Paul Kerr, 47, had claimed he was just trying to pull up his shorts, because the button had come off, but magistrate Peter Dunn told Wangaratta Magistrates Court on Thursday the excuse was “ludicrous” and sentenced him to two months in jail.

An appeal was immediately lodged and Kerr was released on bail.

He had been at court on April 11 last year for the committal hearing of Jacob Allan, who has since pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Wangaratta’s Russell Berry and is serving a 10-year jail sentence.

Allan's sister and cousin said they saw Kerr follow them down Faithfull Street when they left the courthouse to go to the car, when he pulled down his shorts, grabbed his penis and told them to "sit on this".

Ten minutes later, when the family was back inside the court waiting area, he stood outside the window where they were all sitting and again exposed himself. 

Tracey Allan, Jacob's mother, was one of six witnesses to give evidence.

"He's grabbed his penis and just started twirling it around," she said.

"We were just disgusted, absolutely disgusted.

"This was at the front of the courthouse. Why would you do that?"

Leading Senior Constable Craig Robinson arrested Kerr later that morning after also seeing the exposure himself.

"I formed the view he was under the effect of an unknown substance - he was very, very erratic," he said.

Kerr - who said he was a full-time carer for his parents - pleaded not guilty.

"My button kept popping out and my fly kept coming undone, I was really embarrassed," he said.

But Mr Dunn rejected his argument and said he should be ashamed, finding him guilty of sexual exposure in a public place and behaving in an indecent manner.

"Your behaviour was abhorrent to the community at large, abhorrent to people at court in a situation where people were charged with serious offences over the death of another," he said.

RELATED:

Receive our daily newsletter straight to your inbox each morning from The Border Mail. Sign up here​