NSW coroner finds racial bias drove 'superficial' probe into Aboriginal teen's death
The NSW Coroner's Court has found that racial bias played a central role in the 'superficial' police investigation into the 1988 death of 17-year-old Aboriginal teenager Mark Haines, found beside railway tracks near Tamworth. The ruling marks a watershed in the family's 38-year campaign for justice and adds new pressure on NSW Police accountability mechanisms.
In 1988, Mark Haines's body was found on railway tracks about 60 kilometres from Tamworth, with NSW Police quickly classifying the case as a 'one-person accident' despite witness statements gathered by the family pointing to third-party involvement.
NSW Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan ruled on Wednesday that the 1988 investigation had been shaped by 'institutional biases toward Aboriginal people', with critical witness statements never taken and crime-scene evidence improperly documented. The finding adds weight to calls from the NSW Police Officers' Federation for an independent inquiry mandate.
Mark Haines's aunt Lorraine Haines told reporters, 'We have wanted the truth told for 38 years — today is the first step.' The NSW attorney-general said the state accepted recommendations to reopen the case and request Australian Federal Police support, while the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner called for a national task force to review similar legacy cases.
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