New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

Topic

Presumption of life imprisonment

Legal area

Court

3 Aug 2022

KAINE VAN HEMERT v R [2022] NZSC 94

Citation

[2022] NZSC 94
Court

Supreme Court

The Court granted extensions of time and leave to appeal because the procedural course did not involve tactical advantage and the substantive question merited consideration: the proper interpretation and application of s 102 is whether life imprisonment is displaced only where it would be manifestly unjust, and that assessment must properly consider both the brutal nature of the offending and the offender's mental health and other circumstances.
21 Mar 2017

R v DEAN COLE [2017] NZHC 517

Citation

[2017] NZHC 517
Court

High Court

The presumption of life imprisonment was displaced because the combined effect of exceptional prolonged abusive provocation by the victim over 22 years and the offender's diagnosed bipolar disorder producing cognitive distortions and irrationality rendered life imprisonment manifestly unjust. The judge set a starting point of 14 years, applied a 2-year discount for early guilty plea and remorse, and imposed a finite sentence of 12 years with a minimum period of 6 years to reflect accountability, denunciation, deterrence and community protection.