WARNING: distressing content.
NITV has permission to use Cassius Turvey's name and image.
The Prime Minister has joined a wave of First Nations people who have spoken out about the killing of a Noongar schoolboy.
Cassius Turvey died on Sunday after he was attacked in the Perth suburb of Middle Swan on October 13 while walking home from school with his friends.
It is alleged a car approached Cassius' group, when a number of men then set upon them with weapons including a metal pole.
The 15-year-old sustained serious injuries. After initially being discharged from hospital, he later suffered two strokes and a brain bleed before being induced into a coma.
He died on the weekend.
His mother Mechelle has spoken about the grief of the loss and described the much-loved teenager as a 'gentle giant.'
She also expressed her frustrations at the police to The Guardian, questioning why they had only taken a brief statement from her son the night he was admitted to the hospital.
A 21-year-old man, Jack Steven James Brearley has been charged with his murder, with police adding further charges on Friday of aggravated assault occasioning bodily harm as well as stealing the crutches of a 13-year-old boy who was in Cassius' group.
'Clearly racially motivated'
The boys who were with Cassius told the West Australian they were racially abused by the men before the assault began.
On Friday morning, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese weighed in with his thoughts.
"This attack, that is clearly racially motivated, just breaks your heart," he said.
"We are a better country than that and my heart goes out to the family and the friends ."
Mechelle Turvey says her son Cassius was a beautiful boy who was born a "pop", an "uncle".
“It may be a case of mistaken identity. It may be a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said.
“We are not operating on any principles of racism or motivation at this point.”
WA Premier Mark McGowan urged people to “let the law run its course”.
Noongar human rights lawyer Dr Hannah McGlade said she appreciates Albanese’s integrity for speaking up.
“We feel that he has acknowledged, truthfully, the reality,” she said.
However, when it comes to the law labelling racism as part of the violent attack, Dr McGlade said simply “it won’t”.
“There is no proper response to racial hatred or racist violence in Australia,” she said.
Dr McGlade said she was very “distressed and disturbed” by the comments made by both the commissioner and premier.
“They have told Aboriginal people, to be quiet, not to jump to conclusions, that this was some accidental killing. And yet, we all know this would never have happened if he was white,” she said.
The Commissioner is expected to meet with the family in the coming days.
NITV News has reached out to the WA Police for further comment.
Cassius Turvey had only recently lost his dad Sam after a long battle with cancer when he was attacked and fatally injured on a Perth street.
'Our babies aren't safe'
WA Greens Senator Dorinda Cox, who knows the Commissioner personally after spending a decade in the state’s police force said she was “disappointed" by the Commissioners comments.
“This is quite dismissive in the way of taking away the hurt and the pain and anger in our communities,” she said.
“Even as I stand here in Canberra, I feel the sorrow and the hurt and the pain of our community.”
The news took a personal toll for the senator as a Noongar woman and mother of two.
“It saddens me that we still have these things occurring in 2022," she said.
Cassius Turvey was recognised at the local NAIDOC awards four years ago.
“And no black mother should wonder if their child will return home,” she said.
“We all must fight for a country where First Nations children like Cassius can live out their birthright. Cassius: may you rest as we rise and continue the fight.”
Minister for Indigenous Australians Linda Burney also stressed the importance of safety for First Nations children.
“This is nothing short of a tragedy and I personally know what it's like to lose a child,” she said.
“But this is another reminder isn't it, of the precarious, how precarious it is for young Aboriginal people in this country.”
Mechelle Turvey says her son had a beautiful gift of making people smile and laugh.
Community continue to speak up
Actress Shareena Clanton is a cousin to Cassius.
The Wongatha, Yamatji and Noongar, Gitja woman was critical of his attackers and also the healthcare system.
She said the reporting of the attack as an “altercation” made it seem as though he was guilty or had provoked it.
“Shame on this country that continues to not see our black babies and our black bodies as human beings,” she wrote on Instagram.
Noongar/Yamatji youthworker Brooke Blurton said the Commissioner's 'wrong place wrong time' comment was "bullshit" while Kamilaroi journalist and ABC presenter Tony Armstrong shared his views on The Project.
“There’s never action, there’s only talk and ultimately we don’t want to talk about how this is a racial incident,” he said.
“But ultimately, what it all boils down to, the value of property has been deemed more than the life of a 15-year-old black kid.”
Noongar human rights lawyer Dr Hannah McGlade. Credit: NITV The Point: Kearyn Cox
“Crimes like this just don’t come from nowhere,” he wrote on Instagram.
He said they stem from jokes, jibes, micro-aggressions, belittling, condescension, gaslighting, mockery and accusations.
“The preconceived ideas you may have in your head that are reinforced over and over. The myths and lies you’re fed and the assumptions you make from them.”
Vigils are being organised across the country to remember Cassius Turvey on Wednesday November 2nd.
A community BBQ will be held for Cassius in Midland tomorrow while Vigils are being organised across the country on Wednesday November 2nd.
