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The number of First Nations people dying while in custody in Australia has hit its peak point since official data began in 1980.

New statistics reveal that 33 of the 113 individuals who passed away in custody in the year ending in June were of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. This marks an increase from 24 deaths in the prior corresponding period.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are severely represented in the criminal justice system. They constitute more than one-third of all prisoners, despite representing under 4% of the country's people.

These sobering statistics emerge over three decades after a seminal inquiry into Indigenous deaths in custody, which made hundreds of proposed changes.

Breakdown of the Latest Figures

Of the 33 Indigenous deaths in custody recorded between last July and this June, 26 occurred while in prison custody, which is an rise from 18 in the prior year.

One death occurred in youth detention, and all except one of the individuals were male.

The remaining six deaths happened in police custody, defined as when someone passes away while police are holding or attempting to detain them.

The main cause of First Nations deaths was categorised as "self-harm," with "natural causes." The report noted that asphyxiation was the cause in eight of the deaths.

State-by-State Distribution

The state of New South Wales had the greatest number of Indigenous deaths in correctional facilities with nine, then Western Australia with six. Queensland, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory each had three deaths.

The increasing number of Indigenous deaths in custody in New South Wales is a "deeply distressing milestone," the state's coroner has stated.

In October, Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan emphasised that this upward trend was not "just statistics" and that these deaths demanded "independent and careful examination, dignity and responsibility."

Profile Information and Expert Response

The mean age of those who died was 45, and 11 of the individuals were still waiting for a sentence.

A criminal law associate professor, Amanda Porter, described the figures as representing a "national emergency" that requires "leadership and political action."

Ms. Porter, who has attended multiple official inquiries with grieving families, stated little has changed since the 1991 royal commission that aimed to address this crisis.

"It's infuriating to see the quantity of investigations I attend, the number memorials families have to attend, and the fact that we are three decades after the royal commission, and the problem is getting increasingly worse," she commented.

From the time of the landmark inquiry, a approximately 600 Indigenous people have lost their lives in detention, which includes six in youth detention, according to the report.