A death in custody is a death of a person in the custody of the police, other authorities or in prison. Death in custody remains a controversial subject, with the authorities often being accused of abuse, neglect, racism and cover-ups of the causes of these deaths.
Video Death in custody
By country
Algeria
See Human rights in Algeria
Argentina
See Human rights in Argentina
Australia
See separate article: Aboriginal deaths in custody
Bangladesh
At least 32 people have died in "Operation Clean Heart" by the government of Bangladesh.See Human rights in Bangladesh
Burma
See Insein Prison, Human rights in Burma
Chad
See Human rights in Chad
China
Some estimate 20 million have died in the Chinese prison system. See Laogai, democide.
Congo
See Human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Cuba
See Human rights in Cuba
Egypt
See Human rights in Egypt
Finland
At least 460 people have died in police custody since 1990. About 20 people die in police custody a year, down from 28-30 per year in the nineties.
Germany
- Oury Jalloh
- Rosa Luxemburg
India
See Police encounter
Indonesia
See Cipinang Penitentiary Institution
Iran
See 1988 executions of Iranian political prisoners and Deaths in custody in Iran
Ireland
See Terence Wheelock
Jamaica
"At least 650 people have been killed by police officers in Jamaica since 1999. Many of these have been blatantly unlawful killings, yet not one officer has been convicted since then." Piers Bannister, Amnesty International's Jamaica researcher.
Japan
See Human rights in Japan
Laos
See Human rights in Laos
Libya
See Abu Salim prison
Malaysia
- Kugan Ananthan
- Teoh Beng Hock
- Gunasegaran Rajasundram
Mexico
See Human rights in Mexico
Morocco
See Human rights in Morocco
North Korea
See Human rights in North Korea
Pakistan
See Human rights in Pakistan
Saudi Arabia
See Human rights in Saudi Arabia
Somalia
See Human rights in Somalia
South Africa
South Africa has an unusually high level of deaths in custody. For example, in April to June 1997, there were 56 deaths in custody.
- Neil Aggett
- Richard Turner
- Steve Biko
Sudan
See Human rights in Sudan
Syria
See Tadmor Prison massacre
Turkey
See Prisons in Turkey
UAE
See Human rights in the United Arab Emirates
United Kingdom
United States
Definition of custody
The term "in custody" has been debated in both California v. Beheler (in regards to what constitutes custody in the requirement to read Miranda rights) but also in other federal court cases related to Miranda law and definition of custody. Although Miranda law has roughly defined custody as the "formal arrest or restraint on freedom of movement," colloquial language may be less restrictive in the use of custody and is thus sometimes difficult to distinguish from the process of arrest. In addition to collecting data on those who have perished in custody, the Bureau of Justice Statistics also tracks all deaths related to arrest which helps to present data in the fringes of custody or attempts to arrest an individual.
Causes of death
The causes for death in police custody may range from suspected homicide by members of the police, killings by other inmates, death due to psychological or physical abuse, capital punishment, to suicide, accidental death, or natural causes. The United States Bureau of Justice Statistics collects data regarding both the cause of death, as well as medical and criminal records of those that die in police custody (restricted to those in federal prison and local jails).
Estimates
The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates that 17,358 individuals in custody died during the period from 2007-2010. Other publications focus on the rate per 100,000, in the case of US jails the mortality rate is 128, and prisons at 264 per 100,000. It is important to also note the differences in methodology used to obtain these statistics, as some include deaths during attempted arrests while others do not. Other research has focused on specific states, such as Maryland and the rate of death by identity (gender, race, age). Based on some findings, there does appear to be a bias towards African-American males in sudden custody deaths, although further research with larger sample sizes is necessary.
Watchdog organizations
The Marshall Project collects and produces reports both on police killings as well as maintains a curated list of links to articles and publications related to death in police custody in the United States.
Examples of those who have died in custody
- Sandra Bland (woman found hung in her jail cell due to apparent suicide)
- Freddie Gray (suffered injuries while being transported that led to a coma and his death)
- Michael Tyree (alleged to have been beaten to death by guards)
- Elliott Williams (died in his cell due to complications from multiple injuries)
- Ricardo Alfonso Cerna (committed suicide in police interview room)
- Missouri State Penitentiary riot (death of four inmates)
- New Mexico State Penitentiary riot (33 inmate deaths and over 200 injuries)
- Ronnie Lee Gardner (last person executed by firing squad)
- Billy Bailey (last person executed by hanging)
Foreign custody by American agents (police, military, etc.)
International custody law
There are numerous laws and international treaties regarding treatment of foreigners, especially during wartime, of which the Geneva Convention is the most widely recognized and internationally ratified. It contains provisions that classify and define both prisoners of war (as well as civilians and the wounded or infirm) and the manner in which they are to be treated. These include but are not limited to: murder, mutilation, hostage taking, and outrages upon personal dignity. These ratified documents are the base of US international custody law and can be seen to be misapplied in some of the proceeding cases.
Examples of those who have died in custody
- Jamal Naseer (Afghan soldier allegedly beaten to death by US forces)
- Nagem Hatab (Iraqi killed by elements and possible heart attack)
- Abu Ghraib (infamous US military prison known for mass torture and mass graves in nearby area)
- Manadel al-Jamadi (suspected terrorist tortured and killed)
- Camp Bucca 2005 riot (four detainees killed)
- Rheinwiesenlager POW camps (estimates of 3,000-10,000 German soldier deaths while in detention)
Vietnam
See Human rights in Vietnam
Yemen
See Human rights in Yemen
Zimbabwe
See Human rights in Zimbabwe
Maps Death in custody
See also
- Capital punishment in the United States
- Detention
- Infectious diseases within American prisons
- Life imprisonment
- Prison overcrowding
- Prisoner rights in the United States
- Private prison
- War on Drugs
- Extrajudicial killing
- List of prison deaths
- Police brutality
- Prisoner suicide
- Capital punishment
- Institutional racism
- African-American family structure#Black male incarceration and mortality
- Category:People who died in police custody
- Category:People who died in prison custody
- List of killings by law enforcement officers in the United States
- List of freedom indices
References
Source of article : Wikipedia
0 Comments