Officers Told An Indigenous Woman Not To Disturb Other Inmates Hours Before Death In Custody
"A broken criminal justice system locked my daughter up and let her die while she begged for help, over and over."
A coronial inquest into the death in custody of an Indigenous woman has revealed her cries for help were repeatedly ignored by guards before her passing.
— Content Warning: This story contains the name of a deceased Indigenous person, and graphic content. —
Veronica Nelson was found naked in her cell on January 2, 2020 in Dame Phyllis Frost Centre in Victoria. The Gunditjmara, Dja Dja Wurrung, Wiradjuri, and Yorta Yorta woman had been arrested three days earlier after not showing up to a sentencing hearing for shoplifting.
On Tuesday, the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service and the Dhadjowa Foundation held a smoking ceremony near the entrance of the Coroners Court in her honour, to mark the start of the five-week inquest.
My heart goes out to the family of Veronica Nelson today – a 37-year-old who had been refused bail and died in custody. So many Aboriginal women are locked up on remand; they are not 'criminals'. Please watch the inquest proceedings and support her family
— Amy McQuire (@amymcquire) April 26, 2022
The court heard that a nurse believed the 37-year-old should have been hospitalised due to low blood pressure and heart rate. Veronica had told prison officers she felt sick and like she was going to vomit via cell intercom, according to the ABC. At the time of admission, she weighed just 33kg and was experiencing opiate withdrawal as well as complications from the rare medical condition Wilkie Syndrome.
Recordings were played of Veronica crying out in pain over cramps — at one point making over 10 requests for help — only to be told that it wasn’t an emergency. “Miss Nelson, you need to try and stop because you’re keeping the other prisoners awake,” an officer was heard replying to her.
“The lessons learned from this inquest must stop my people dying in custody,” said her mother Aunty Donna Nelson in a statement. “This inquest is first and foremost about Veronica, and how a broken criminal justice system locked my daughter up and let her die while she begged for help, over and over.”
“We are still connected spiritually, and her spirit won’t rest until those who are responsible for Veronica’s death are exposed and held to account,” she said. “Only then will my Poccum be free.”
There have been 505 Indigenous deaths in custody since the 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody, including five people this year alone.
At every single stage,Ms Veronica Nelson was denied support.
The prison system continues to kill black women. It starts with the use of discretionary powers and ends with death in goal and correctives failing to use their discretion ONCE AGAIN- resulting in our women dying.
— Nessa Turnbull-Roberts (@TurnbullVanessa) April 26, 2022