Rangatahi Court for Northland youth offenders to be held in Whangarei

Whangarei's Terenga Paraoa Marae will become the place for the 15th Rangatahi Court in New Zealand.

Young Northlanders who find themselves on the wrong side of the law can now opt to be dealt with on a marae.

Northland is the next region to have a Rangatahi (young people) Court, which will be hosted by Terenga Paraoa Marae on Porowini Ave in Whangarei.

It will become the 15th Rangatahi Court since the first court was established in Gisborne in 2008, and will be opened officially at a ceremony in February. The court is for youth who choose to undergo monitoring of their family group conference plans in a marae setting.

Experienced Judge Greg Davis, of Ngapuhi descent, will take over the court during the year.

He and Hamilton-based Judge Denise Clark, also with Ngapuhi links, have led the establishment of the Whangarei court, which will operate within the Youth Court jurisdiction.

In Northland in the past financial year, 134 young people appeared in Youth Court, just over half of those in Whangarei. More than 80 per cent of those young people were Maori.

Rangatahi Courts aim to provide the best possible rehabilitative care for young offenders by reconnecting them with their cultural identity, and involving local Maori in the process.

Principal Youth Court Judge John Walker said providing culturally responsive justice was vital when two-thirds of those appearing in the Youth Court were Maori.

"This is a significant addition to the approaches available to the Youth Court in Whangarei for delivering effective interventions to address the underlying causes of offending,"
Judge Walker said.

"Whangarei Terenga Paraoa Marae is part of an inclusive marae complex that allows Maori of the district to come together, and we hope that a Rangatahi Court there will provide an alternative for young people and their whanau, hapu and iwi."

A 2014 Ministry of Justice analysis of reoffending rates estimated that young people who appeared in a Rangatahi Court were 11 per cent less likely to reoffend.

Chief District Court Judge Jan-Marie Doogue acknowledged the contribution of local Maori to the initiative.

"The establishment of a Rangatahi Court requires a big commitment from the local community to provide the sort of support, insights and knowledge of tikanga that makes these courts so impactful."

In the court marae social services and kaumatua and kuia provide guidance, under the leadership of a Youth Court judge.

To be eligible for a Rangatahi Court appearance, the offender must be between 14 and 16 and have already appeared in the conventional Youth Court where there has been a family group conference plan formulated and all parties agree a Rangatahi Court appearance would be collectively helpful.

Rangatahi Courts work within the Youth Court framework, aim to connect youngsters with positive community role models and bring iwi, hapu and whanau together to address underlying causes of offending.