Trans jail death inquest
An inquiry into the death of Indigenous transwoman Veronica Baxter will be held two years after she was found hanging in a Silverwater jail cell.
Baxter was arrested on March 10, 2009 for supplying a prohibited drug, and placed in an all-male prison. She was found dead six days later.
Following her death, a number of groups began campaigning for an inquest, including the Indigenous Social Justice Association, Community Action Against Homophobia, Sex And Gender Education, the Organisation Intersex International, and the NSW Greens who brought the matter up twice in Parliament.
A police investigation into Baxter’s death was completed by September 2009, with the matter then submitted to the NSW Coroner.
A coronial inquest will now be heard on April 4-5.
Ray Jackson, president of the Indigenous Social Justice Association, told the Star Observer it was a particular concern that Baxter had been sent to Silverwater.
“It seems to go against the corrective services transgender policy that was introduced to allow transpeople to go to the jail of their chosen sex,” Jackson said.
“In Veronica’s case she should have been placed in Mulawa women’s prison. I don’t know why she finished up in a men’s jail, but she did.”
Jackson said he was hopeful the inquest would answer most questions surrounding Baxter’s death but not those her family most wanted answered.
“They rarely go where the family wants them to. The Coroner’s Court doesn’t particularly like finding blame in things to do with the police or prison officers.”
A rally against Indigenous deaths in custody is being held at 10am on February 14 at the corner of George and Phillips streets, Waterloo, and will march to Redfern’s the Block neighbourhood.
The Star Observer understands the rally will call for a memorial to Indigenous people who have died in custody, including Baxter, to be built in Redfern.
Trans- woman (pre-operative) entering custody are able to choose whether they would like to go to a mens or womens jail.
In my experience working with trans-women, many will choose to go to a mens jail. This is usually for many reasons… the main factor being sex- many trans women want to go to a mens jail so they can have lots of sex with lots of men. Additoanlly, many trans women feel much safer and more accepted and respected in a mens prison. Also, trans- women often (although obviosuly not always) receive more positive attention and are treated as women more often than they would be a female prison.
Veronica had been incarcerated a few times in the past, and would be fully aware of the situation she was entering into. Becasue of this, she would have felt as comfortable as one can feel in jail. Which makes this awful sitaution all the more strange…..
I will be very interested to hear of the outcomes.
She was in custody for six days not dead for six days!!!!
Please get your facts right. As for the screws, she was in a one out cell (by herself) and not in a safe cell (suicide watch) what could they do but cut her down in the morning and administer CPR till the ambulance arrived. Not nice to have to live through. :(
Maybe if the Commissioner of Corrective Services, Ron Woodham had of been doing his $412,250.00 per year job properly Veronica would be alive today.
what makes it worse is the poor bugger wasnt found for 6 days, what the hell were the prison warders doing, the warders should be held also accountable for her death
How awful. How could she be put in a mens prison? That just seems so obviously a place where she would be likely to end up a victim. Poor lady. And why did an inquiry take so long?