Convicted killer Derek Bromley has been released after more than 40 years imprisonment

This morning, he was released after serving more than 40 years for a murder he says he’s innocent of – and here’s the first thing Derek Bromley did.

A convicted killer has been released from jail after serving more than 40 years for a murder he says he did not commit – and headed straight to Macca’s for a coffee.

Derek John Bromley, the longest-serving Indigenous prisoner in the country, was jailed for life after he was found guilty of the murder of Stephen Docoza in 1984.

The Parole Board approved the 68-year-old Narungga Ngarrindjeri man’s fifth application request in March.

The family of Mr Docoza declined to provide comment on Bromley’s release but said they wanted the public to know Stephen was a “hardworking, kind and loving man”, releasing new pictures of the murdered man.

Stephen Docoza. Picture: Supplied by family

Stephen Docoza. Picture: Supplied by family

Bromley, now 68, went to McDonald’s for a coffee to celebrate his release, accompanied by his partner Robyn Milera, upper house MP Frank Pangallo and former 7NEWS Adelaide boss Graham Archer, who is writing a book about him.

Bromley and his co-accused John Karpany were sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Mr Docoza after the man’s body was found floating in the River Torrens in April 1984.

From the outset police reported Mr Docoza had been beaten and drowned after an altercation when Bromley asked him for sex.

Bromley was given a non-parole period of 32 years, the second longest in the state’s history at the time, and Karpany 28 years.

Ms Milera told The Advertiser Bromley plans to exercise his basic rights of freedom – especially engaging in outdoor activities.

“We are very relieved Derek has been given a chance to get on with his life,” she said.

“He’s looking forward to doing things like walking along the beach (and) visiting culturally significant places to his family … and spending time with family and friends.”

Ms Milera said he was planning to continue working and contributing to society.

Mr Pangallo referred to Bromley’s release as “significant”.

“It was disgraceful he was in there for so long,” he said.

“He’s still determined to prove he didn’t commit the murder … he was a model prisoner and I’m sure he’ll be a model citizen. He should never have been convicted.”

Convicted killer Derek Bromley, right, with partner Robyn Milera. Picture: 7NEWS

Mr Pangallo said Bromley was planning to continue working to help Indigenous people in the prison system.

He said the conviction was a “miscarriage of justice” and called on the state government to impose a criminal cases review commission.

Bromley petitioned for retrial in 2006 on the grounds the evidence of the eyewitness was not corroborated, another identification witness had erred and Karpany changed his account saying Bromley wasn’t present on the night of the murder.

Convicted killer Derek Bromley, left, stopping for a Macca’s coffee upon his release on Wednesday after more than 40 years in jail, with journalist Graham Archer and long-time supporter Robyn Milera. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Derek Bromley, centre, released from jail after more than 40 years behind bars, with long-time supporter Robyn Milera. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Convicted killer Derek Bromley released from jail after more than 40 years. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

Parole Board chair Frances Nelson KC said a decision was made last week for Bromley’s release on Wednesday and he would live at the pre-release centre for an unfixed period of time.

“It has to be a staged process, he’s been locked up for a very long time,” she said.

Derek John Bromley.

While in custody he was implicated in a riot at Yatala Labor Prison in 1987 for which he was later awarded $7000 in damages for injuries he sustained at the hands of Corrections.

In 2017, during an appeal to overturn Bromley’s conviction, a court heard the bruises on Mr Docoza could have been sustained after he was dead in the river.

“There is nothing to distinguish whether he was alive or not when he went in the water,” Dr Matthew Lynch from the Victorian Institute for Forensic Medicine told the court.

Bromley has continuously denied his involvement in the murder and last year lost another bid to have his conviction overturned.

The court ruled Bromley’s challenges to the mental capacity, and therefore reliability, of a prosecution witness was neither “compelling nor probative” enough to warrant a new trial.

Corrections Department staff have previously praised Mr Bromley for his volunteer work while in custody, with the now 68-year-old firefighting with the Country Fire Service for a decade and helping battle the 2019 bushfires at Cudlee Creek and Kangaroo Island.