Major Changes To Proposed Anti-Stalking Law

Press Release – New Zealand Government
This change better recognises patterns in stalking behaviour and time that can pass between incidents. For example, stalking that occurs around anniversaries would not be covered under the original 12-month period, Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith …
Minister of Justice
Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith is welcoming changes to toughen up the proposed anti-stalking law, including being triggered after two specified acts within 24 months.
'This change better recognises patterns in stalking behaviour and time that can pass between incidents. For example, stalking that occurs around anniversaries would not be covered under the original 12-month period,' Mr Goldsmith says.
'We've said from day one victims are our priority. Returning them to the heart of our justice system underpins all our work to restore law and order.
'Stalkers have been able to evade real consequences for their actions for far too long. As I announced in November, the offence will have a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.
'This builds on our work already underway to restore real consequences for crime, with our sentencing reforms coming into effect at the end of this month.
'I want to thank those who made submissions during the select committee process. Your input has identified some important ways we can combat this insidious behaviour.
'The Justice Committee has now put forward a raft of recommendations, which government parties have agreed to.
'This includes strengthening the pattern of behaviour definition to only require two specified acts, and within a two-year period.'
Other changes made to the Bill by the Committee to enhance its effectiveness include:
Addressing the publishing of any statement or other material relating to the other person, or purporting to originate from that person (also known as doxing).
Adding new sections to enable the disposal of any intimate visual recordings possessed by a person convicted of the new stalking and harassment offence.
Adding the new offence to the Firearms Prohibition Orders regime, allowing those orders to be made when a person is convicted of the new offence.
Clarifying the new aggravating factor relating to stalking by more clearly linking the associated stalking and harassment-type behaviours to the offence the person is charged with.
Making it clear that restraining orders under the Harassment Act 1997 and orders under the Harmful Digital Communications Act 2015 can be made when a person is discharged without conviction in relation to the new offence.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

