Threats of a Return to Spit Hoods
4 September 2024 - Media Release
CAYJ condemns the new NT Government’s move to reinstate the use of spit hoods on children.
Front line workers, such as Police, deserve resources and effective mechanisms that protect them from bodily fluid exchanges such as spitting.
Spit hoods are not this mechanism.
In April 2023, the Australian Federal Police decided to stop using spit hoods after a comprehensive review “found the risk of using spit hoods outweighed the benefits of their use, given they are ineffective in protecting against transmissible diseases”.[1]
NT Police’s own internal policies recognise that “the risk of biological contamination from spittle is considered low”.[2] The Department of Territory Families list the ban on restraint chairs and spit hoods as a key positive change in the development of their Youth Detention Centre Model of Care.[3]
Alternatives to spit hoods do exist: Police and Youth Detention staff are easily able to wear PPE, as other frontline workers such as doctors and nurses do daily. The provision of additional training in de-escalation and incident prevention for Police and detention staff can help to support people who are detained to regulate their emotions and physiology.
CAYJ calls on the new NT Government to invest in additional training of frontline workers in effective de-escalation techniques and partnership brokerage. These investments would not only aid in the prevention of spitting in custody but also increase the overall safety of staff and improve the experience of vulnerable and acutely distressed people in custody, especially children and young people.
More than seven years has passed since the Federal and NT Government jointly spent over $50 million to conduct the Royal Commission into The Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory. This costly and comprehensive inquiry produced findings that spit hoods have the potential to cause distress to young persons, particularly when used in combination with other forms of restraint; that the use of spit hoods should continue to be prohibited; and, that if spitting is a concern other practical alternatives should be investigated to prevent exposure including utilising PPE.[4]
There is an intentional movement away from the use of spit hoods on both young people and adults, as demonstrated by most other jurisdictions in Australia. For example, Victoria, Tasmania, and NSW do not use spit hoods or restraint chairs on young people in any setting.[5]
We don’t have to look far to find evidence-based thinking on spit hoods:
South Australia passed a legislative ban in 2021 against the use of spit hoods following the tragic death in custody of Wayne Fella Morrison after he was spit hooded
NSW passed laws in February 2024 to ban spit hoods
Every major human rights organisation has condemned the use of spit hoods, including the Australian Human Rights Commission and UN Committee against Torture
Both the NT Ombudsman and the NT Children’s Commissioner has recommended a formal ban of spit hoods in custody
The new NT Government’s public declaration to reinstate the use of spit hoods betrays and contradicts their commitment to the safety of all Territorians. There is no evidence to support the argument that spit hoods prevent disease transmission nor are they effective in keeping frontline staff safe. The use of spit hoods also offers no positive impact on addressing drivers of youth offending. There is clear evidence, however, that spit hoods are dangerous devices which cause serious psychological and physical harm to children and adults and carry risks of asphyxiation and death.[6] [7]
“Devices such as spit hoods have no place in settings that should be offering care and compassion. Considering all the evidence that is now available to this government and the horrifying experiences that so many people have suffered because of their use, the suggested reintroduction of torture objects such as spit hoods for use on children and young people in the NT is abhorrent” – Chair of CAYJ.
CAYJ supports the ongoing prohibition of spit hoods as recommended in the findings of the Royal Commission into the Detention and Protection of Children.[8] CAYJ believes the NT Government must be led by evidence when deciding on any policy that will impact youth justice. CAYJ believe that the proposed reinstatement of spit hoods would be taking a huge step back in their handling of the issues facing the Territory.
“Children have a right to safety and unreserved positive treatment when in the care of any statutory body whether that care is being provided by Territory Families, Police, or Corrections” – Chair of CAYJ.
Contact: Minna Peden (Chair of CAYJ) - 0438 050 862
[1] Media Statement | Australian Federal Police (afp.gov.au)
[2] NT Police Force Instruction on Custody and Transport, 12 February 2020, paragraph 364.
[3] Northern Territory Youth Detention Centres Model of Care, 20 May 2022, page 6.
[4] Commonwealth, Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory, Findings and Recommendations (2017), chapter 13, page 30.
[5] Northern Territory Office of the Children’s Commissioner, Use of Spit Hoods and Restraint Chairs on Children, June 2023, page 42.
[6] Selesa Tafaifa died in jail with a spit hood over her head – now her family wants them outlawed. | ABC News
[7] Office of the Children’s Commissioner Northern Territory, Use of Spit Hoods and Restraint Chairs on Children, June 2023, page 22.
[8] Commonwealth, Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory, Final Report (2017), vol 2A, page 246.