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Supreme Court to hear appeal against sentence of man who committed rape at age 15
Supreme Court to hear appeal against sentence of man who committed rape at age 15

NZ Herald

time2 hours ago

  • NZ Herald

Supreme Court to hear appeal against sentence of man who committed rape at age 15

But lawyers for the Crown say he turned out to be a repeat sexual offender with no remorse, who assaulted two more young women when he was 18. The outcome of the case could determine if he will be sent back to prison – he is currently out on bail – or if he receives a community-based sentence and rehabilitation. Name and details suppressed The young man's name, personal details, and the identities of his victims are all suppressed. The rape victim was older than him. One of the other two women he went on to offend against several years later was older, the other younger. His first victim had consumed alcohol and drugs before the young man, at that time just 15 years old, gave her sleeping pills. She was unable to stay alert, and he raped her. The offending against the other two women happened when he was 18. The women each awoke to find him sexually assaulting them. The offences came to light later on and the young man, by then an adult, was charged in respect of all three women at the same time - one charge of rape and two of unlawful sexual connection. Found guilty by jury of rape He admitted the lesser sexual connection charges on the morning his trial was due to begin and was found guilty of the rape by a jury two days later. He was 21 years old when convicted, and was sentenced in a district court to three years and four months in prison after the judge took the rape as the most serious and 'lead' offence. He is now appealing against that sentence. The young man's case will be heard in the Supreme Court in Wellington. Photo / Mark Mitchell His lawyers, Letizea Ord and Emily Blincoe, say that if he had been charged with rape close to the time he committed it, he would probably have been dealt with in the youth justice system, for offenders aged 17 and under. The emphasis in the Youth Court is on rehabilitation. In their submissions his lawyers say it was 'highly unlikely' that he would have been sent to prison had he been dealt with there. They say that the two charges of unlawful sexual connection, which would have been dealt with in an adult court, would not have attracted a sentence of imprisonment on their own. They also say that the community would be safer if he were dealt with outside the prison system, with specialist treatment, because no targeted youth sexual offender programmes are available behind bars. Ord and Blincoe argue that New Zealand is an 'outlier' in how it deals with offences committed by minors but uncovered later. In England and Wales, an offender's age at conviction is specified in law, but sentencing guidelines are based on the outcome that was likely to have been applied at the date of the offence, and prison is a 'last resort'. The Australian states take a similar approach, and Canada has a law which says that youth justice legislation applies to all offending committed under the age of 18, regardless of when charges are laid. However, the Crown Law Office said New Zealand law did not support sentencing outcomes in such cases that disregarded the legislation and methodology of the adult courts in favour of the processes governing the 'intensely specialised' Youth Court. 'The appeal also requires the [Supreme] Court to engage with an artificial factual scenario: to treat [the appellant] as though he was still 15 years old for the purpose of sentencing,' the Crown submissions to the court said. 'That ignores the reality of the case before the court: a 22-year-old repeat sexual violation offender who denied any wrongdoing and remained unremorseful at sentencing. One who, up until the time this court granted him bail, had taken no steps towards rehabilitation.' The young man has so far spent 13 months in custody. He has engaged in rehabilitation since being bailed. The Supreme Court will begin hearing his case on Tuesday. Ric Stevens spent many years working for the former New Zealand Press Association news agency, including as a political reporter at Parliament, before holding senior positions at various daily newspapers. He joined NZME's Open Justice team in 2022 and is based in Hawke's Bay. His writing in the crime and justice sphere is informed by four years of front-line experience as a probation officer.

