Newly-discovered fact showed that there had been a miscarriage of justice in conviction for murder

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Assault sentence increased after appeal deems original punishment unduly lenient

By: Decisis

Court of Appeal sets aside the original fully suspended 12-month sentence imposed on a man for assault causing harm and production of an article capable of inflicting serious injury, ruling it unduly lenient. The original sentence was handed down by the Circuit Criminal Court, which had fully suspended the sentence on conditions including staying away from the victim and maintaining sober habits. The Court of Appeal determined that the sentence represented a substantial departure from the norm, given the severity of the unprovoked assault, the defendant's previous convictions, and the fact that the offence occurred while a previous suspended sentence was in effect. The Court of Appeal imposed a new sentence of four years' imprisonment with the final 18 months suspended, subject to conditions similar to those originally imposed.

Appeal court clarifies law on seizure and retention of suspected proceeds of crime

By: Decisis

Court of Appeal, in a consultative case stated, determines that cash seized under section 7 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006 can be subsequently seized under section 38 of the Criminal Justice Act 1994. The court held that the original seizure of cash during a warranted search did not preclude a subsequent seizure under different statutory powers when the cash was suspected to be the proceeds of crime. The Court of Appeal found that the Circuit Court judge was entitled to state the case for determination and that the procedural objections raised were not well-founded. The Court of Appeal's decision affirms that the word "shall" in section 7 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006 is not mandatory in excluding other statutory provisions for dealing with seized cash, thus providing clarity on the application of the Police Property Act 1897 in such circumstances.

Licenses for salmon farm quashed due to environmental assessment flaws

By: Decisis

High Court quashes aquaculture and foreshore licenses for a salmon farm, remitting the matter for re-decision by the Aquaculture Licenses Appeals Board (ALAB) and the Minister. The court found inadequacies in the assessment of the risk of seal scarers on local seal populations, the risk of salmon escape, and the farm's potential to breach water quality standards. Additionally, the court declared that ALAB unreasonably delayed the screening process for approximately two years. The court refused other relief related to delay and rejected arguments of objective bias. The foreshore license was also quashed as it was contingent on the now-quashed aquaculture license and due to the Minister's error in considering an outdated Aquaculture License decision. The State was not ordered to pay costs to the Sustainable Water Network (SWI), and the court ascribed 2.5 days of the trial to the case against the State. The applicants were awarded 80% of their trial costs and legal fees, with the court emphasising the need for a broad-brush approach in determining costs due to the complexity of the case.

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Newly-discovered fact showed that there had been a miscarriage of justice in conviction for murder

Assault sentence increased after appeal deems original punishment unduly lenient

Appeal court clarifies law on seizure and retention of suspected proceeds of crime

Licenses for salmon farm quashed due to environmental assessment flaws

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