Not providing basic medical care to mentally impaired prisoners such as Ashley Bropho is a denial of the fundamental human right and reflects badly on our society,argues long-time prisoner right activist Gerry Georgatos.
The death of Ashley Bropho days after details of his horrific sex crime is now regarded by homicide detectives as suspicious.
Coroners,legal advocates,doctors and the NSW Inspector of Custodial Services all say the same thing:inmates need better healthcare.
An inquest into the deaths of two women at Queensland Police watch houses has heard a custody officer raised concerns that he could not see into certain cells to perform safety observations.
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus stopped short of backing Aboriginal senator Pat Dodson’s calls for immediate action,saying government work was already under way.
The cover-ups began immediately following Veronica Nelson’s death and continued for years after,even while the coronial inquest into her passing was under way.
Indigenous Australians have continued to die in custody at an appallingly disproportionate rate.
GRAPHIC CONTENT:Unnecessary pain,suffering and death is rampant in prisons because of understaffing and indifference,particularly towards Indigenous people,whistleblowers say.
After reviewing the inhumane jailhouse death of Veronica Nelson,coroner Simon McGregor has called for a sweeping overhaul of bail laws that put the vulnerable at risk.
Three years ago Veronica Nelson died alone on the floor of her prison cell. Her alleged crime,shoplifting. Her mother is urging the state government to act on a coroner’s findings,to be released on Monday.
The treatment of an Indigenous woman in prison caused her preventable death,a coroner will find,and has sparked a call for far-reaching change.