New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

Topic

Credit for time on recall

Legal area

Court

7 Dec 2020

CORLESS v R [2020] NZHC 3208

Citation

[2020] NZHC 3208
Court

High Court

Given the purity‑adjusted quantity (105.39g) and surrounding circumstantial evidence plus the statutory presumption, the District Court's starting point (4.5 years uplifted to 5 years for offending while on parole) was proper; the Judge's specified discounts (25% for guilty plea, 15% for addiction, and a six‑month recall credit) were within permissible bounds and did not produce a manifestly excessive sentence, so the appeal is dismissed.
18 Feb 2020

MOREHU v R [2020] NZHC 196

Citation

[2020] NZHC 196
Court

High Court

Failure to acknowledge that time spent in custody following parole recall can attract a discretionary credit was an error; to avoid double punishment courts should allow a discount for recall time (commonly around two-thirds of the recall period), and where such an error affects the overall sentence the appellate court will adjust the sentence accordingly; applying that approach a five month discount for 11 months recall was appropriate and warranted substituting the sentence from 2 years 7 months to 2 years 2 months' imprisonment.