Aboriginal woman’s death in custody in NT prompts calls for independent investigation | Indigenous Australians

The Northern Territory’s peak Aboriginal legal service has called for an independent investigation following the death of a 44-year-old Aboriginal mother at Tennant Creek lookout last Saturday.

NT police said his death resulted from a medical incident in his cell on December 27 following his arrest for alleged aggravated assault on Christmas Day.

NT police’s major crime unit is currently investigating under the supervision of the police’s professional standards command.

On Friday, Ben Grimes, chief executive of the Northern Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA), said the internal investigation did not give the family or the wider Aboriginal community confidence in a fair outcome.

“NAAJA’s long-standing view is that internal police investigations following an Aboriginal death in custody are not sufficient to ensure accountability or public confidence,” he said.

“Aboriginal families and communities have repeatedly voiced their distrust of a system where police effectively investigate them after a death. Independent, transparent investigations are critical not only to uncovering the truth, but also to maintaining community trust and preventing future deaths.”

“Without true independence, the cycle of harm, mistrust and unanswered questions will continue.”

NT police assistant commissioner Peter Malley said the woman’s death was being treated seriously.

“Police take any death in custody extremely seriously and Crime Command is currently investigating in Tennant Creek under the supervision of both Professional Standards and Cultural Reform Commands,” he said.

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“At this stage it appears the woman has suffered a medical episode.”

An autopsy was to be performed on Friday, but the findings have not yet been released.

At a press conference the day after the woman’s death, Malley said he had “no problem” with police investigating police when it comes to an Aboriginal death.

“We are always investigating our own business. We are very good at it and people talk about conflicts all the time but we have the legal regulation to do it and we do it very well,” he said.

Country Liberal Party MP Steve Edgington, whose Barkly electorate includes Tennant Creek, said his thoughts were with the woman’s family and loved ones and that the matter was subject to a full and comprehensive investigation by the police and coroner.

The woman is understood to be suffering from rheumatic heart disease, which disproportionately affects Indigenous Australians.

Unlike police watchdogs in Alice Springs, Palmerston and Darwin, the Tennant Creek watchhouse does not have a custody nurse on duty; This was the recommendation of a coronial inquest following the death of an Aboriginal man in Alice Springs in 2012.

Detention nurses can check detainees’ medical records and perform health assessments. NT police said an “in-depth” health assessment of the woman was carried out by a duty officer and she was “deemed suitable for detention”.

Questioning whether an Aboriginal person has any health conditions is also part of a health assessment, NT police said on Friday.

“All individuals admitted to Tennant Creek Watchhouse undergo a police medical assessment. They were deemed fit to be detained and officers did not see any signs of injury,” a spokesman said.

“There are no custody nurse positions at Tennant Creek Observatory. All those arrested and admitted to the observatory at Tennant Creek undergo a police medical assessment.

“The 44-year-old man was found unresponsive during a cell check at 13.03. [on Saturday 27 December]. CPR was immediately performed by police until an ambulance arrived a short time later. “He was pronounced dead at Tennant Creek Hospital.”

Of the 113 deaths recorded in custody in 2024–25, 33 were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people; this was the highest number of deaths in custody in 12 months since 1979.

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