It's been 20 years since Victoria's first Koori Court opened in Shepparton, paving the way for First Nations people to have cultural representation in the justice system.
The Shepparton Magistrate's Court was chosen as the first location for the Koori Court following strong advocacy from the community.
Twenty years on, Koori Courts now operate across 15 locations around the state as well as in the Children's Court and County Court.
The Koori Court involves a magistrate and two Koori elders or respected persons sitting around a Koori Court table with the accused, along with their support people, lawyer, prosecution, and a Koori Court officer. Elders and respected persons provide cultural advice to the magistrate and all parties take part in a sentencing conversation.
Supervising Magistrate for Koori Justice, Magistrate Rose Falla said the Koori Court was the first example of self-determination in action.
"It allows for the elders to really engage with the accused person who's participating in the Koori Court and to really search and explore what the underlying causes of their offending might be and what's brought them to court," she said.
Over 20 years, 3,200 participants have had their matters finalised in the Magistrates' Court's Koori Courts, and Magistrate Falla said the evidence was clear that it worked.
"The evaluation when it took place did highlight that the number of the failures to appear, the number of warrants being issued by courts decreased," she said.
'They don't like coming back to face the elders'
Yorta Yorta woman Aunty Rochelle Patten was one of the inaugural elders and respected persons to join the Shepparton Koori Court.
Aunty Rochelle heard about the court through the inaugural Koori Court magistrate Kate Auty who encouraged her to join, and she sits in the Koori Court today.
Aunty Rochelle said over the years she had dealt with her own issues and she wanted to share her experiences with the young people coming to court.
"I told them we don't have to do this. We can stop. We can live a normal life," she said.
"You hope for the best, you say the words to them and hope they get the message."
Aunty Rochelle said there had been a number of cases over the years that had moved her and she was proud of the work the court had done.
"They don't like coming back to face the elders, but some of them come back," she said.
Yorta Yorta, Dja Dja Wurrung, and Wadjabalok man Uncle Robert 'Bobby' Nicholls is the Hume Regional Aboriginal Justice Advisory Committee chair. He recalled when he was working as a public servant in the Barwon South West region people calling the Koori Court a "laughing joke".
"I had to sit down with them and explain to them that it's not about getting a slap on the wrist," he said.
"It's not different to the normal Magistrates' Court. You will still end up either with a corrections order or with a fine or with a custodial sentence."
Uncle Bobby agreed that many, particularly first-time offenders, did not like coming before the elders and it brought them shame.
"I would hate to be going through that myself," he said.
"There are people who continuingly come back through the system but then there are other people who may be first offenders that say I don't want to go through that again and they've never come back."
Uncle Robert said the Koori Courts had proven they worked and were money well spent.
"Unfortunately, we don't have any control over a person offending and hopefully the wise words that have been spoken may not all sink in but hopefully [offenders] take away something that not only the magistrate is saying to them but also the respected elders."
