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The tally of First Nations people dying while in detention in Australia has hit its record point since the beginning of official data started in 1980.

Fresh data indicate that 33 of the 113 individuals who passed away in detention in the year leading up to June were of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent. This marks an uptick from 24 deaths in the preceding equivalent period.

Indigenous Australian people remain disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system. They make up over 33% of all prisoners, despite comprising less than four per cent of the country's people.

These disturbing figures come to light more than three decades after a landmark royal commission into Indigenous deaths in custody, which put forward numerous of recommendations.

Breakdown of the Latest Figures

Of the 33 Aboriginal deaths in custody logged between last July and this June, twenty-six occurred while in a correctional facility, which is an rise from 18 in the previous year.

A single death was in a juvenile facility, and the vast majority of the individuals were male.

The remaining six deaths happened in the custody of law enforcement, defined as when someone dies while police are detaining them.

The primary reason of First Nations deaths was classified as "self-harm," followed by "natural causes." The report noted that hanging was the method in eight of the deaths.

State-by-State Breakdown

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

The rising number of Indigenous deaths in custody in New South Wales is a "deeply distressing reality," the state's chief medical examiner recently stated.

In a recent statement, Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan stressed that this upward pattern was not "mere statistics" and that these deaths required "thorough and careful examination, dignity and responsibility."

Demographic Details and Academic Response

The average age of those who died was 45, and eleven of the deceased were still waiting for a court sentencing.

A university expert, Amanda Porter, characterised the data as reflecting a "national crisis" that needs "leadership and political action."

Ms. Porter, who has been present at multiple coronial inquests with grieving families, said little has changed since the 1991's national inquiry that was established to tackle this crisis.

"It's infuriating to witness the quantity of investigations I attend, the number memorials families have to attend, and the reality that we are 30 years after the royal commission, and the situation is getting progressively more severe," she noted.

From the time of the royal commission, a total of 600 Indigenous people have lost their lives in detention, which includes six in youth detention, according to the report.