Response to the death of an 18-year-old at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre
Smart Justice For Women
Response to the death of an 18-year-old at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre
Smart Justice for Women expresses its sincere condolences to the family of an 18-year-old woman who died on Monday the 27th of July at the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre (DPFC).
While her death will be the subject of an investigation by the Coroner, as organisations that work to support the well-being of detained people across the criminal legal system, we believe these circumstances raise urgent issues about current conditions at DPFC, a prison which has been the subject of rolling, facility-wide lockdowns for a number of months.
It is our understanding that this included several consecutive days of lockdowns in the days prior to the young woman’s death. While we are seeking further information on the specific events that led up to this tragedy, during lockdowns women experience significant restrictions to their movement and access to support, and may be denied access to medical and mental health support, phone calls, legal appointments, exercise facilities, and outdoor spaces.
We are extremely concerned about the well-being of all incarcerated women and gender diverse people at the facility and are calling for urgent mental health support to be provided, and an end to the lockdowns. Extended lockdowns, which include periods of isolation, put enormous pressure on people in prison and make the provision of basic support services impossible.
As noted in Solitary Confinement & Lockdowns, a legal resource for criminal lawyers:
“It is well-documented that solitary confinement causes serious psychiatric harm. The practice can induce symptoms of psychosis and exacerbate pre-existing mental health conditions. Even after confinement ends, many people suffer lasting or permanent mental health effects.”
This young woman’s death comes as the Victorian Government is seeking to introduce the Corrections Amendment Bill 2026, with the support of the Opposition, to remove the right of people in prison to at least one hour of daily outdoor time. These proposed amendments breach Victoria’s Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 and the Mandela Rules – globally endorsed human rights principles which set a baseline for the treatment of prisoners.
Through the introduction of changes to bail laws and the Adult Time for Violent Crime laws, the Victorian Government – with the support of the Opposition – has contributed to steep increases in the number of people imprisoned on remand, that is, while awaiting trial. This has created dangerous conditions in prisons, which make tragedies like the death of this 18-year-old much more likely.
We are calling on the Victorian Government to withdraw the Corrections Amendment Bill, and act urgently to prevent further tragedies at DPFC and other prison facilities. The truth is that “law and order crackdowns” for electoral purposes impact highly vulnerable people in prison, like this young woman, most severely.
Elena Pappas, Laura Heffes and Simone Gristwood
Co-Convenors, Smart Justice for Women Coalition
About us:
Smart Justice for Women is a coalition of nearly 40 member organisations as well as leading academics and experts committed to ending the criminalisation of women in Victoria.
more info at https://www.fclc.org.au/sjfw
Contact details:
For media queries, please contact Toby Halligan, Justice Advocacy Lead, Jesuit Social Services [email protected]; 0409 692 230.
