I don't think you're ever going to change the perception of a protest hearing. Anytime you put two people who both feel like they are correct in front of a judge/jury to decide one outcome, there will be at least one unhappy person. By nature, this is contentious. Different people approach it differently.

I like the "beach justice" that Tom mentions - the A-cats started doing something like this years ago (and caught flack for it on here). On the small scale, I don't see anything wrong with this kind of action. However, we do need to be careful to honor the system that is in place and, honestly, quite functional. Formal protests lead to learning material and advancement of the rules when they go through the formal system and are documented and/or elevated when the outcome is contested.