In 2024-25, 33 of the 113 deaths in custody were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the largest number of Indigenous deaths in custody since 1979-80.
The Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC) has released a new report from the National Deaths in Custody Program that examines the 113 recorded deaths in prison custody, police custody and custody-related operations and youth detention in 2024-25.
Ninety prisoners died in prison custody during the 12-month period, of whom 26 were Indigenous prisoners and 64 were non-Indigenous prisoners. The number of Indigenous prisoners who died in prison custody in 2024-25 is the largest number of Indigenous prisoner deaths since 1979-80.
Twenty-two people died in police custody over the same time period - six Indigenous persons and 22 non-Indigenous persons.
"The National Deaths in Custody Program (NDICP) continues to serve an important role in providing crucial insight into the nature of deaths occurring within custody Australia-wide," said AIC Deputy Director Dr Rick Brown.
The NDICP has monitored the extent and nature of deaths occurring in Australian custody since 1980, and the AIC has coordinated the program since its establishment in 1992, which was a recommendation made by the 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody (the Royal Commission).
In 2023 the AIC released the real-time dashboard which includes up-to-date information on all deaths occurring in police and prison custody and in youth detention. This action was part of the Australian Government's historic $99 million First Nations Justice Package, to reduce the over-representation of Indigenous people in the criminal justice system.
The AIC's most recent report is available on the AIC website .
The Australian Institute of Criminology
The AIC is Australia's national research and knowledge centre on crime and justice. The AIC seeks to promote justice and reduce crime by undertaking and communicating evidence-based research to inform policy and practice.
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