00:00 An unusual alliance brought together by a collective frustration with the state government
00:06 after the Supreme Court ruled young people are being unlawfully confined to their cells
00:11 at Bankshire Hill and within a special unit inside Casuarina Prison.
00:15 A government declining to obey the courts is a government that doesn't respect that
00:22 it is bound by its own legislation and that's a very serious, almost existential concern
00:28 for our system of government.
00:30 The government says it's since taken steps to make all confinement lawful, but the decision
00:34 still united some of the nation's top law firms, all here to discuss the turmoil within
00:39 the state's youth justice system.
00:41 Imagine not having your phone, not having access to TV or books and just sitting there
00:45 all day. For someone who's quite resilient and mentally well, that's hard.
00:50 Also up for discussion, potential solutions for those in detention.
00:54 If I was one of them, I would want to hear someone that's changed in my people. Show
00:58 me someone out there that has changed, that has been through the system and coming into
01:04 the prison to give me hope.
01:05 To the relief of many hoping for change, that's something the government says it is working
01:10 on, but it's a monumental task.
01:12 Given how difficult it is to effectively turn a bureaucracy and turn policies, that said
01:21 there is much work to be done in terms of improving conditions at Bankshear Hill.
01:26 The lawyers hope that by banding together, they can win the ear of government and help
01:30 to bring about change. Among their priorities, getting legislation introduced into parliament
01:36 to give courts more options when dealing with young people convicted of crimes who have
01:40 been diagnosed with things like fetal alcohol spectrum disorder.
01:44 [BLANK_AUDIO]
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