WITH the Black Lives Matter movement recognised across the globe, the family of Dunghutti man, David Dungay Jnr, has set up a petition calling for charges to be laid in relation to his death.
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The death of George Floyd in America has seen a rise in awareness around the treatment of Indigenous Australians with Amnesty International Australia saying more than 400 Indigenous people have died in police custody since the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody ended in 1991.
The cell extraction was triggered by a packet of biscuits Dungay Jnr was eating, with guards potentially worried about the complications they could cause for his diabetes.
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In the ensuing extraction, Dungay Jnr, who was being treated for schizophrenia, complained he couldn't breathe.
He was relocated to another cell equipped with CCTV and injected with a sedative where he died shortly after.
The petition featuring on change.org, asks for action on black deaths in custody within Australia, stating that 'numbers will continue to rise as the perpetrators evade accountability'.
Further, the petition calls on the NSW Attorney General, Mark Speakman, 'to refer the matter to the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions and SafeWork NSW to investigate criminal charges under the laws of New South Wales'.
Along with this lobbying, the family calls for the implementation of all 339 recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.
A review conducted by the National Indigenous Australians Agency released in August 2018 found that, 'across all the recommendations, 64% have been implemented in full, 14% have been mostly implemented, 16% have been partially implemented and 6% have not been implemented.'
'The most action has been taken to respond to recommendations that relate to the justice system, prison safety, and reconciliation, land needs and international obligations.
'The least action has been taken to respond to recommendations that relate to non-custodial approaches and self-determination.'
Currently, the petition has reached over 82,000 people with an aim for 150,000 and has been administered by the National Justice Project.
