The Nunga Courts
The Nunga Court, an Aboriginal Sentencing Court, is a specialist community court meant for sentencing Aboriginal people in South Australia. These courts operate in several locations across South Australia, and is intended to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander offenders who plead guilty of an offence.
The origins
The Nunga Court was the first of its kind to commence operations in Australia, and began in 1999. The court had a precedential impact as several other states modelled their Aboriginal courts on it. The Nunga Court operates within a Magistrates Court, and offers the option of a sentencing conference, while relying on less formal procedures, buttressed by inputs from the community. It aims to create a culturally appropriate method in deciding on a sentence.
Throughout the 1990s, it became clear following the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody in 1991, that the court system was failing Aboriginal people throughout Australia. This had resulted in high rates of incarcerations of Indigenous people (South Australia Courts, 2022). In order to address this, the first Nunga Court was established and piloted on June 1, 1999, by Magistrate Chris Vass, a member of the judicial Aboriginal Cultural Awareness Program and Regional Manager of the Port Adelaide Magistrates Court and other associated circuit courts, including those established and running in the APY Lands (Tomaino, 2004). In the run up to establishing this, Vass had dialogues with Aboriginal people and community groups, state government agencies, the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, police prosecutors and solicitors. It was clear that Aboriginal people both mistrusted the justice system and found it difficult to understand and navigate. The word Nunga, a local word for Aboriginal people, became the official name for the courts (Tomaino, 2004).
When it began, there was no funding. In 1999, however, funding was provided for two Aboriginal Justice Officers (Tomaino, 2004). Additional courts came up soon after at Murray Bridge and Port Augusta (2001), and Ceduna (2003). A separate Youth Aboriginal Court came up in Port Augusta in May 2003 (Marchetti & Daly, 2004). The Criminal Law (Sentencing) Act of 1988 was amended in 2005 to provide legislative support to the already existing practice of Aboriginal Court Day in Magistrates Courts. In 2017, the Sentencing Act was implemented, superseding the previous legislation while incorporating the relevant provisions for the Nunga Court and its functioning.
The Nunga Court serves to help bridge cultural barriers and enhance Aboriginal defendants' understanding of the law, court practice, and procedure when they commit an offence. It facilitates building relationships between the court and Aboriginal communities in order help to reduce offending and pave the way for better outcomes for the defendants. Appropriate referrals are made to suitable medical, psychosocial health, and other rehabilitation services (Legal Services Commission of South Australia, n.d.). It strives to achieve better outcomes than conventional courts, while still functioning within the same framework (Marchetti & Daly, 2004).
It is aimed at reducing the number of Aboriginal deaths in custody, improve court participation rates of Aboriginal people, and to break the cycle of Aboriginal offending. It also aims, as far as possible, to involve victims and their communities in the ownership of the court process.
The impact
The Nunga Courts were a source of inspiration for the establishment of other Aboriginal courts in other states like the Koori Courts in Victoria and the Murri Courts in Queensland.
The Nunga Court is functions at the Magistrates Court in Port Adelaide, Murray Bridge, Port Augusta, Mount Gambier, Port Lincoln, and Ceduna. Before sentencing an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander defendant, the court may, with the consent of the defendant and the support of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Justice Officer, convene a sentencing conference and take into consideration all views expressed at the conference.
The magistrate in the court is advised or supported by an Aboriginal Elder or Justice Officer (Harris, 2004). First, the prosecution outlines the case against the defendant. Then, the defendant and other members of the Indigenous community to have opportunities to speak. Elders may advise the court on sentencing options to ensure cultural appropriateness (Legal Services Commission of South Australia, n.d.). Participation is optional for eligible individuals (Legal Services Commission of South Australia, n.d.). In the sentencing conference, all participants – the defendant, their family, and community, and victims – sit on the same level. Elders, Respected Persons, and AJOs provide the magistrate advice on relevant aspects of cultural and community life.
References
1. South Australia Courts (2022).”Nunga Court Bench Book.” https://www.courts.sa.gov.au/for-the-community/aboriginal-programs/nunga-bench-book/
2. Tomaino, J. (2004). Aboriginal (Nunga) Courts. Office of Crime Statistics and Research. https://www.indigenousjustice.gov.au/wp-content/uploads/mp/files/resources/files/aboriginal-nunga-courts-office-of-crime-statistics-and-research.v1.pdf
3. Marchetti, E. & Daly, K. (2004). "Indigenous Courts and Justice Practices in Australia". Trends and Issues in Crime and Criminal Justice. (277): 1–6. https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1915&context=lhapapers
4. Legal Services Commission of South Australia. (n.d.). "Specialist courts: Aboriginal Court Day (also known as Nunga Court)." https://lsc.sa.gov.au/dsh/print/ch04.php#Ch2118Se301088
5. Harris, M. (2004). "From Australian Courts to Aboriginal Courts in Australia—Bridging the Gap?". Current Issues in Criminal Justice. 16 (1): 26–41.
