Story perspectives

Jefferson Lewis Charged; Pink Vigils Call for Justice

5/8/2026

Summary

Story summary

Authorities charged 47-year-old Jefferson Lewis with murder of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby after her body was found on 30 April near Alice Springs.
Candlelit pink vigils were held in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Darwin, Canberra, Adelaide, Brisbane and Hobart, with participants placing pebbles reading “May justice be done.”
Family members and Yapa elder Robin Granites asked the public to let justice proceed while three child-protection workers were stood down after an investigation.

History

Historical Context

Established in October 1987, the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody—finalised in April 1991—investigated 99 Indigenous deaths and issued 339 recommendations, of which only about two-thirds were acted on. The killing of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby by Jefferson Lewis in Alice Springs revives the commission’s warnings about persistent systemic child-protection failures by government agencies.

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Story summary

Authorities charged 47-year-old Jefferson Lewis with murder of five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby after her body was found on 30 April near Alice Springs.
Candlelit pink vigils were held in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Darwin, Canberra, Adelaide, Brisbane and Hobart, with participants placing pebbles reading “May justice be done.”
Family members and Yapa elder Robin Granites asked the public to let justice proceed while three child-protection workers were stood down after an investigation.

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