Kumanjayi White had a history of being ‘under medicated and under treated’ for his disability before death in custody
A young Aboriginal man who died after being restrained by police in the Alice Springs Coles had a history of being ‘under medicated and under treated’ while under an NDIS and guardianship plan.
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A young Aboriginal man who died after being restrained by police in the Alice Springs Coles had a history of being “under medicated and under treated” while in the care of a major disability service.
On Monday, disability-support service Life Without Barriers confirmed 24-year-old Kumanjayi White was one its Alice Springs clients, remembering him as a “much-loved son, brother, grandson, friend and a community member”.
The young Warlpiri man from Yuendumu died 70 minutes after being restrained to the ground by non-uniformed police officers in the Coles supermarket on Tuesday, May 27.
A witness told the NT News a police officer allegedly had his “knee behind his head” as the young man’s friends called out “this fella has a disability...just be a bit more careful”.
Following the death in custody, senior Warlpiri elder Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves questioned why his jaja (grandson) was not with his NDIS carers at the time.
“This young man was living away from his community, in town, in supported accommodation because of his disabilities and he was very vulnerable,” Mr Hargraves said.
“He needed support and not to be criminalised because of his disability.”
Only four months before his death, Alice Springs Judge Anthony Hopkins highlighted Mr White had experienced negative interactions with police as a direct result of his disability.
On February 10 he was released from prison after spending 76 days on remand after being found not guilty of assault, resisting police and assaulting police in 2024.
Mr Hopkins ruled to withdraw and dismiss all charges against him due to his mental impairment, with clinical evidence Mr White was “under medicated and under treated” at the time of the alleged incidents.
His lawyer Louise Marshall told the court Mr White was diagnosed with treatment resistant schizophrenia as well as an “executive dysfunction frontal lobe impairment”, which impacted his memory and impulse control.
Ms Marshall said as a result, he was on an NDIS plan living in 24/7 supported care and under a public guardianship order.
Yet, she said his clinical record showed he had been declining to take his prescribed daily antipsychotic treatment — a medication plan his carers would have been responsible for monitoring.
“It substantiates that he was possibly undermedicated and undertreated at the time of the offence,” Ms Marshall said.
She highlighted Mr White went 18 months without an incident while under medicated, but said ultimately this impacted his ability to control or understand his actions.
Ms Marshall said his carers had also reported he was using cannabis, which can reduce the effectiveness of antipsychotic medications.
“It does indicate things that would make his antipsychotic medication — given that he has treatment resistant schizophrenia — less likely to be fully protecting him from all symptoms,” she said.
Mr White’s NDIS carer was in the court as Mr Hopkins flagged the issues around his “sporadic” medication plans, saying it was a matter of “community protection” his treatment be “regularised”.
“There were symptoms of his mental illness that may not have been optimally treated by prescribed antipsychotic treatment,” he said.
“He could not control his actions, and he did not know that the conduct was wrong.”
After spending almost three months in prison for a crime he was found not guilty of, Mr Hopkins told Mr White he would be released that day.
“You have a carer here who is going to take you from custody and get things sorted out for you at home, make sure all of the medication continues,” Mr Hopkins said.
Life Without Barriers did not respond to questions about what steps were taken to ensure Mr White was complying with his medication and treatment plans in the three month period between his release and his death in custody.
The national disability service provider also did not answer questions about where Mr White’s carer was while he was being restrained by police.
“We will not be providing any further details,” a Life Without Barriers spokeswoman said.
She said the service would be “actively engaged” in the formal investigation into the death.
“As an organisation, we are deeply saddened by his passing and its impact on our people who supported and cared for him and our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander colleagues,” she said.
“This tragedy deepens our commitment to ensuring the rights of all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and people with disability are fully realised and that our justice systems, which are intended to serve us all, are free of racism and ableism.
“The rights people with disability have to be active and accepted in the communities in which they live is unequivocal.”
The First Peoples Disability Network chief executive Damian Griffis said this tragedy highlighted critical questions about the care of the vulnerable young man and other Indigenous people in care.
“This again highlights the increasing criminalisation of disability. It also exposes potentially serious failings with the Guardianship system and the NDIS,” Mr Griffis said.
He called for governments to embed disability awareness and de-escalation training across policing, in line with the recommendations from the Disability Royal Commission.
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