Greg Borchers, previously sanctioned in 2017, also tells mother she probably ‘abandoned your kids in that great Indigenous fashion’

A Northern Territory judge has told an Indigenous mother she probably got drunk on pension day and “abandoned your kids in that great Indigenous fashion”, and compared an Aboriginal domestic violence offender to a “primitive person dragging his woman out of the cage”.

The local court judge, Greg Borchers, who was sanctioned for inappropriate comments in 2017, also openly pondered whether “some important anthropological literature” would one day help explain “Indigenous laissez-faire parenting” and “why it is that people abandon their children on such a regular basis”.

Borchers was removed from the Alice Springs youth court in 2017 following a series of “gratuitous and unnecessary” remarks to juveniles.

His conduct prompted a complaint from the Central Australian Aboriginal legal aid service, and an investigation by the chief judge of the Darwin local court, John Lowndes, found Borchers had brought the judiciary into disrepute. Borchers was allowed to continue to sit in other NT courts.

Row over Northern Territory magistrate brings intervention from chief justice Read more

Guardian Australia has learned that Borchers has continued to make controversial comments since his removal from the Alice Springs court.

In April, Borchers was dealing with an Indigenous woman for breaching a domestic violence order requiring her not to drink in the presence of another named person.

In sentencing the woman, Borchers said: “Yesterday probably was pension day, so you got your money from the government, abandoned your kids in that great Indigenous fashion of abrogating your parental responsibility to another member of your family, and went off and got drunk.”

Five months earlier, Borchers was in Katherine sentencing an Indigenous woman for assault. He was questioning the woman’s lawyer about why she had “abandoned her child to come to Katherine to drink” and wondered aloud who would look after the child after court.

“So, in her case, she’s going to whip home as soon as possible to look after her child because there’s no family to look after it. Are you saying that to me?… Because if you are, I don’t believe it for a moment,” he said.

Borchers said later in court: “One day we might read some literature, some important anthropological literature, we might learn something about what’s called Indigenous laissez-faire parenting and I invite you to do so, not that it will help your practice in any way, but it might get you to understand why it is that people abandon their children on such a regular basis.”

In a third case, Borchers compared a man being sentenced for assaulting his partner to a “primitive person”.

“As a result of her standing up for herself and demonstrating that she didn’t want to comply with your drunken demands she got a punch in face and you dragged her through the house by her hair on the floor in a demeaning, degrading fashion,” he said.

“Just like a primitive person dragging his woman out of the cage ready to give her a further beating.”

Borchers was approached for comment through the NT Department of the Attorney General and Justice. A spokesman said judges did not “engage in public debate about judicial decisions” and that a judge “does not comment publicly once reasons for decision have been published”.

The department said no complaint had been received about the comments, so the chief judge could not investigate.

“In this matter the Chief Judge has not received a complaint from anyone affected by the decision,” the spokesman said. “It is only in the event of a complaint being made that the Chief Judge considers the complaint and responds through the complaint-handling process.”

The Northern Territory attorney general, Natasha Fyles, was approached for comment. A government spokesman said it would be inappropriate for ministers to comment on the actions of judges, but noted: “Work is underway to create a Judicial Complaints Commission, with legislation expected to be introduced into the Legislative Assembly later in the year.”

Following the last complaint against Borchers, the Criminal Lawyers Association of the Northern Territory president, Marty Aust, called on fellow lawyers not to target individuals, including judges, and do more to recognise the difficult work facing members of the profession.

“Demonising individuals whether in the media or a courtroom cannot be a productive solution,” Aust told Lawyers Weekly.

“The collegiality of the legal profession is one of its greatest attributes and a proud tradition we all enjoy as officers of the court. CLANT considers the matter now finalised.”

The last complaint against Borchers was investigated by Lowndes over a number of months in 2017. Lowndes found the judge had displayed a lack of “judicial temperament”.

“I have formed the view that in a number of matters the judge has not demonstrated the courtesy, tolerance, patience and sensitivity which, in accordance with the AIJA Guide to Judicial Conduct, should necessarily characterise the discharge of the judicial function,” Lowndes said in findings delivered in December 2017.

“The judge has been found to have engaged in inappropriate judicial conduct, which is unacceptable.

“It detracts from the proper performance in the matter at hand, specifically, and it reflects poorly on the courts generally and brings the judiciary into disrepute.”