RNZ News

13 hours ago

• RNZ News

Northland faces unsustainable court delays as homicide cases surge

By Shannon Pitman, multimedia journalist, Whangārei of Whangarei High and District Court. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon There's a well-known saying that justice delayed is justice denied. And in Northland, where the region is facing a growing number of homicides, the wheels of justice are getting increasingly slow. With trials now being set down for as far out as October 2027, the battle for limited resources and judicial time in the High Court at Whangārei is no longer just inconvenient - it is unsustainable. And, it's not a new problem. "I find this date to be unacceptably distant," Justice Timothy Brewer declared two years ago when the earliest available date for a murder trial was in 2026. "A trial of charges such as these should not be scheduled for trial further out than 12 to 15 months," he said at that hearing in 2024 before directing the court to find something earlier. Unfortunately, not a lot has changed since then. As cases pile up the question is no longer if something must change - but when, and at what cost. Defendants are spending long periods of time, often in custody, waiting for their cases to get to trial, while victims and their families struggle to move forward while the case is still before the court. Both sides are facing the reality of waiting years for justice to catch up in Northland. And, it's unlikely to get any better unless resourcing improves because the kinds of serious crimes that end up in the High Court have got worse this year. Northland recorded eight homicides last year, but the region has already exceeded that number, with nine homicides in the first six months of this year alone. According to data released by police under the Official Information Act, Northland had recorded the highest number of homicides up until 1 May, with Waikato next behind the region on five. Auckland had only two people charged with homicides for the same period, while Counties Manukau had three. In Northland, arrests have been made in all of the homicides - but that means there's nine new cases - and potential trials - that need to be worked into the High Court schedule. Several have already been locked in for 2027. Part of the problem is the fact Northland has just one courtroom - Courtroom Five at the Whangārei District Court - that is designated for High Court matters. But, there's no dedicated High Court judge and they are instead brought in from Auckland as required. So far in 2025, the High Court at Whangārei has had two murder trials scheduled, both relating to homicides that occurred in 2023, but neither ended up needing the full amount of time that was allocated. In the case of the Manuel brothers, scheduled for the first week of February, Samson Manuel pleaded guilty to the murder of Shayden Perkinson, on the morning their three-week trial was due to start, while his brother Bronson pleaded to a lesser charge. The High Court then remained largely empty for four weeks until the next trial commenced in March, involving Denise and Quinntinn Davis and their nephew Joshua Tana, who are all accused of murdering Euan Mackey in March 2024. They initially had a trial date allocated for April 2026, however, Justice Timothy Brewer directed the court to find an earlier date, saying the delay was unacceptable. Their trial was then brought forward and began on 15 March but was aborted in its second week. A new trial for Denise Davis, Quinntinn Davis and Tana has now been scheduled for April 2027, leaving defendants in custody and victims facing the prolonged wait to testify again. In total, the case could take three years and one month to reach trial. A trial falling over doesn't mean other matters scheduled for later on can always easily come forward. Justice Simon Moore, who retired from the High Court in 2024, told NZME one of his roles had been rostering judges and that was done 12 months in advance. Justice Moore said Whangārei sits on the Auckland circuit, meaning it relies on judges from Auckland.. When trials "fall over", the schedule can be left with holes that are only able to be filled by shorter hearings. "How do you fill a hole like that? You can't suddenly say to the parties 'we have got a judge here, got a court here, you need to come and we will start this four-week trial tomorrow'. The logistics of doing that are incredibly difficult." Justice Moore believes regional courthouses have not kept up with population growth and the complex nature of homicide cases was putting pressure on time constraints. "These regional courts are set up to deal with populations of the '50s and '60s where it just wasn't an issue. You could run a single court like that perfectly efficiently and it wasn't a problem. He said a standard homicide is usually three to four weeks long, with difficult and more complex cases running much longer than that. "You have a trial like that locked into Whangārei High Court and it pleads out, you are scurrying around looking for a stocking filler," Justice Moore said. "It's not the sort of problem we have in Auckland, Hamilton or Tauranga because we're able to draw people in. Whangārei is a bit more difficult." Justice Moore said work was being done to give trials in Northland a firm trial date as well as an earlier back-up trial date to fill in should something fall over. "But the average trial is four weeks long and you just can't stack them up, the High Court is just a different beast to manage." One option being offered for Northland-based trials is a relocation to Auckland. However, defence lawyer Sumudu Thode said a change of location is unfair to all, with legal aid ultimately footing the bill. "We've got no other remedy than waiting for two years. It's not fair to put all of them to that inconvenience. They're also not being tried by members of their community, they're being tried by members of an Auckland community," Thode said. Thode raised another concern. In one of her cases, Thode's client - facing his third strike warning - was charged with a firearms offence, which, due to legal requirements of the three-strikes law, must be heard in the High Court. He was in custody for two years awaiting a jury trial, which resulted in a hung verdict. He then was placed back into custody and granted bail after two years and 10 months and it was another six months until his retrial got off the ground. "These are non life-imprisonment offences. This is not a Covid issue, this is not because there has been a ton of murders, these are issues that have been happening for a while," Thode said. Thode said in her experience, when earlier dates are offered, all parties generally prioritise High Court cases to ensure they can go ahead. "The victims, the whānau, they want these to continue, police officers are generally available or make themselves available." A sexual violence victim who had to give evidence in the High Court at Whangārei for a second time after the defendant was granted a retrial told NZME the long wait sent her life into turmoil. The case began its court journey in 2019, and she said, after testifying in 2022, she felt relieved to finally share her story. But when the defendant appealed his conviction and a retrial was granted three years later, everything unravelled. "No one told me this could happen and it was a huge shock. I had a full breakdown." To prepare to give evidence for the second time in three years, she had to pause therapy, ensuring painful memories remained intact for court. She said an earlier retrial date could have made things easier but instead they were told there were no gaps in the calendar for another two years. "If it had happened sooner, I could have moved on. Instead, it affected my family, my job, and my mental health." Adding to her stress was the knowledge that her perpetrator was out on bail, while the court case - now stretching into its sixth year - drags on. "It's not just victims or witnesses who feel the anxiety - it's their families, workplaces, and livelihoods. I wouldn't wish it on anyone," she said. A spokesperson for the office of the Chief Justice said Whangārei's reliance on a single courtroom was impacting the ability to schedule trials promptly. The spokesperson said Chief Justice Helen Winkelmann has raised the delays in Whangārei with the Minister of Justice on previous occasions and briefed the Attorney-General Dame Judith Collins back in 2019. In the brief, Chief Justice Winkelmann specifically noted Whangārei and Rotorua were facing wait times nearly 12 months longer than those in main centres, solely because of the lack of courtroom availability. Chief High Court Justice Sally Fitzgerald also said in a statement issued to NZME that the wait times are problematic. "It is concerning that people in Northland are sometimes waiting considerably longer than court participants in other areas to have these serious matters resolved in court. "We know that court delays are very difficult for the people concerned - for the victims and their families, for the defendant and their families," Fitzgerald said. The office of the Chief Justice said when the previous murder trials were resolved in Whangārei earlier this year, the court was utilised. "During the remaining available weeks, action was taken to ensure that other, shorter matters continued to be heard, and included an Associate Judge and an Auckland-based Judge sitting in Whangārei during that time," the spokesperson said. The spokesperson said that with adequate notice, trials scheduled for 2027 may be able to be brought forward if earlier trials resolve. Minister for Justice Paul Goldsmith told NZME that waiting years for a trial to start is far too long and announced in Budget 2025 that $246 million will be invested over four years to improve court timeliness. "Justice delayed is justice denied. Waiting months or years for a case to be resolved only adds to the frustration and trauma for victims and, indeed, all court participants," Goldsmith says. "This funding will support the ongoing operation of specialist courts, tribunals, the District Court, senior courts, the Coroners Court, and the legal aid system." Homicide cases for 2025 currently before the court Jan 29: Brooklyn Jenkins, 20, charged with the murder of his brother, Kyle Jenkins, had his trial scheduled for March 2026. Feb 24: Aitua Puriri was charged with the manslaughter of his 3-year-old nephew, Reign Puriri in Whangārei, and had his trial set for July 2027. Feb 27: Duwaine Johnstone was charged with the murder of mother of three, Yvonne Chapman, in Whangārei, and had a trial allocated for February 2027. Mar 15: A man, whose name is suppressed, was charged with the murder of 62-year-old Toby Mike Adams in Whangārei, and had his trial date set for July 5, 2027. Mar 15: A man, whose name is suppressed, was charged with the murder of Estene Rapatini in Kaikohe, and had his trial scheduled for August 2027. Apr 12: Lewis Edmonds was charged with the murder of Archibald McKenzie in Kerikeri, and had his trial scheduled for October 2027. May 9: A 26-year-old, whose name is suppressed, was charged with the murder of Geoffrey Ware in Parakāo and had his trial scheduled for early July 2027. May 21: Drummond Leaf was charged with the murder of 3-year-old Catalya Remana Tangimetua Pepene and has a trial date scheduled for February 2027. May 21: A man whose name is suppressed has appeared in court charged with the murder of Daniel Hepehi in Horeke. - This story originally appeared in the New Zealand Herald .