Decision on additional Tasman flood funds not yet made
Decision on additional Tasman flood funds not yet made

RNZ News

timea day ago

  • Climate
  • RNZ News

Decision on additional Tasman flood funds not yet made

Lower Waimea River area, following the recent wet weather. Photo: Tim Cuff / POOL On a visit to the Tasman region, the prime ministers will not yet say whether the government will provide more funding for flood relief. Christopher Luxon visited the battered region on Saturday, alongside Emergency Management Minister Mark Mitchell. This week, the government announced a $600,000 support package for the region, which has endured damage from repeated floods in recent weeks, as well as $5 million for a new weather radar for Nelson-Tasman . Luxon said cabinet had not decided yet whether it would give more funding to property owners or the Tasman District Council. "I mean, our immediate focus has been, 'Let's get the response sorted, obviously make the decision on the rain radar'. "Importantly, right now, it's about roads and it's about flood protection. We need to see what assessment is then happening beyond that point in time and, frankly, we haven't been in a position to do that." Earth Sciences New Zealand (a new public research organisation, including the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research) forecasts more wet weather for later in July and into early August . Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

Wellington restauranteur Dean White on expanding his empire amid sector struggles
Wellington restauranteur Dean White on expanding his empire amid sector struggles

NZ Herald

timea day ago

  • Business
  • NZ Herald

Wellington restauranteur Dean White on expanding his empire amid sector struggles

'People absolutely do love Kisa and so it was like, 'ok, I think we're on to something here'', he said. Parla sits on the former site of a dairy in Island Bay. Photo / Mark Mitchell. 'We do really well in town, but just wanted a change of scene and definitely saw that suburban sites were popular and well frequented and supported as well.' It is a vote of confidence in the capital's hospitality sector which has been battered by repeated announcements of closures over recent years, made worse by the rise of working from home, public sector cuts, and inner city construction resulting in reduced foot traffic in Wellington's CBD in the past year. Parla is 34-year-old White's fourth restaurant in nine years, with his hospitality company Mosaic Venues growing to a team of 127 staff. 'We're happy, really happy with how last week went' he said. Similar to Kisa, Parla's menu brings a Middle Eastern offering rooted in Turkish cuisine. Its name comes from the Turkish word meaning to shine or gleam. 'We sort of tried to reflect that', White says of the venue's fit-out. 'It has quite peachy yellowy toned walls just to try and capture that sort of like warmth and energy.' Parla represents a new step for White, not only for its suburban position but also being the first of his venues to be open for breakfast, serving up Middle Eastern inspired eggs on toast and granola. Dean White's new restaurant Parla in Island Bay is the first he's opened outside the CBD. Photo / Mark Mitchell. 'The core lunch trade in the city, that sort of midday to 2 pm with people going out for lunch is definitely where we've felt economic conditions hurt us the most', he said. 'What we'd found is that more people would go looking for a more of a brunch time offering.' Despite the industry's doom and gloom, White's optimistic for the sector. He believes Wellington is starting to feel 'brighter' and is 'having our moment of suburban dining', which he says the city hasn't experienced before compared to the likes of Auckland or Melbourne. 'There is a bit of a reluctance to go into town at the moment, maybe that's a bit of a loss of pride on what things look like and in the state of it. 'Civic Square is going through huge construction and there's not a whole lot to do and see around there, you've got Courtenay Place which has its challenges, so people kind of like to be out of the city and doing different things.' Asked why he wanted to take the leap opening a new venue at a time the hospitality scene has been plagued by closures, White laughs. 'I've been asked that question at every single new restaurant I've opened over nine years. 'It is probably at its lowest point now, but hospitality is, and I think always will be, a pretty tough industry.' He said the motivation to expand comes from having confidence in their offering. He said Middle Eastern cuisine is 'definitely of people's interest at the moment', partially thanks to online food trends. Dean White's restaurant Kisa on Cuba St serves up modern Middle Eastern cuisine and is said to be booked out weeks in advance. Photo / WellingtonNZ Post-covid, White believes customers tastes and awareness of ingredients has increased 'hugely'. 'I think a lot of that comes from cooking more at home during Covid and there was a sort of rise of online stuff, even chat GPT helping people make recipes', he said. 'We have a really good team and I do have an interest to add to the city and keep creating opportunities for employment and a new place for myself and guests to go.' Despite his drive, White said there is 'no doubt' there have been challenges, but blames a range of factors rather than one single issue. 'There's just less people around' he said, pointing to job cuts across Wellington's public and private sectors, and 'essential city infrastructure projects'. The bigger challenge White believes is unpredictability of customers behaviour. 'It used to be if Thursday was busy, Sunday was busy. If Monday, Tuesday were quiet, Friday and Saturday would be really busy. There used to be these rules of thumb, there's just none of those anymore. 'When we're busy, we're ultra busy, and when it's quiet it's very quiet. 'It's just lots of kind of two or three percent factors, construction disruptions, you add all of these things up that might have a one to three percent impact on your trade and it only takes there to be 10 of them for it to really start impacting us.' He said since opening last week, the latest addition to his hospitality empire is showing signs of promise. 'It's been fantastic, we're really pleased and there's good forward bookings - long may it continue.' Ethan Manera is a New Zealand Herald journalist based in Wellington. He joined NZME in 2023 as a broadcast journalist with Newstalk ZB and is interested in local issues, politics, and property in the capital. Ethan can be emailed at

