A weekend in which the number of arrests in Hawke's Bay for failing to appear in court or breaching bail was more than twice that in some other areas has highlighted judges' concerns about delays in the area's courts.
Of the 44 "prisoners received" from 5pm on Friday to 7am last Monday, 36 were wanted on warrants to arrest for failing to appear in court or were alleged to be breaching bail when arrested.
It represented almost 82 per cent of the arrests, which compared with just over 51 per cent in Counties Manukau, about 36.2 per cent in Waikato, and just under 30 per cent in Wellington.
The problem was most graphic when 22 people appeared on an arrests list in Hastings District Court, a mixture of males and females who had spent at least one night in the cells awaiting their appearances, most for failing to appear in court or for breaches of bail.
Hawke's Bay police area response manager Senior Sergeant Fred van Duuren said some also had other new charges. Of the 44, 19 had had arrest warrants issued for failing to appear in court, and 17 faced charges of breaching bail, by such methods as not being at bailing addresses or associating with people they had been prohibited from associating with while on bail.
Of the 44 27 were male and 17 were female, including apparently a couple who could be heard in the courtroom yelling to each other from the separate male and female holding areas of the Hastings Courthouse as a Justice of the Peace dealt with those hoping for bail. In many cases they were remanded in continued custody until applications could be heard by a judge.
One young woman, who was granted bail and given a warning about the consequences of mixing with the wrong people before she next appears in court told the JP that after three nights in the cells she had learnt her lesson and wouldn't be risking going back.
According to figures released to Hawke's Bay Today, Counties Manukau had 84 arrests, including 43 for failing to appear or breaching bail, Waikato had 58 arrests including 21 on warrants or breaches, and Wellington had 94 arrests, of which 28 had been wanted or were in breach of bail.
Mr van Duuren said there had been no specific operation in Hawke's Bay, but added: "Eastern Police is focused on protecting the community, which includes holding people to account who breach court-imposed bail conditions or fail to appear before the courts to answer charges".
Judges in Hawke's Bay courts have at least twice in recent weeks expressed concerns about people not appearing in court, including one saying that in sentencing matters the strike rate was barely "50 per cent".