New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

New Zealand Case Law

Victim provocation

  • 21 Oct 2020

    R v HAKOPA [2020] NZHC 2763

    Citation
    [2020] NZHC 2763
    Court
    High Court

    Starting point of four years six months imprisonment was appropriate for this one‑punch manslaughter having reviewed comparable authorities; substantial cumulative discounts (upbringing/systemic deprivation, maximum early guilty plea discount, remorse, youth/character and EM bail compliance) reduced the term to 20 months imprisonment which was converted to 12 months home detention because the final custodial term was less than two years and home detention adequately met sentencing purposes; crucially medical evidence established death resulted from the punch and fall and that subsequent kicks…

  • 30 May 2017

    RAFIQ v R [2017] NZCA 220

    Citation
    [2017] NZCA 220
    Court
    Court of Appeal

    The Court held the starting point of three years' imprisonment was within the appropriate sentencing band given four aggravating features (premeditation, use of a weapon, attack to the head, vigilante action); the judge permissibly reduced the starting point by six months for mitigation (including provocation and lack of prior convictions); the last‑minute offer of $400 reparation was properly given no weight given lack of remorse and doubts about genuineness; the final sentence of two and a half years was not manifestly excessive and the appeal was dismissed.

  • 4 May 2016

    R v HUNT [2016] NZHC 881

    Citation
    [2016] NZHC 881
    Court
    High Court

    Starting point set at eight and a half years for the objective seriousness of striking a heavy axe blow to the head; reduced by one year for victim provocation (Taueki), by nine months for demonstrated remorse, and by one year eight months (25%) for an early guilty plea, producing a final sentence of five years one month imprisonment.

  • 3 May 2016

    TAI v NEW ZEALAND POLICE [2016] NZHC 874

    Citation
    [2016] NZHC 874
    Court
    High Court

    The Court held the sentencing judge's three year starting point was within the applicable Nuku range given repeated blows, head strikes and use of a bottle; the victim's conduct amounted to serious provocation warranting only a modest reduction (no more than three months) but the offender's breach of recent community detention warranted an uplift of at least three months which balanced that credit; remorse did not compel a discrete discount; therefore the end sentence of two years four months imprisonment was not manifestly excessive and the appeal was dismissed.