A Victorian magistrate has been formally reprimanded by the state’s judicial watchdog following an investigation into inappropriate and offensive remarks made during court proceedings.
Magistrate Vicky Prapas faced scrutiny over a series of comments documented by the Judicial Commission of Victoria. Among the findings, the watchdog concluded that a remark in which the magistrate told a court user, “I want to slap you around a bit, too,” was entirely unacceptable, particularly given that school children were present in the courtroom at the time.
The commission determined that the language used fell short of the standards expected of a judicial officer, prompting the official reprimand.
