Sack racist cops, says Boney family
By John Tognolini
SYDNEY — Priscilla Boney, mother of Lloyd Boney, who died in a Brewarrina police cell in 1987, is demanding the dismissal of two police who mocked her son's death and that of David Gundy by blacking their faces and wearing nooses around their necks. She is also demanding the dismissal of the police commander for failing to control his officers.
"I was very upset by the mockery", Priscilla Boney told Green Left Weekly. "Lloyd and David should be allowed to rest in peace.
"I won't rest until something's done about these two police. I spoke to some police in Brewarrina, and they said they were shocked by it too. We've come down from Brewarrina to have a meeting with the Gundy family."
"The family was very hurt and disgusted", added Joey Weatherall, Priscilla's son-in-law. "The president of the police union, Mr Day, went on television and radio saying it was just a bit of harmless fun. It wasn't harmless. It's not fun mocking the dead.
"We've had contact with [NSW Police] commissioner Lauer about what action he's going to take. The Boney family believe they should be dismissed from the force. The patrol commander should have stopped the younger officers, but he let them go."
Two weeks before the mockery became public, Shane Boney (another of Priscilla's sons) was picked up by the police after he walked out of a pub with a bottle of beer. As soon as he mentioned his name, they grabbed him and took him to the police station.
When Priscilla went to the station to ask what her son had been charged with, she was told he would be released. When he eventually came out of the cells, "he was all busted up. Blood was pouring out of his mouth. I was just shaking with fear", Priscilla told Green Left. "They can do whatever they want to the Aboriginal boys. Three or four coppers got into him."