David Dungay
Indigenous man David Dungay, 26, died in Sydney’s Long Bay jail on 29 December 2015.
The jail guards rushed his cell, dragged him to another cell, then held him face down and had him injected with a sedative. Before he died he said 12 times that he could not breathe. According to coroner’s report, Dungay died “during a use of physical restraint and rapid tranquillisation in an inpatient mental health unit.”
In December 2016 police have said the death was not suspicious and an internal corrective services investigation has found no criminal negligence. In April 2018 coroner’s report said of a lack of training and experience among staff and discrepancies in knowledge of emergency response protocols. An expert witness told the court Dungay had little chance of survival once his heart arrested but “whatever chance he had was lost” by the attempts at resuscitation.
In April 2021 David’s mother Leetona Dungay attended a protest in Sydney to stop Indigenous deaths in custody and told the crowd of protestors she is still waiting for justice.
In June 2021, the mother of an indigenous Australian who died in custody in December 2015, said that she intended to appeal to the UN to achieve justice for her son. The woman claims that the police officers violated his civil rights and failed to protect his life.
MASS MEDIA ABOUT THE CASE:
“It was neither necessary nor appropriate for David to be moved and that he did not pose a security risk,” the coroner finds. “From a medical point of view there was no evidence of any acute condition which would have warranted a cell transfer.”
“No more Royal Commissions. We want justice. Keep fighting until we live in a country where black lives matter,” Ms Dungay said.
CASE STATUS:
The initiative group has requested the clarification from Prime Minister of Australia Scott Morrison, Attorney-General of Australia Michaelia Cash and Minister for Home Affairs of Australia Karen Andrews. The initiative group believes it is important to fight against police brutality and, if necessary, will provide legal and financial assistance to the family of the victim.