Constable Zachary Rolfe shot and killed 19-year-old Kumanjayi Walker in Yuendumu on November 9, 2019, during an attempted arrest.
After a five-week trial, he was found not guilty of murder and two other charges.
During the trial, it was revealed some members of Constable Rolfe’s team were on patrol that night armed with pistols, AR-15 military-style assault rifles and a beanbag shotgun.
The officer in charge of Yuendumu Police Station Sergeant Julie Frost gave evidence in the trial saying there were “very few” guns in the community.
Yuendumu Elder Ned Jampijinpa Hargraves, in an emotional address to media following the verdict last week, called for a ban on guns in his and other remote communities.
In his first interview since the verdict, Northern Territory Chief Minister Michael Gunner yesterday rejected the idea of a ban on police carrying guns.
“Police have to have the kit they need and never know what situation they are going to be responding to," said Mr Gunner.
"So... whether it’s a gun or not a gun, that's a decision by police and police command. I fully support them in making sure that the police have the kit that they need.”
The Northern Territory Police Association has also rejected the call, saying police lives would be put at risk if they were unarmed.
“They put their lives on the line to do that, and we do not support the removal of firearms.”
Northern Territory Labor Senator Malarndirri McCarthy has also stopped short of supporting a blanket ban on armed police.
“There is a far greater question that needs to be asked at the highest of levels about the system of justice in this country," said Ms McCarthy.
"I think all of these things can be answered in due time with great respect as we listen to one another going forward.”
Her colleague Marion Scrymgour is the Labor candidate for the federal seat of Lingiari, which includes the community of Yuendumu.
Kumanjayi Walker died after being shot three times in his home by a Northern Territory police officer during an arrest. Source: Supplied
The former Territory government minister and former head of the Northern Land Council also refused to back the call.
“I’ve worked with police across many of these communities and police play a critical role with communities, particularly dealing with family and domestic violence.”
But the Aboriginal Peak Organisations of the Northern Territory (APONT) wants armed police out of communities, and has called for an inquiry into police use of force.
“To rebuild trust, police must bring an end to guns and the use of excessive force in our communities," said APONT in a statement.
“There needs to be an independent Board of Inquiry to restore community confidence in the police and to examine police culture allowing racism to still exist.
“The Inquiry must also examine a return to community policing and protocols that demonstrate respect for our people.”
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar AO has thrown her support behind the ban on armed cops.
“[There should be] Elders and Indigenous liaison officers to hold greater decision-making positions in policing matters, and for substantial investments in community wrap-around supports and trauma-informed responses.
“There have been more than 500 Indigenous deaths in custody since the Royal Commission, and several recent police shootings of First Nations people underline the need for immediate action.”
In the last week of the Rolfe trial, Northern Territory police shot a 19-year-old Aboriginal man near Darwin, who remains in critical condition in hospital.
Commissioner Oscar condemned the latest shooting and the deaths of Kumanjayi Walker and Joyce Clarke, a Yamatji woman who was shot by police in Western Australia.
No police officer in Australia has ever been convicted of an offence over an Aboriginal death in custody.
“The mass incarceration and over-policing of First Nations people are driven by systemic and structural problems within the justice system and beyond it."
"Until this changes – until we see significant systemic shifts and investment in the security and health of our communities – the grave injustice of Indigenous deaths will continue,” Commissioner Oscar said.
Senior Indigenous Research Fellow at Curtin University Dr Hannah McGlade says more investment needs to be made in community policing and not guns.
“We're not tackling racist violence in Australia, guns are endangering Aboriginal people, guns in remote communities and wider still.
“We need to tackle the issue of systemic and structural racism in the justice system, we haven't done that.
“We're not going to close the gap on Aboriginal incarceration, on the killings of Aboriginal people, unless until we get real about racism and racist violence in Australia.”
