Final days of Kumanjayi Walker inquest to begin

Five years after a police officer shot dead Kumanjayi Walker, a coroner will hear closing submissions in a long-running inquest. In 2019, then-constable Zachary Rolfe fired three shots at close range into the 19-year-old Warlpiri-Luritja man while trying to arrest him in his home on the remote community of Yuendumu, three hours northwest of Alice Springs. Five days later Mr Rolfe was charged with murder. But in 2022, an NT Supreme Court jury found he acted in self-defence and in line with his police training, acquitting him of all charges. Following the criminal trial, Coroner Elisabeth Armitage launched an inquest on September 5, 2022 that has uncovered how a culture of racism in the NT Police Force contributed to Mr Walker's death. The inquest examined officers' collective behaviour more closely than the physical shooting of Kumanjayi Walker, revealing how racist language is "normalised" and how the most elite section of the force, the Territory Response Group, distributed racist awards. After several delays, Mr Rolfe gave evidence of an award known a "C**n of the Year" which he said was bestowed on the officer who most behaved like an Aboriginal person. He was dismissed from the force in 2023 for disciplinary action. Earlier this year Judge Armitage said the evidence she had uncovered was a tragedy for not only Kumanjayi Walker's family, but the entire territory and nation. "Some of the evidence has been complex and some has been deeply disturbing," she said. "Some has been aired in this courtroom and much more has been received in statements and reports which now form a very weighty brief of evidence." That evidence will come to a conclusion as counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer, alongside institutional representatives, give their closing statements to the coroner. Mr Walker's family will again attend court for the closing statements on Thursday, having listened to years of evidence across both a criminal and coronial process. It is expected the coroner will hand down her formal findings in 2025. 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14