A YEAR-LONG delay to Victorian bail reforms starting would be disrespectful to the family and partner of Indigenous woman Veronica Nelson, advocates say. 

In January, Coroner Simon McGregor found the 2020 death of Ms Nelson in custody was preventable and called for an urgent review of the Bail Act. 

Ms Nelson was arrested in December 2019 on warrants for breaching bail and suspicion of shoplifting and represented herself in a bail application, which was denied. 

Following dozens of calls for help, she died in her cell at Dame Phyllis Frost Centre days later from complications of Wilkie’s syndrome while suffering from heroin withdrawal. 

Under Victorian government reforms set to be introduced to parliament, the contentious reverse-onus test for bail would not apply to low-level offenders. 

But the changes won’t be implemented for 12 months after the bill passes or completely remove the unacceptable risk test, according to working documents from the justice department obtained by The Age. 

Ms Nelson’s life partner, Uncle Percy Lovett, said what happened to her…