17 Aug 2021
HONA v MINISTRY FOR PRIMARY INDUSTRIES [2021] NZHC 2156
- Citation
- [2021] NZHC 2156
- Court
- High Court
The High Court found the offending to be low to moderate in gravity (towards low) given absence of violence, lack of sophistication in deception and spontaneous nature, and that strong mitigating factors (guilty plea, genuine remorse, restorative justice, stable personal and employment-retraining circumstances) outweigh the consequences of conviction (including employment risk and loss of clean slate), so a discharge without conviction was appropriate for the two s 229(1) Fisheries Act charges.