For most rangatahi, the justice system is an intimidating place to be, and it's a place speech therapist Tracy Karanui-Golf helps them to navigate
"They talk about shame, about being whakamā, about being isolated," she says.
She works for Talking Trouble, an organisation that provides communication assistance for those caught up in the justice system.
"So the person can understand all the important things that they need to understand about them, and say all of the things they need to say or answer all of the questions they might be asked in court."
Karanui-Golf is currently one of the only full-time Māori court communication assistants in the justice system.
Research from Talking Trouble found 81 percent of rangatahi at a youth justice facility had language impairment, with 43 percent having severe language impairment.
So in 2019 when the Oranga Tamariki Act came into force, it meant by law all young people have to understand what's going on.
That's where Karanui-Golf comes in. She's often found in the courtroom with several tools, such as screens, post-it notes, and picture cards to help explain what's happening.
"In the justice system, so often people will just agree," she says.
"Then I say, 'OK, so tell me, tell me about it. What did the lawyer just say, what was all that talking about'. And they'll just look at me blankly and go, 'Oh nah, I don't know'."
Tama* is partially deaf, dyslexic, and struggles with comprehension.
When Karanui-Golf first started working with Tama, like many rangatahi in the courts he was withdrawn.
One day, Karanui-Golf asked him why he always wore his headphones even when he wasn't listening to any music.
"And he said, 'so people won't talk to me because here everybody uses big words. I never know what they're saying'.
"'So if I put my headphones on, put my hoodie on, and look at the ground, less people talk to me'."
It wasn't until a victim impact statement was being read out his parents realised how confused their son was.
"A police officer's reading what their young man has done and there was just nothing from this young man," Karanui-Golf says.
So she drew a diagram with pictures to show the harm his actions had caused other people.
"Within about three sentences of me helping that young man to understand the impact, he was crying, crying in a way that his mum said she hasn't heard him cry since he was two or three years old," she says.
Tama's mum says there needs to be more support for whānau struggling to understand the complex justice system.
"The justice system needs to realise that these whānau that come through the courts once, twice a year, they obviously ain't getting it, they're not comprehending," she says.
"They need people like Tracy to take it step by step for them."
*Some names have been changed to protect the identity of the people in this story.
Made with support from Te Māngai Pāho and NZ On Air.
