New Zealand Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Excessive self-defence

Legal area

Court

4 Apr 2023

R v SELLICK (Sentencing Notes) [2023] NZHC 743

Citation

[2023] NZHC 743
Court

High Court

Judge accepted excessive self-defence reduced culpability to manslaughter but found deliberate, reckless close-range discharge of a loaded pistol warranted a starting point of 7 years 6 months for manslaughter; separate substantial drug offending (2.2kg, significant role) merited a 10-year starting point reduced to 9 years after 10% guilty plea discount and combined as a 6-year uplift for totality; a 6-month uplift applied for offending while on bail and prior violent conviction; mitigation (s27 report and remorse) totalled 15% reduction yielding an end sentence of 11 years 10 months with a c…
27 Sept 2022

R v FILOA [2022] NZHC 2461

Citation

[2022] NZHC 2461
Court

High Court

The presumption of life imprisonment was not displaced because the jury convicted of murder on the evidence, no exceptional circumstances (such as severe mental impairment or prolonged abuse) justified a finite sentence, and the offending, while mitigated to a degree, warranted life imprisonment with an MPI set by reference to comparable cases: starting point 11 years reduced by six months for personal mitigation to an MPI of 10.5 years.
4 Aug 2022

PORTELA CHAVES v NEW ZEALAND POLICE [2022] NZHC 1909

Citation

[2022] NZHC 1909
Court

High Court

The sentencing judgment's assessment that the assault was of moderately serious gravity (heavy punch causing compound jaw fracture requiring surgery) was correct; the likely immigration consequences including deportation and loss of visa/work, while serious, were not out of all proportion to that gravity; accordingly the application for discharge without conviction was correctly refused and the appeal is dismissed.
15 Feb 2021

R v TIMOTHY MACDONALD [2021] NZHC 224

Citation

[2021] NZHC 224
Court

High Court

Starting point fixed at six and a half years (78 months) reflecting use of a firearm and serious injury causing death but tempered by excessive self-defence and personal mitigation including detailed cultural and psychological background; applied a global 25% discount for personal factors (cultural/psychological/remorse) and a 25% discount for an early guilty plea, yielding a final sentence of 37 months' imprisonment; no MPI beyond the default one-third was ordered; firearm and ammunition to be destroyed and s27/s38 reports to be made available to Corrections and the Parole Board with consent.
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…
7 Aug 2020

R v RUDDELLE [2020] NZHC 1983

Citation

[2020] NZHC 1983
Court

High Court

In a manslaughter arising from family violence the court must assess culpability in the context of the relationship and social entrapment; the appropriate starting point was three years and six months' imprisonment, reduced by quantified discounts (plea offer 4 months; remorse 4 months; cultural/systemic disadvantage 8 months) and credit for five and a half months' curfew/EM bail (3 months) to an adjusted 23 months, making home detention available; the least restrictive appropriate sentence was home detention of 11 months and two weeks on standard conditions.
30 Aug 2019

R v BROUGHTON [2019] NZHC 2141

Citation

[2019] NZHC 2141
Court

High Court

Offending fell into Taueki band 2 due to serious injury and use of a samurai sword; starting point set at 8.5 years then reduced by 18 months for provocation/excessive self-defence to 7 years; no adjustment for personal factors or good character; EM bail credit of 8 months applied and a 15% discount for guilty plea, producing a final sentence of 5 years 4 months imprisonment for wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.
21 Sept 2017

R v MCKEE [2017] NZHC 2286

Citation

[2017] NZHC 2286
Court

High Court

The offender intentionally discharged a loaded firearm in a domestic confrontation, amounting to manslaughter with significant culpability; balancing aggravating factors (loaded unlawful firearm, deliberate discharge, failure to assist) against mitigating factors (excessive self-defence aspect, lack of premeditated intent to kill, earlier offer to plead guilty, remorse and rehabilitation) produced a starting point of 7 years 6 months, reduced by discounts and adjusted for previous violent history to a final sentence of six years three months' imprisonment with a minimum period of imprisonment…
7 Apr 2017

R v BROUGHTON [2017] NZHC 671

Citation

[2017] NZHC 671
Court

High Court

The court found it was not manifestly unjust to impose life imprisonment because the offender deliberately carried a loaded sawn-off shotgun, confronted and pointed it at an unarmed group, and deliberately discharged it on two occasions causing death and grievous injury; these facts, together with the offender's prior convictions and the objectives of denunciation and deterrence, justified life imprisonment with a 12-year minimum non-parole period and a concurrent seven-year sentence for wounding with intent.