National database of deaths in custody grows to more than 1200 people

The Deaths in Custody Project contains information on 1216 people who have died in prisons, watchhouses, forensic facilities, in police custody or during a police operation.

The data dates from 1991, when coronial findings were first made public, until 1 July, 2024.

Established by Professor Tamara Walsh from The University of Queensland’s Pro Bono Centre, the database is now run as part of an education clinic at the Prisoners’ Legal Service (PLS).

“I started this project, originally in partnership with Sisters Inside Inc, because I was surprised to learn that no one was really keeping a watching brief on deaths in custody in Australia,” Professor Walsh said.

“Our goal was to investigate coroners’ recommendations to find out what could be done to prevent these deaths.”

PLS lawyer and UQ alum Angelene Counter said the project team examined published coronial findings and added new cases each week.

“So much of what happens in custody and in police operations is kept behind closed doors,” she said.

“I think the digital database is an important way to bring knowledge to the community on the number of deaths, the background of the people who are dying and the circumstances of their deaths.

“Many deaths in custody are because of medical conditions where perhaps that person would have also died in the community.

“It is worth asking the question whether that person needed to die incarcerated.

“The information we collect provides some understanding as to how people have died in those places and in those circumstances.”

The database launched in 2018 with information on 505 deaths and has grown to more than double that figure.

It is searchable by age, gender, personal characteristics, Indigenous status, state, year of death, cause of death, specifics of death or date of inquest finding.

It can also be searched by the person’s remand or sentence status and type of custody – including whether they were incarcerated or died during a police operation.

“Making this database accessible and easy to use is the first step and the next is analysing the latest data to see if there are areas of particular concern,” Ms Counter said.

Analysis of 1059 deaths (from 1991 to January 1, 2024) found 683 occurred in prisons, 289 during police operations and 42 in a police cell.

One person died in a court building, 4 were children in juvenile facilities and 11 people died in police vehicles.

Queensland was the state with the highest number of published deaths in custody – with a total of 240. Of those, 49 per cent were due to a medical condition.

Students from the UQ Law School volunteer their time to maintain the database, with the website designed and built pro bono by UQ web designer Joshua Hartmann.

“The Deaths in Custody database is a wonderful example of what universities can achieve in partnership with community organisations,” Professor Walsh said.

“We are so grateful to all our volunteers, staff and students. The project would not exist without their generosity.”