Warning: This story contains the name and images of a deceased Indigenous person.
The 16-year-old was taken to hospital in a critical condition and died a week later, causing outrage and grief in the community.
Attorneys representing high-ranking officials at the Justice Department argued against holding them accountable for any negative conclusions, such as in the case of former director-general Dr. Adam Tomison.
How the facility was run wasn’t his responsibility and Corrective Services staff should have followed policy, lawyer Jerome Allan said
Tomison previously agreed children had been subject to appalling, cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment in Unit 18 under his watch.
The Justice Department issued an apology to the family of Cleveland and acknowledged various problems within Unit 18 in 2023, such as deteriorating infrastructure, prolonged detainee confinement, and understaffing.
On the night Cleveland self-harmed, he was not properly supervised and should have been given more water, lawyer Tim Russell said.
“More should have been done,” he said.
But the department did not accept Unit 18 was unfit for youth detainees.
The inquest previously heard Cleveland self-harmed about 1.35am and paramedics arrived at 2.06am, but did not get access to him for nine minutes.
Cleveland died, surrounded by his family, on October 19, 2023.
For 24/7 crisis support run by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, contact 13YARN (13 92 76).
