Cleveland Dodd died after self-harming at a youth detention facility set up inside Casuarina Prison. (ABC News: Jake Sturmer)
In short:
The coroner probing Western Australia’s first recorded death in youth detention has indicated he will call for the unit where the 16-year-old self-harmed to be closed “as a matter of urgency”.
After sitting for nearly 40 days, the inquest into the death of Cleveland Dodd has finished hearing oral evidence.
Coroner Philip Urquhart on Wednesday handed down 18 preliminary recommendations which he may make as part of his ultimate findings late next year.
The coroner probing Western Australia’s first recorded death in youth detention has indicated he will call for the unit where the 16-year-old self-harmed to be closed “as a matter of urgency” as the inquest reaches a major milestone.
WARNING: This story discusses incidents of self-harm and contains the name and image of an Indigenous person who has died.
After sitting for nearly 40 days, the inquest into the death of Cleveland Dodd has finished hearing oral evidence.
The teenager had been detained in Unit 18, a maximum-security adult prison unit hastily turned into a youth detention facility in mid-2022.
Coroner Philip Urquhart on Wednesday handed down 18 "preliminary recommendations" which he maymake as part of his ultimate findings late next year.
Chief among them is that “Unit 18 should be closed as a matter of urgency”, given it was only ever meant to be a temporary facility.
He added that if Unit 18 was to remain open for the foreseeable future – as the government has indicated will be the case – a new way of running it, known as a model of care, must be implemented “as a matter of urgency”, detainees should only be sent there for a maximum of six weeks and they should be allowed longer meetings with lawyers.
Cleveland Dodd died at just 16. (Supplied: Family)
Coroner Urquhart also indicated he may call for youth justice to be removed from the remit of the Department of Justice "or at the very least it becomes a standalone division within the Department of Justice," bringing WA into line with every other state and territory.
Another potential recommendation was for the Department of Health to assume “the responsibility, care and treatment of detainees with mental health issues”, in addition to better training for staff, better mental health services and funding for mentors to help young people transition back to the community.
Many of Coroner Urquhart’s possible suggestions have been previously raised by others involved in the youth justice system but generally rejected or dismissed by the state government.
Philip Urquhart has indicated he will call for the urgent closure of Unit 18. (ABC News: Charlotte Hamlyn)
Lawyers involved in the case will return to court in mid-June to make closing submissions before the Coroner prepares his final findings and recommendations.
'Child of the sunrise'
The final piece of oral evidence received by the court was a statement from Cleveland’s mum, read to the court by a friend.
Nadene Dodd, who has travelled from her home in Kalgoorlie to attend much of the inquest, was too emotional to address the court.
Nadene Dodd's friend helped her deliver the final piece of oral evidence at the inquest into the death of Cleveland Dodd. (ABC News: Keane Bourke)
Her words gave some of the first insights into who Cleveland Dodd was as a person, before he died a week after self-harming inside his cell.
Ms Dodd described her "child of the sunrise, of sweeping deserts and untampered earth" returning to the earth after living just a fifth of his life, saying his loss "will be with me wherever I go, for as long as I live".
Shattering the veil of secrecy over juvenile detention
Photo shows A barbed wire fence pictured through trees against an orange sky
"Cleveland was denied the opportunity to realise his potential," the court was told, as a photo of the 16-year-old she said has "limitless" compassion and kindness was displayed on screens.
"I know he would have been a great and noble man, who would have achieved great things, who would have overcome the challenges [and] battles that led him to the horrible concrete jungle of Banksia Hill and then to the hellhole of Unit 18 where he grew so desperate that he took his own life."
The statement described images of Cleveland "surrounded by uneaten plates of food" which "cannot be unseen", describing the cell where he took his last breath as "barren and filthy".
If you or anyone you know needs help:
- Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467
- Lifeline on 13 11 14
- Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander crisis support line 13YARN on 13 92 76
- Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800
- Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636
- Headspace on 1800 650 890
- ReachOut at au.reachout.com
- MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978
"Institutional abuse of children is unacceptable, in the same way that any abuse of children is unacceptable. We should hold governments to a higher, not a lower standard," Ms Dodd said.
It emerged during the inquest that of his final stint in detention, he was locked in his cell for more than 22 hours a day — the United Nations' definition of solitary confinement — for more than 80 per cent of those 93 days.
"He was a talented artist who loved painting and drawing, he could rise horses bareback and he loved all animals. He loved playing sports, and his favourite was basketball," Ms Dodd said.
"It breaks my heart to know that from the moment he was transferred to Unit 18, Cleveland never got the chance to go outside, to feel the sun on his skin, to breathe in fresh air, to look at the sky."
The Director General of the Justice Department at the time, Adam Tomison, admitted on the stand some young people had been subjected to "institutional abuse" and that a document provided to the minister to approve opening the unit contained "blatant lies".
Unit 'set up to fail'
Those were just two of many stunning admissions Coroner Philip Urquhart has heard across 39 days of hearings spread through the year.
Staff told the inquest the unit was "set up to fail" and a "war zone" where it was impossible to keep young people safe.
A litany of systemic failures meant Cleveland was not observed through CCTV as he should have been, leaving 13 minutes between the last time he was checked after threatening to take his life and resuscitation efforts beginning.
The probe has extended well beyond the events of that night though, going as far back as 2009 at one point, as Coroner Urquhart tried to understand how the Department of Justice came to create Unit 18, what failures occurred in that process, and what needs to change to avoid another tragedy.
There's been no clear picture about what happened to Cleveland Dodd, until now
Photo shows A barbed wire fence pictured through trees against an orange sky
His findings are not expected until mid-to-late next year after hearing from lawyers about what conclusions he should reach.
In her statement, Ms Dodd vowed regardless of the inquest outcome she would be a "stalwart to change, to a kinder world" and that her son's death would not be in vain.
"The time has come for those responsible for the administration of youth justice to be held to account," Ms Dodd's statement read.
"I hope that this process, which is unambiguously difficult for me and my family, and indeed all those who loved Cleveland, will be the catalyst for real and lasting change.
"My son didn't deserve to be treated the way that he was treated.
"My son didn't deserve to die. I want justice for my son."