Scoop

2 days ago

• Scoop

Government Recognises Matariki Near Ohakune

Hon Paul Goldsmith Minister for Arts Culture and Heritage Minister for Māori Development The Government is recognising Matariki at the official ceremony near Ohakune today, Arts, Culture and Heritage Minister Paul Goldsmith and Māori Development Minister Tama Potaka say. 'We are honoured to be guests of Ngāti Rangi for this traditional hautapu ceremony,' Mr Goldsmith says. 'This is the fourth national Matariki broadcast but the first time it has been hosted by a marae, and the first year Puanga is the star of national celebrations. "Matariki and Puanga are both stars that sit in the night sky together to signal the start of the Māori new year for different iwi. 'We are very fortunate to have this opportunity to witness and share in the Puanga traditions of Ngāti Rangi. 'The theme for this year's celebration is Matariki mā Puanga, which means celebrating together. I hope that no matter where people are, they get the chance to remember, celebrate and look to the future. Mānawatia a Matariki!' 'For many Iwi, Puanga shines brightest above our communities as we grow the tradition of celebrating together,' Mr Potaka says. 'These Puanga observations signal the year is coming to a close, and inform forecasts for the future. It's a time to reflect on the past, remembering and giving thanks to those who have passed on before us. 'It's also a time to reflect on what was achieved over the past year. Along with the rising of Matariki, we welcome the dawn of a new year and plan ahead with ancestral wisdom.' Notes: Ministry for Culture and Heritage research shows 63 per cent of New Zealanders did something to celebrate Matariki last year, up from 60 per cent in 2023. This year, more than 2.8 million New Zealanders are expected to participate, and 68 per cent of New Zealanders feel that Matariki's significance is growing each year.

RNZ News

3 days ago

• RNZ News

Family of woman murdered by mental health patient feel 'forgotten'

