An inquest into the shooting death of an Aboriginal man in Sydney’s northwest found that warrant execution on Indigenous people needed to be changed.
Stanley Russell, a Gomeroi resident, was shot and killed by police in November 2021 at his aunt’s Seven Hills residence after four officers had gone to the location to carry out an arrest order.
The 45-year-old was allegedly discovered by police in the garage as they were searching the home, where he was brandishing an axe and a knife, before they shot him.
Officers shot their weapons in reaction to “their reasonable perception of an immediate risk to their lives”, according to deputy NSW coroner Carmel Forbes.
Mr. Russell was said to have an intellectual disability in court.
His problems with melancholy, anxiety, and substance misuse worsened after his brother committed suicide at the Long Bay jail in 1999 while he was being held in custody.
Despite the lack of evidence, Ms. Forbes claimed he thought the officers had hanged his brother, which added to his anxiety of being taken into custody.
Six months prior, “Mr. Russell had said he would rather die than go back to custody,” the witness said.
No officer, according to Ms. Forbes, took Mr. Russell’s status as an Aboriginal person into account when executing the order.
“The officers might not be aware of the historical background of the relationship between the police and Aboriginal people, and why, in that background, Aboriginal people might have a particular fear or mistrust towards the police,” she added.
She suggested that law enforcement collaborate with the Aboriginal Legal Service (ALS) to create a procedure for serving bench warrants on members of First Nations that would encourage defendants to turn themselves in.
She expressed hope that the suggestions will contribute in offering alternatives to confrontational arrests.
Hannah Donaldson, a coronial advocate with the Aboriginal Legal Service, said the suggestion “could save lives.”
“We are ready and willing to make this lifesaving reform a reality,” she declared.
“If effectively implemented, this approach would lessen the frequency in which police unexpectedly show up to detain an Aboriginal person.
Someone they can trust would contact any Native Americans who are wanted on a bench warrant so that they can securely and freely surrender.
Despite a sizable Indigenous population, the court was informed that there was no Aboriginal Community Liaison Officer (ACLO) in the Blacktown area command.
Police should make sure there is an ACLO in areas with a large concentration of First Nations people, and officers should be required to complete training in Aboriginal cultural competency, according to Ms. Forbes’ recommendation.
Vickey Fernando, Mr. Russell’s partner, praised the coroner for her recommendations in a statement.
We will have to wait and see whether the new approach makes a difference because the police didn’t follow their own procedures and standards when they went to arrest Stanley, she added.
There was not much video of the shooting, according to the court.
According to Ms. Forbes, it was a “serious breach” of policy when officers failed to wear and switch on body-worn cameras.
One cop wasn’t wearing a body-worn camera, another had his off, and the other two constables didn’t begin filming before entering the house as required by regulation, the court was informed.
She suggested that police update their rules to make it obvious to officers when they must activate their body-worn cameras and the parameters of their right to opt out of recording.
Despite the “risk of violent confrontation, self-harm, and knowledge that [Mr Russell] may take steps to avoid a return to custody,” Ms. Forbes determined that police entered the home without having a clear plan.
She suggested that before entering a person’s house to carry out a warrant, authorities take into account any mental health conditions or intellectual limitations they may have.
