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A leading youth justice advocate says the latest rooftop riot at Banksia Hill Detention Centre, which saw six teenagers perched on the roof for up to 17 hours, is “a clear cry for help” from children trapped in a system on the brink.
Six detainees, aged between 12 and 17, climbed onto the roof of the Canning Vale youth prison about 2.30pm on Monday, hurling bricks and poles and emptying fire extinguishers as guards in riot gear monitored the chaos from below.
Youths on the roof of Banksia Hill on Monday. Credit: 9News Perth
Three remained on the roof overnight before eventually being returned to their cells around 7am on Tuesday. Aerial vision shows the boys damaged aerials and airconditioners and ripped plaster and insulation off walls.
Suicide-prevention researcher and youth custody advocate Gerry Georgatos said the teenagers’ actions were not spontaneous but a “predictable crisis”.
“It was alleged one of the kids received an upsetting phone call and climbed the roof, and five others followed in an act of impulsivity,” he said.
“But for detainees to get access to extinguishers, megaphones, poles and other items, it takes planning and precision.
“These items are guarded and in areas not accessible to inmates. This was not a rogue act of mindless defiance. These are lonely children acting out in hopelessness.”
Georgatos said the children’s families were “devastated” but reluctant to publicly raise concerns for fear of making conditions worse for their children inside. He said the detainees would be interviewed by police and could face charges.
“These kids are put in the too-hard basket. It’s not a bastion for meaningful change or therapeutic care,” he said.
“They are coming out worse than when they go in.”
The centre holds girls and boys aged 10 to 17 and has faced years of scrutiny over lockdowns, staffing shortages and repeated rooftop disturbances.
Detention centre officers watch on from the ground, wearing riot gear as the juveniles threw projectiles at them from the roof.Credit: 9 News Perth
Corrective Services Minister Paul Papalia condemned the most recent incident as “unacceptable”, saying officers continued to deal with “challenging and violent” incidents.
“It reaffirms the need for a purpose-designed facility to house the state’s most high-risk youth, as announced by our government last week,” he said.
That announcement included the future closure of Unit 18 at Casuarina Prison, the controversial adult jail unit used to house the most difficult Banksia Hill detainees, and plans for a new high-security youth facility.
Papalia said the group on the roof comprised of children aged 12, 13, and 16 and 17, with most already moved to Unit 18, and the others to be assessed today.
“You don’t get into detention in Western Australia unless you try really hard … and when you’re there, you’ve got to follow the rules,” he said.
“It’s not the rules to climb roofs and throw things at staff, it’s totally unacceptable.”
Opposition corrective services spokesman Adam Hort said the government had dragged its feet coming up with a solution to WA’s youth detention crisis.
“We needed a new youth rehabilitation centre yesterday. The government has delayed this vital project for years,” he said.
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“Taking more than half a decade to deliver the solution our system needs shows how little priority they have given to community safety and genuine rehabilitation.”
The centre has recorded repeated rooftop riots, including a 12-hour standoff in May 2023 when 47 detainees lit fires and threw objects.
That incident ended with officers pointing guns at children, prompting Amnesty International to condemn the use of extreme force.
Former Premier Mark McGowan labelled the behaviour “a form of terrorism”, comments Amnesty described as “unconscionable”.
Georgatos said Tuesday’s riot should serve as another warning that the system is failing.
“It speaks to the failures of the prisons,” he said.
“Of course children are going to plan things like this as a cry for help. They did not climb onto that roof alone, they were pushed there by a system that has abandoned them.
“This money spent on a new facility is a waste and should go to helping the children therapeutically.”
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