From left, Nemani Tunidau, Eparama Tunidau and Laisa Waka Tunidau. Photo: Supplied A man whose wife was murdered by a forensic mental health patient three years ago has not heard from authorities for more than a year and says his family feels "forgotten". The Minister of Mental Health says the level of contact is unacceptable, and has reinforced his expectations that the family would be regularly updated and provided support by Health New Zealand. Zakariye Mohamed Hussein stabbed Laisa Waka Tunidau to death as she walked home from work on 25 June 2022. Hussein was on community leave at the time of the killing. Two reviews were ordered, one into Hussein's care, and another looking at Canterbury District Mental Health Services. The mother-of-four's husband Nemani Tunidau met with staff from Hillmorton Hospital in early 2024. He says it was the first and last time he has heard from them. He told RNZ his family felt "forgotten". "It just makes me angry and feel that they don't want to blame themselves for what has happened to my wife. "We are suffering from loneliness, especially the children." He wants compensation for HNZ's "carelessness that caused the death of my beloved wife". In October last year another mental health patient Elliot Cameron murdered pensioner Faye Phelps at her Christchurch home. It has since been revealed that Cameron killed his brother in 1975. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and ordered to be a special patient. Elliot Cameron was jailed last week for life with a minimum term of 10 years imprisonment for murdering Faye Phelps. Photo: Pool/ NZME / George Heard Correspondence released to RNZ under the Official Information Act revealed that on 24 April, a principal advisor at the Ministry of Health emailed the manager of media relations at the Ministry of Health and the Director of Mental Health Dr John Crawshaw about the report into Canterbury District Mental Health Services and media coverage of family experience. The email included a link to an article written by this journalist while at the New Zealand Herald . The article from January 2024 was an interview with Tunidau, who said he had not heard from authorities since his wife's death 18 months earlier. Dr Crawshaw replied saying: "This reinforces the need to discuss how the contact with the family will be managed." The principal advisor agreed and said it had to be a "key priority" for the next fortnight's conversations with Health New Zealand and with ministers. "No one should be exposed on this - including the families affected by both incidents. "It's partly why I think an approach to the coroner's office is useful, too. Given the patchy family engagement, I think we should be leading the best practice - the coronial file will have a case manager who should be in regular contact with the family. That case manager would appreciate a heads-up of the report publication and surrounding media coverage." Faye Phelps Photo: Supplied Phelps' daughter Karen Phelps said she and her brother had a meeting at Hillmorton on 18 December. Since then, they had received one email that had been forwarded on by police from Canterbury Specialist Mental Health Services general manager Vicki Dent on 14 March. Dent said the independent review into Cameron's care was "progressing well". "The panel were onsite at the end of February (a little later than originally planned) and have completed much of their information gathering. They are now working through the analysis, findings and recommendations. "This is taking a little longer than we had originally hoped, but it is important that this is completed thoroughly." Dent was unable to give a "definitive timeframe" for when the review would be completed, but said she would keep the family updated. Dent said she was stepping away from the general manager role, and said the director of nursing would be the point of contact going forward. Phelps told RNZ it was "extremely disappointing" that Health NZ had "not been keeping our family better informed". "The fact we have had to take the lead on seeking information obviously just adds to our trauma and stress. "I fear their independent internal investigation is taking the same track as the Laisa Waka Tunidau investigation that many years later has still not been finalised or the details released. In my view that cannot be seen as anything other than a blatant disregard for the families and a complete reluctance to release findings to the public." She said the longer it took for reports to be completed "the longer the public is at risk". "The fact we feel we have to fight to try to get the findings of the report released in a timely manner is shameful. "For me it is also a stark indication of Hillmorton's generally incompetent processes, which have resulted in these unnecessary deaths in the first place." Hillmorton Hospital. Photo: RNZ / Logan Church In response to questions from RNZ, Minister of Mental Health Matt Doocey said the level of contact Tunidau received was unacceptable. "After any family has sadly gone through the tragedy such as what the Tunidau family have sadly experienced, I would expect Health New Zealand would be regularly updating the family and providing the needed support. "I have reinforced this expectation to Health NZ that they will get in touch with the family to ask how they can better support them going forward and have reinforced I do not find the level of contact described as acceptable." Health New Zealand spokesperson Phil Grady said in a statement to RNZ that HNZ always made contact with families following "serious events" to help provide answers where they could. "We have done this in both cases, however we recognise there is always room for improvement in our communication with families." In some cases, families choose to communicate with HNZ through their lawyer or the police. "Following serious events such as these we undertake a review and this process can be lengthy. During the review process we are often limited in what we can share with families without compromising the independence of the review. During this period we do offer family liaison support where appropriate. "We are making contact with the families' preferred representative to offer an update and a further opportunity to meet." HNZ was also refreshing national guidelines to support improved communication with families following serious incidents. "We are always available and encourage families to reach out to us if it is helpful to them." A Ministry of Health spokesperson said the ministry recognised the importance of keeping families informed in these circumstances. "The ministry plans to soon be in contact with both the Tunidau family and the Phelps family as part of the arrangements involved in finalising a report into systemic issues within local mental health services, including forensic services, which was sparked in part by the tragic death of Laisa Waka Tunidau." Director of Mental Health Dr John Crawshaw said he acknowledged both families' concerns and he intended to meet with both families face to face once the report was complete - should they wish for this to happen. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.