Warning: this article contains the name and image of an Aboriginal person who has died.
The New South Wales Deputy State Coroner has recommended that corrective services directly communicate with families when a prisoner is facing imminent death, following the death in custody of Kamilaroi and Barkindji man, Lathan Brown.
Lathan, 28, was being held at Wellington Correctional Centre in January last year when he collapsed and was taken to hospital.
Wellington is about a five-hour drive west of Sydney, with the nearest major hospitals located in Dubbo and Orange.
Lathan’s father, Michael Brown, was informed of his son’s condition and travelled overnight to Dubbo Base Hospital.
But when he arrived, he was told Lathan had been transferred to Orange Hospital - more than an hour and a half away.
By the time Michael reached Orange, his son had passed away.
Lathan Brown’s father drove hours between Dubbo and Orange hospitals, but arrived too late to see his son.
"And he left us while in a room full of strangers with no family around - and that’s the hardest part to come to terms with,” Michael Brown told the inquest.
The Deputy State Coroner found that corrective services should liaise with family when an inmate is hospitalised and death may be imminent, to prevent loved ones from being left in the dark.
The Aboriginal Legal Service (ALS) welcomed the recommendation, saying the lack of communication in Lathan’s case was deeply harmful.
“This finding ensures ongoing communication between families and corrective services when someone’s death is imminent in custody,” an ALS lawyer said.
The inquest found that Lathan Brown died from natural causes due to a fatal heart condition.
His family say the coroner’s recommendation is an important step to ensure no other family is left to grieve in the same way.
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