Nelson-Tasman region to get its own rain radar by 2027
Nelson-Tasman region to get its own rain radar by 2027

RNZ News

timea day ago

  • Climate
  • RNZ News

Nelson-Tasman region to get its own rain radar by 2027

Aerial images showing the extent of flooding in Tasman. Photo: Tim Cuff / POOL The government says the flood-hit Nelson-Tasman region should have its own weather radar by the start of 2027. The region, which has endured repeated floods caused by heavy rain in recent weeks, as well as five states of emergency in the past 14 years, does not have its own rain radar . Associate Transport Minister James Meager said the existing contract with MetService was being amended to immediately begin the procurement of a new radar for the region. MetService was aiming to purchase it by next Autumn and get it operational that summer, in late 2026 or early 2027. A new radar will cost up to $5 million, with operating costs of around $800,000 a year. Immediate work will begin using existing MetService funding. The radar would help better prepare the community for future disasters, Meager said. "This is something the community has asked for, and it's my hope the investment will give locals peace of mind over their individual and property safety in future events. "Weather radars play an incredibly important role in emergency management once an event starts. They allow forecasters to monitor the progression of a storm, refine short-term forecasts and warnings, and provide specific guidance to emergency managers about the distribution and intensity of rainfall." Emergency Management and Recovery Minister Mark Mitchell said Nelson-Tasman had experienced several high-impact flooding events in recent years. "Since 2011, there have been five states of emergency declared in the region. Providing Nelson-Tasman with a new weather radar will give emergency managers greater ability to monitor rainfall and flooding risk during a severe weather event, reducing the risk of loss of life and property. "In addition to the new weather radar, the government has committed to strengthening the emergency management system to ensure it is fit for purpose to manage significant, widespread emergencies. "Investments in modern technology and trained personnel, along with clear governance structures and assurance, will ensure faster, more effective emergency management." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

Legislation that lets workers talk about salaries likely to pass into law
Legislation that lets workers talk about salaries likely to pass into law

NZ Herald

time4 days ago

  • Business
  • NZ Herald

Legislation that lets workers talk about salaries likely to pass into law

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech. Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen. Legislation that lets workers talk about salaries likely to pass into law Labour MP Camilla Belich. Photo / Mark Mitchell By Lillian Hanly of RNZ A Labour Party member's bill that seeks to stop employers enforcing gag orders on workers talking about their salaries is likely to pass into law. Labour MP Camilla Belich's bill – called the Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Bill – passed its second reading on Wednesday night. Currently, employers can put pay secrecy clauses in workers' contracts, preventing them from discussing their salaries with colleagues. Belich's Bill would make pay gag clauses unenforceable, meaning employers could not take legal action if an employee does talk about pay.

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