sydney, Aboriginal man Kris Bradshaw was tasered in the face and was thrown to the ground in June 2020. Aboriginal people are grossly over-represented before the courts and in our gaols. Over-Policing among the Australian Indigenous Communities. “If there was a group of black kids and a group of white kids, or a mixture of both going home from school, they’d target the black group,” Tongs said. Piac principal solicitor Camilla Pandolfini said the research clearly shows that the earlier a young person is involved in the criminal justice system, the more likely they are to be entrenched. These discussions cover a wide range of issues, including policing in Indigenous communities. But if you compare fines issued based on traffic camera incidents, the proportions are almost even. Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer and Police Aboriginal Liaison Officer Programs: Koori staff (ACLOs) and Police (PALOs) in police stations that build relationships between police and the local Koori community, and strengthen mutual understanding. P Police have made reforms to their practice and procedures over the last 25 years and these have irrevocably changed the culture of police. Finally, the suspension of the rule of law and the use of violence against Indigenous people was also contextualised and legitimated within racialised constructions of … Senior figures both in governments and the police have walked a careful line between acknowledging unequal treatment of Indigenous people in the justice system and attempting to distance Australia’s history from the US. 14.94 Police culture was identified by RCIADIC as contributing to the over-policing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people back in 1991. The rate was 52.29% for the non-Indigenous population. Critical Criminology, 14(4): 411–444. Tongs says the disparity of treatment is not isolated to policing. (to 54%) • there was much agreement too, among all officers about what is important to do in policing aboriginal communities. In 2017, University of Queensland professor Tamara Walsh obtained data showing about one in four of all adults and more than 40% of children charged with public nuisance were Indigenous. The cautions are issued at the discretion of individual police. More detailed analysis shows the trend is more pronounced in greater Sydney, where 86.42% of Indigenous Australians caught with low-level amounts of cannabis were taken to court, compared with 46.12% for non-Indigenous offenders. “So I don’t think it’s an accident or negligence, I actually think there’s a deliberate withholding of data.”. Over the past 30 years, a number of commissions and inquiries have had an impact on policing in Indigenous communities and on the relationships between Indigenous communities and the criminal justice system. Anyone with a history of drug offences, sexual offences or any offence involving violence is ineligible, and police can only give two warnings per individual. The Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer (ACLO) is a member of the Local Area Command, Crime Management Team with the responsibility for providing advice and support to Police in the management of Aboriginal issues across the Local Area Command (LAC). In Western Australia, Aboriginal drivers received 3.2 times more fines after being pulled over than non-Aboriginal drivers, according to data obtained by the Guardian from an internal police briefing note that described the disparity as “clearly disturbing”. police stationed in their community, or are within one hour of police stationed in a neighbouring community or regional centre and have an overnight facility from which these police are able to stay and operate for extended periods each week. Only 11.41% of Indigenous Australians found with cannabis were let off with such cautions, compared with 40.03% for non-Indigenous people. These investments will support First Nation and Inuit communities to ensure their policing infrastructure meets building, policing facility, and health and safety standards. The number one factor was through contact with a family member or friend - overall (33% of the sample) and for both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal officers (34% and 28% respectively). “I mean, it’s a chocolate bar, and they’re a kid who’s hungry. In NSW, police took 82.55% of all Indigenous people found with a non-indictable quantity of cannabis to court. Commissions and Inquiries Related to Indigenous Policing and Justice in Canada. On September 8th, 2016, Minister Goodale launched a national stakeholder engagement process on policing in Indigenous communities. "The STMP targets people who have committed crimes in the past. Through Budget 2017, the Government of Canada allocated $13.7 million over two years to support new Permanent Bilateral Mechanisms with three National Indigenous Organizations – the Assembly of First Nations, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, and the Métis National Council – where Indigenous leaders can engage with federal Ministers to develop policy on shared priorities and to monitor progress moving forward. Public Safety Canada provides funding to support policing services that are professional, dedicated and responsive to the First Nation and Inuit communities they serve. Crimes Act. Most police forces do not release detailed breakdowns of their interactions with Indigenous Australians, NSW being a notable exception. Critical Criminology, 14(4): 411–444. Policing in Australia was at the forefront of the murder of Aboriginal people during the period of direct dispossession of land, whether directly through punitive expeditions resulting in large scale massacres or through the protection of settlers who engaged in their own forms of violent control. What are the major sources of concern, in relation to Aboriginal over-representation in the criminal justice system and what efforts have been made to reduce this over-representation? Often police officers assumed the role of Aboriginal Protector under these Acts and exercised broad powers over Aboriginal lives. In 2017, University of Queensland professor Tamara Walsh obtained data … the NT, the Indigenous police custody rate was 2841.9 per 100 000, which is 12.1 times higher than the non-Indigenous rate of 234.9 per 100 000. “They don’t want that interrogation by the public, because it makes them accountable. Despite the ramifications of over-policing, there remains a paucity of data, publicly at least. Policing in Aboriginal communities. ... Under- and over-policing Native American communities. 11. “I want to listen very carefully to hear what you have to say and to benefit from the advice and the wisdom that you represent.”. -The Honourable Ralph Goodale, Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, speaking at the Assembly of First Nations’ Indigenous Public Safety and Policing Forum on March 30, 2016 in Regina, SK. Similarly the New South Wales police commissioner, Mick Fuller, dismissed anti-police sentiment as the result of “something that happened in another country” in Sydney tabloid the Daily Telegraph. August 24, 2016. This includes working more closely with Indigenous organizations and communities to support shared priorities and better address their needs. Gathering input on best practices and areas for improvement from a wide range of stakeholders, Public Safety Canada officials engaged with Indigenous organizations and communities, provincial and territorial governments, police services and associations, and academic experts. “people’s treatment in custody or things like that”, “something that happened in another country”, extraordinary disparity in the way Indigenous Australians were treated. Cunneen, (2001) in Australia, the Aboriginal Australians in prisons and courts are grossly over-represented. ... PIAC’s Indigenous Justice Project, generously supported by law firm Allens, has sought to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in detention through strategic litigation in relation to police … “You do get to the point where you come to the conclusion that it’s deliberate, that this is essentially a cover up,” she told Guardian Australia. “Research consistently shows that the earlier a young person is involved with the criminal justice system, the more likely they are to become further involved in that system,” she said. A police officer has been charged with murder in connection with the shooting. Fatal policing in the home was the fate of Kumunjayi Walker, a 19-year-old Warlpiri man from the central Australian Aboriginal community of Yuendumu. 4. Western Australian Police also issue Aboriginal drivers with more on-the-spot fines than other person in that state which suggests racist attitudes. 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