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The number of Indigenous people dying while in detention in Australia has reached its peak point since the beginning of records began in 1980.

Recently released statistics show that 33 of the 113 people who passed away in detention in the 12-month period leading up to June were of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. This marks an rise from 24 deaths in the preceding equivalent period.

Indigenous Australian people are disproportionately overrepresented in the justice system. They constitute more than one-third of all prisoners, despite representing less than four per cent of the country's people.

These concerning figures emerge more than three decades after a landmark royal commission into First Nations deaths in custody, which put forward numerous of recommendations.

Breakdown of the Recent Statistics

Of the 33 Indigenous deaths in custody logged between last July and this June, 26 occurred while in prison custody, which is an rise from 18 in the previous year.

A single death was in youth detention, and the vast majority of the deceased were male.

The other six fatalities happened in police custody, defined as when someone passes away while police are detaining them.

The main reason of Indigenous deaths was classified as "self-inflicted," followed by "natural causes." The report found that asphyxiation was the cause in eight of the deaths.

State-by-State Distribution

The state of New South Wales recorded the greatest number of Indigenous deaths in prison custody with nine, followed by Western Australia with six. Queensland, South Australia, and the Australian Capital Territory all recorded three deaths.

The increasing number of First Nations deaths in custody in New South Wales is a "deeply distressing reality," the state's chief medical examiner has said.

In October, Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan stressed that this upward trend was not "mere statistics" and that these deaths demanded "thorough and careful examination, dignity and responsibility."

Profile Details and Academic Reaction

The average age of those who died was 45 years, and 11 of the deceased were still waiting for a sentence.

A criminal law expert, Amanda Porter, described the data as reflecting a "country-wide crisis" that needs "decisive action and political action."

Ms. Porter, who has been present at multiple coronial inquests with bereaved families, said little has changed since the 1991 royal commission that aimed to address this crisis.

"It's infuriating to see the quantity of investigations I attend, the many funerals families have to attend, and the reality that we are three decades past the royal commission, and the problem is getting progressively worse," she noted.

Since the landmark inquiry, a approximately 600 First Nations people have lost their lives in detention, which includes six in youth detention, according to the report.