When an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person is taken into police custody in Victoria, VALS is notified and we offer support.
The CNS was born out of one of the 339 recommendations aimed at preventing institutional failures that could lead to harm or death in custody in 1991 Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody.
In 2018 the Australian Law Reform Commission joined VALS in advocating to legislate the requirement for police to notify the relevant Aboriginal legal service when an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person is taken into custody. VALS was successful in this advocacy in October 2019.
The Custody Notification System (CNS) sends an alert to VALS, and we respond in the interests of the person.
This service operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Currently, our Custody Notification Officers (CNOs) have working relationships with 333 police stations across the state.
The CNS team supports our mob in custody with:
The CNS is a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week team that supports our mob at their most vulnerable time in Police Custody.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this website may contain images, voices or names of deceased persons in photographs, film, audio recordings or printed material.
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