Kids are being detained in police custody, in facilities never designed for them
When children are denied bail, they’re often taken to police watch houses. But these don’t have the staff or facilities to keep children safe and well.
Police custody – often called the watch house or police cells – is designed for short-term detention, not for children. These facilities lack the staff and services required to ensure children's safety and address their developmental, health, and wellbeing needs. Despite this, children in Australia can spend days or even weeks in police custody before being transferred to youth detention.
An ABC investigation found that more than 300 children were held in police custody in Tasmania last financial year, with one child remaining in custody for 55 hours. This issue appears to be widespread, though police custody remains a largely unseen and unexamined aspect of Australia's criminal legal system. The origins of concerns about police custody conditions date back to 1983 when Aboriginal teenager John Pat died in a Roebourne police cell.
Since then, coroners, ombudsmen, academics, Aboriginal legal services, and government reviews have consistently raised concerns about prolonged stays, poor conditions, and inadequate oversight. Deaths in police custody continue to occur, highlighting ongoing safety concerns. A study by the ABC interviewed 25 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous young people aged 15–24 who had been in police custody, along with 18 professionals who support or visit them.
Nearly two-thirds of the interviewed young people spent at least three days in police custody, with one in six remaining for a week or longer. Young participants described harrowing experiences of cold, dirty, and isolating environments, sleeping on thin mattresses on concrete floors, enduring harsh lighting, wearing the same clothes for days, and having limited human interaction.
Basic care needs were frequently unmet, including delays in accessing medication and drinking water. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people, already disproportionately affected by systemic racism and intergenerational trauma, faced additional racism and unsafe care in police custody. Simple requests from young people for dignity, kindness, and respect went unheeded, with some recalling being told, "Look at your skin...
You’re going to spend the rest of your life here." The ABC's reporting has exposed the conditions in Tasmania, but it is essential to initiate a national conversation on police custody and children's rights. Governments must guarantee that children's safety, wellbeing, and human rights are protected if they are held in police custody.
Written by urgent.news from The Conversation AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
