Investigation results on Kumanjayi Walker may result in lasting changes to the Northern Territory Police, according to an anti-racism officer, focusing on Indigenous Australians.

The woman in charge of eliminating racism within the Northern Territory police states that the findings of a report into the death of Kumanjayi Walker will lead to “lasting reform” toward a police force that all Territorians can trust. Leanne Liddle, an Arrernte woman and former police officer, addressed the media in Alice Springs alongside the acting NT police commissioner, Martin Dole, following the coroner’s finding that the officer who fatally shot the 19-year-old was “racist” and “worked in and benefited from an organisation with the hallmarks of institutional racism.” Liddle said the coroner’s findings, while deeply confronting, were not new to many Aboriginal people. The NT’s longest-running inquest presented its findings in Yuendumu, where Walker was fatally shot by police officer Zachary Rolfe in 2019. Rolfe was charged with murder but acquitted in 2022. The inquest revealed text messages where Rolfe and other officers used derogatory language about Aboriginal people and “racist awards” within an elite police unit. The coroner made 33 recommendations, more than half aimed at improving police ties with the Aboriginal community. Dole stated that the police force is quite different today compared to 2019 and that the findings would inform a draft anti-racism plan for consultation. Several Indigenous organizations have urged the government to use the findings as a catalyst for system-wide change. The Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, Katie Kiss, stressed the urgent need for sweeping reform across the justice system. The NT government, which won on a promise to be tough on crime, is considering the recommendations.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/jul/09/kumanjayi-walker-inquest-findings-will-bring-lasting-reform-to-nt-police-says-anti-racism-officer-ntwnfb