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Government pre-empts rally over Mr Ward's death

16 September 2009 - The State Government will introduce legislation to try to prevent such deaths in custody as that of Aboriginal elder Mr Ward, who died of heat stroke in the back of a prison van in January last year.

WA Attorney-General Christian Porter, speaking ahead of a planned rally by supporters of Mr Ward's family in Perth today, said the Inspector of Custodial Services would be given new powers to audit individual cases of prisoners considered to be at risk.

He said this was one of two measures the government intended to introduce before it deals with all the coroner's recommendations into Mr Ward's death later this month.

WA Coroner Alastair Hope made wide-ranging recommendations into the treatment of prisoners in June after Mr Ward's death.

Mr Ward died after being transferred in the back of a prison van from Laverton, about 600km south-west of his home town of Warburton, to face court in the Goldfields centre of Kalgoorlie.

He was virtually cooked alive as the van's air conditioning failed and temperatures outside the van climbed to 50 degrees.

The two guards who transported Mr Ward were sacked by security company G4S following Mr Hope's findings.

Mr Hope recommended changes to regulations which restricted the Inspector of Custodial Services to reviews of the treatment of prisoners detained under Australia's anti-terror laws.

Mr Porter said "substantive new powers" would be given to the inspector to conduct "individual audits into individual prisoners".

"As it presently stands, the inspector of custodial services inspects facilities and looks for systemic failures," Mr Porter said.

"The new legislation will place a positive obligation on the inspector to audit up to one per cent of what will be calculated at the daily average prisoner population.

"He will look at individuals completely at his discretion.

"I would imagine he would choose vulnerable and extraordinary individuals in the system ... and look at each individual.

"(He would) audit the experience of each individual and on that basis be able to issue 'show cause' notices to the government."

He said extra funding would be directed to the inspector's office to reflect its new workload.

On the issue of compensation, Mr Porter said it was "highly likely" the family of Mr Ward would receive an ex gratia payment from the government as a result of his death, but refused to put an estimate on the likely amount.

Source: AAP

Aboriginal elder's death sparks protest

by ALEISHA PREEDY AND WARWICK STANLEY

16 September 2009 - Family and friends of an Aboriginal elder who was cooked to death in a prison van
have called for criminal charges to be laid against those responsible for him.

Daisy Ward, a cousin of Mr Ward, whose first name cannot be mentioned for cultural reasons, told a Deaths in Custody rally in Perth on Wednesday that the security company in charge of his transport had failed to show duty of care.

She questioned why no criminal charges had been laid despite the West Australian coroner, Alastair Hope, recommending in June that the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) consider laying charges over the incident.

Mr Ward died from a heart attack after being transported in the back of a prison van with no air conditioning in blistering heat in January last year.

He was virtually cooked alive during the four-hour journey from Laverton, about 600km southwest of his home town of Warburton, to face court in the Goldfields centre of Kalgoorlie.

The two guards who transported Mr Ward were sacked by security company G4S following Mr Hope's findings.

At the rally on Wednesday outside the WA Parliament House, where paintings by Mr Ward's mother and brother are hung, Ms Ward called for tough action.

"He died in a way you wouldn't want an animal to die," Ms Ward said.

"The private security firm GSL, now called G4S, was responsible for his transport.

Where was the duty of care?

"No charges have been laid."

Goldfields residents joined a crowd of about 100 supporters at Wednesday's rally, where a petition signed by about 5,000 people was handed to the government.

It sought immediate action on Mr Hope's recommendations to improve treatment of prisoners and for criminal charges to be laid against those responsible for Mr Ward's death.

The petition also called for the contract with G4S to be terminated and custodial transport to be handed back to the Department of Corrective Services, and said air or coach travel should be available to detainees in remote areas.

Ms Ward said her cousin was a respected Aboriginal elder "who educated children of their culture, to stand tall" and who had travelled overseas to promote indigenous Australian culture.

Before the rally, WA Attorney-General Christian Porter said the government would introduce legislation immediately to try to prevent any recurrence of deaths like that of Mr Ward.

He said the Inspector of Custodial Services would be given new powers to audit individual cases of prisoners considered to be at risk.

It was one of two measures the government intended to introduce before it deals with all the coroner's recommendations into Mr Ward's death later this month, he said.

Mr Porter said "substantive new powers" would be given to the inspector to conduct" individual audits into individual prisoners".

"I would imagine he would choose vulnerable and extraordinary individuals in the system ... and look at each individual," he said.

On the issue of compensation, Mr Porter said it was "highly likely" the family of Mr Ward would receive an ex-gratia payment from the government, but he refused to give an estimate of the likely amount.

Source: AAP

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