New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

Topic

Systemic māori deprivation

Legal area

Court

13 Dec 2019

NICHOLAS v R [2019] NZHC 3312

Citation

[2019] NZHC 3312
Court

High Court

Adjournment to obtain a formal s 27 cultural report was refused because the sentencing judge already had sufficiently detailed and relevant material (appellant's statements, Provision of Advice and an extensive psychological report) that disclosed systemic Māori deprivation and informed on causation; a specialist report was unnecessary and would not likely have altered the sentencing outcome (the five percent discount for mitigation was appropriate).
18 Sept 2018

SOLICITOR-GENERAL v HETA [2018] NZHC 2453

Citation

[2018] NZHC 2453
Court

High Court

Keil v R does not operate as a blanket bar to a 30% discount for matters contained in a s 27 report; discounts for background and hardship remain fact specific, require evidence linking deprivation or cultural factors to culpability and rehabilitation, and must be balanced against the seriousness of offending; on the facts here the combined discounts (30% for personal circumstances, 10% restorative justice, 25% guilty plea) were not an error in principle and the sentence was not manifestly inadequate.