2 Men Convicted For Killing Aboriginal Woman During Sexual Assault

Two men were convicted of murdering an Aboriginal woman in under an hour. Adrian Attwater, 42, and Paul Maris, 47, killed 33-year-old Lynette Daley during a violent sexual assault on a camping trip. Attawater was Daley's boyfriend.

The murder occurred in January 2011 at Ten Mile Beach in New South Wales, Australia. The delayed conviction occurred because it took years for prosecutors to agree that the men were guilty. The trial, which resulted in a victory for Daley's family and other Aboriginal people, lasted five weeks at Coffs Harbour Supreme Court. Exactly 11 jurors weighed in on the case.

"It was a long fight, a long struggle," Gordon Davis, Daley’s stepfather, told the Associated Press Wednesday. "Let the world know there was justice for an Aboriginal woman."

Daley suffered from extreme internal and external injuries, which the judge directly attributed to the aggravated assault incident. However, the convicted men claimed Daley died of a seizure from a swim, according to Australian publication the New Daily.

Attwater and Maris didn't deny that they had accompanied Daley on the beachside camping trip. The pair claimed that Daley was a willing participant in the so-called "wild sex" act, according to the AP. However, Daley's blood alcohol level was confirmed to be between 0.30 and 0.35 percent in an autopsy, which is relatively high. Her blood alcohol level would have made her incapable of giving consent to any sexual encounter.

Prosecutors neglected to press charges against Attwater and Maris on two separate occasions. Attwater was first charged with manslaughter shortly after Daley died, whereas Maris was charged as an accessory to the crime. However, law enforcement dropped the charges because they claimed there was insufficient evidence. Lack of evidence was also given as the reason charges were lifted.

The conviction signaled a victory for victims of sexual assault in the legal system, but it also proved to be a major win for the Aboriginal community in Australia. Australians have grappled with adequately addressing the racism faced by Indigenous people for years.

A study reported that Aboriginal people are more likely to experience racism daily compared to other ethnic groups, according to researchers at Western Sydney University. Approximately two-thirds of Aboriginals and Islanders surveyed said they have faced many racial complications, including being called a racist slur.

Racism toward Aboriginals often trickles into Australian's legal system. Racial prejudices held by select members working in the judicial system have resulted in the mistreatment towards Aboriginal people, including unfair jailing.

The New South Wales Police Force (NSWPF) has implemented a policy to combat this issue called NSW Police Force's Aboriginal Strategic Direction. The policy focuses on maintaining community safety, improving communication between police and Aboriginal people and the outcomes faced by Aboriginal youth offenders.