Investigation exposes which states continue to use spit hoods on children

An investigation has exposed which Australian state and territories continue to use spit hoods on children.

SPIT HOODS are not used on children or young people in any other jurisdictions except Queensland, the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory.

An NT News investigation has showed police in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania all confirmed they had never used spit hoods and or restraint chairs on young people.

It was also confirmed spit hoods were no longer used in any youth detention facility in Australia.

The investigation follows revelations Northern Territory Police had used spit hoods, described by the UN as torture devices, 27 times since 2018 on children as young as 12.

They used restraint chairs six times in the last two years.

A statement from Victoria Police said spit hoods and restraint chairs were “never … used on any person in custody or otherwise.”

“We use personal protection equipment to keep our staff safe, in addition to extensive training to provide police officers with the capability to manage such situations,” a spokesman said.

The Victorian Police Union further said their lack of use had “never been raised as an issue by members.”

Tasmania Police told the NT News it does not “use or possess” either devices.

“Alternative mechanism used by Tasmania Police include physical distancing from the person, minimising face-to-face contact by placing them in a secure area, using divisional vans for transport and personal protection equipment such as eye wear, face shields, masks and gloves,” a statement said.

The statement also said for people at risk of self-harm, Tasmanian police protocol was to monitor them every 15 minutes and remove any items that could cause harm, including possibly moving the person to another room.

South Australia remains the only state that had fully legislated a ban against the use of spit hoods.

After sending questions to New South Wales Police, the NT News was contacted for clarification from their spokesman, who did not know what spit hoods or restraint chairs were.

He later clarified they had never been used in the state.

The NT News has been sent clarification from the Australian Federal Police who said they do use spit hoods in the ACT on children and adults in their custody.

Western Australia police confirmed the devices were not used in any “custodial setting where people were under 18”.

“Perth Watch House, which is solely for adult detainees is the only WA Police custodial facility where spit hoods are used,” a statement read.

Queensland Police was one of only three jurisdictions that said spit hoods “could” be used however the frequency of use could not be provided by deadline.

“There are situations where a spit hood would be used in conjunction with a child in custody in a watch house. That would be undertaken in accordance with the Situational Use of Force Model,” a Queensland Police Service spokesman said.

Change the Record co-chair Cheryl Axleby said there was no “safe way” to use spit hoods.

“Evidence that these devices, which have been implicated in the deaths of our people in custody, are being used by police in the Northern Territory, (ACT), and Queensland is deeply disturbing,” she said.

“Right now there is no positive obligation to report use of spit hoods, or other uses of force, to an independent authority so we have very little transparency into how people are being treated when in custody.”

Change the Record co-chair (Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement) Cheryl Axleby. Picture: SUPPLIED

Ms Axleby said Australia needed tougher protections in law to ensure the safety of people in custody and called on every jurisdiction to follow South Australia’s lead to “legislate a ban on the use of spit hoods in any context, on any one”.

The organisatoin Ban Spit Hoods Collective launched a national petition calling on all states and Territory’s to legislate against the devices.

NT Police has remained silent on the use of spit hoods in the NT since they were asked to investigate alternatives by the Police Minister Nicole Manison on February 24.

The NT News contacted police multiple times for comment but was told: “the review is continuing. It is an internal review and NT Police won’t be providing comments”.

However, in February Assistant Commissioner Bruce Porter told the NT News the options for police to deal with children at risk of self-harm was “limited with minimal alternate options for ensuring the safety of both (children) in custody and police officers”.

Mr Porter said the use of the restraints was highly controlled through training, policy and instruction and was independently reviewed in every instance.

“While the use of these items is limited in number, the safety they provide to the (children) in custody and to officers caring for them is critical,” he said.

Despite the use of spit hoods and restraint chairs in some police jurisdictions, Australia was unanimously against the use of spit hoods in youth detention facilities.

South Australia was the only state to ask the NT News to submit a freedom of information request for the specific data.

All youth detention facilities cited the use of personal protective equipment as an adequate response to children or young people spitting.

Australian Capital Territory Youth Justice said if a young person was known to spit, staff had access to PPE such as “face shields”

“In consultation with custodial mental health services, Bimberi develops customised strategies to manage the risk of self-harm or abuse for each young person,” a statement read.

“This includes a range of strategies such as changes to observation levels, use of low risk rooms, provision of low risk items and activities and providing safety alerts and individualised guidance to staff working with young people.”

Furthermore, children at risk of self-harm had access to daily reviews with Canberra Health Services.

The Queensland Youth Justice Department said spit hood and helmets were not used in youth detention centres and strict procedures were in place for restraints.

“Handcuffs are an approved form of restraint…there is also a multidisciplinary mental health team and access to 24/7 on call psychiatrists in the event of an acute mental health incident,” a statement said.

According to a report by the Office of the Children’s Commission NT, last October children in detention in the Northern Territory experiencing at-risk episodes of self-harm waited up to three days in seclusion for medical assessment.

In March, the NT News reported episodes of self-harm in Don Dale Youth Detention Centre had tripled.