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The law that resulted in a man being sentenced to seven years in prison for grabbing the butt of a prison guard is likely to be struck down.
The Labor Party has promised to repeal the three strikes law, introduced by the national government in 2010.
“The Labor Party has pledged to repeal the three strikes law which is leading to absurd results and instead focus on building a criminal justice system that guarantees fewer crimes, fewer crimes and fewer crime victims better backed, “said Acting Justice Minister Andrew Little.
It would be inappropriate to comment further until the cabinet positions are finalized, Little said.
BRADEN FASTIER / Things
Labor MP Andrew Little says the three strike law has produced some “absurd” sentences.
READ MORE:
* The ‘third striker’ in the seven-year stretch for grabbing the butt does not get help for release
* Crime and common sense: emotions and experience in the debate of the three strikes
* NZ First says it will never support repeal of Three Strikes, which takes it completely off the table
The Labor Party tried to repeal the law during its last term in Parliament, but was stopped by coalition partner New Zealand First.
The law of the three strikes is now 10 years old. It was inspired by California legislation and was introduced by the national government in 2010 as part of its agreement with the Act Party.
The law orders a judge to sentence a serious offender a third time to the maximum penalty, unless doing so is “grossly unfair.”
Law leader David Seymour said his party would reintroduce the law if it becomes part of a future government.
STUFF
NZ First has killed the government’s attempt to repeal the three strike law. (The video was first posted in June 2018).
“It is a huge public misunderstanding that Labor is eliminating three strikes because what they are really saying is that many of New Zealand’s worst criminals are getting an early Christmas.”
Data from the Ministry of Justice show that 17 people have committed a third strike crime since the law came into force.
Raven Casey Campbell was the first.
In November 2016, he was serving a prison sentence for aggravated robbery at the Waikeria prison when he grabbed the butt of a correctional officer.
Judge Kit Toogood had to sentence him to a maximum of seven years in prison on the charge of indecent assault.
Judge Toogood described it as a “very harsh” sentence.
“It may seem very surprising that this consequence can be required by law for a crime of this type, but that is the law and I have no choice but to enforce it.”
Like the vast majority of the other three strike cases, Judge Toogood found it would be “grossly unfair” for Campbell to serve his sentence without the possibility of parole.
Christel Yardley / Stuff
Judge Kit Toogood told Raven Campbell that he “had no choice” but to sentence him to the maximum prison sentence.
Hayze Neihana Waitoka is the only third strike offender who doesn’t have that possibility. He had already committed two strike offenses when he was drinking with friends and stabbed a man in the leg.
Judge David Collins sentenced Waitoka to seven years for wounding with intent to wound.
“I acknowledge that your sentence will be much more severe than what I would have imposed. However, that will invariably be the case for a third strike infraction, ”Judge Collins told him.
University of Otago law professor Andrew Geddis said the three strike legislation changed the role of judges from being decision-makers to stampers.
He said that generally, judges balance the factors of a case and the offender and decide the sentence, but the legislation of the three strikes required them to pass a mandatory sentence.
Geddis said Campbell was not only jailed for a “ridiculous” amount of time, but was also jailed where he committed the crime.
“This is supposed to keep people safe and stop offending, I mean, he did it in prison … that’s the best poster of how problematic this regime is because not only is it a grossly disproportionate sentence, it doesn’t even achieve the that the people behind the regime say it will do. “
Geddis said judges have almost always used the limited discretion available in the law.
STUFF
Justice Minister Andrew Little talks about rolling back the three-strike law in June 2018 (video first posted June 11, 2018).
The law allows judges to impose life without parole on criminals who committed murder in their second or third strike, but in all relevant cases, the judges determined that it would be “grossly unfair” to do so.
In 2016, the attorney general appealed the murder sentences of three people who had committed murder in his second attack. In all three cases, the judges had used their discretion and refused to sentence them to life in prison without parole.
All three appeals were dismissed by the Court of Appeal.
David Seymour says that the judiciary has used the principle of “grossly unfair” far more often than Parliament intended.
When asked if the legislation had worked, Seymour said it is only now starting to work because of the time it takes for a repeat offender to commit three strike offenses and serve his sentence.
Robert Kitchin / Things
The law’s leader, David Seymour, says his party would want three strikes reintroduced if it is part of a future government.
He said the Act was not proud of New Zealand’s incarceration rate, but in addition to the three strike legislation, the party has a policy of offering early release to inmates who use their time in prison to obtain an education.
Literacy, for example, would allow someone to sit for their driver’s license test, get a photo ID, open a bank account and get a job, he said.
“We’re interested in reducing recidivism to get the really bad people out of the way, but there are actually a lot of people at the beginning of the criminalization process that we want to invest more in, and we want to turn them around and get them out.”
When asked if that would translate into more funding for rehabilitation within the prison, Semour said “probably.”
Lady Heeni Phillips-Williams is the widow of veteran defense attorney Sir Peter Williams QC.
Peter Meecham
Lady Heeni with Sir Peter Williams QC shortly after her knighthood. Lady Heeni has continued Sir Peter’s work which included opposing the three strikes legislation.
The couple campaigned unconditionally against the introduction of three strikes. Shortly after its introduction, Sir Peter described it as “cruel and degrading”.
Ten years later, Lady Heeni feels the same way.
“The three-strike legislation simply encourages more people to go to prison and stay there.”
It points to New Zealand’s incarceration rate of 199 people per 100,000, the fifth highest in the OECD.
“There is something inherently wrong with our psyche, our punitive psyche.”
Lady Heeni says the situation is even worse for the Maori.
“Not only are they not paroled, there is absolutely no incentive to be a better prisoner. There is no incentive to go out and get rehab. “
She would be delighted to see the legislation repealed, she said.
