00:01This is where children in custody are held while waiting for trial or sentencing.
00:08They are tiny cells. They are very sparse, very cold.
00:15Built in the 1970s, the Adelaide Youth Court cells are now only used infrequently.
00:21The majority of young people in custody instead appear in court via video link from the Youth Detention Centre.
00:28It's very convenient to set up a camera and to run a process via video link because it works for
00:34the grown-ups but what it doesn't work for is the children.
00:38Shona Reid spoke to young people in detention as part of an inquiry into the use of video link in
00:43the Youth Court.
00:44Some children told her they found it difficult to understand what was being said in court when they appeared via
00:50video link and they'd prefer to attend in person.
00:54Half the time you can't hear the people or sometimes it messes up.
00:59When we go in person, they know we're just people.
01:02Ms Reeds asked the State Government to upgrade the Youth Court cells within a year and to ensure children are
01:08informed of their right to attend court in person.
01:11We shouldn't have to sacrifice children's access to a fair and a just legal process because we're not prepared to
01:19fix the infrastructure.
01:20Now that the election's been held, we will turn our minds both between myself and the Minister for Youth.
01:26A spokesperson for the Youth Court told the ABC they welcomed Ms Reeds' findings.
01:30They said a review was underway into the use of video link to identify potential improvements.
01:36We'll be right back to the next slide.
01:37We'll see you next time.
01:37We'll see you next time.
01:37We'll see you next time.
01:37We'll see you next time.
01:38We'll see you next time.
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