Someone was caught trying to take digital scales and several point bags to the Tauranga courts this year. Photo / Getty Images
A heavy-duty hacksaw, meat cleaver, knuckledusters, drug scales, a homemade bong, knives, and methamphetamine are just some of the items people have tried to take into the Tauranga Courthouse.
Information released under the Official Information Act has revealed the disturbing items security officers have confiscated from visitors to the courthouse over the past year.
And a lawyer who deals with defendants, offenders and those attending court to support them says he is not surprised at what was found, saying some people live in a drug world where they don't recognise it is wrong to carry such items.
Tauranga's situation isn't isolated, with the confiscation list at the Rotorua courthouse including a machete, a brick and three cans of alcohol.
Both courthouses operate X-ray screening, with Rotorua getting X-ray machines in September this year and Tauranga's in place for several years.
Defence lawyer Martin Hine, who works in both Tauranga and Rotorua courts, knew only too well what could happen if weapons got in the wrong hands.
He was present in the Ōtāhuhu Youth Court in 1990 when Dame Augusta Wallace, the first woman to be appointed a district court judge, survived a machete attack from a 16-year-old who lunged at her and slashed her face open.
She suffered deep cuts to the face, ear and neck and her jaw was broken. The incident prompted concerns about the low level of security in courts.
"It was a different time then and one of the reasons court security was ramped up," Hine said.
He said he wasn't surprised by the items confiscated in Rotorua and Tauranga this year.
"Courts can be a dangerous place but we are so grateful to the security officers who do a wonderful job. They are often dealing with people who are drunk, on drugs or have mental health conditions and they handle them well."
Hine said court security was now very sophisticated and it was a "sign of the times".
"You would be staggered at the stuff that is found on people and it beggars belief that people think these things are not going to go undetected because of the level of searching now."
He said it showed how entrenched people were in the drug and gang worlds to not recognise it wasn't appropriate to bring such things to court.
"They just see them as mundane everyday objects and don't think it's extraordinary or placing people's lives at risk. These are intergenerational drug dependent families who have not only been brought up on cannabis but also on methamphetamine and to them it's just a way of life."
He said for some taking around a set of digital scales was normal practice to ensure each time they bought a "point" of methamphetamine they weren't being "ripped off".
"They can't test for purity but they can test for weight and I guess the only way to check is to have the scales handy."
Ministry of Justice corporate and digital services deputy secretary Tina Wakefield said the upgrade to the X-ray system for Rotorua was part of a national rollout.
She said the ministry was always looking for ways to best keep the community safe and upskill and train court security officers.
Court security staff could take items off people if they were deemed a potential weapon. The items could be returned when they left the court.
"If the seized item is deemed to be a prohibited offensive weapon, the item can be seized by the court security officers, the person detained and the matter handed over to police," Wakefield said.
She said the screening process involved putting all items brought into court through the X-ray machines. They can be put through a second time at a different angle and if the security officers are still unsure, the items can be searched by hand.
Each person is also asked to walk through a metal detector and, if it activates, a hand-held device is used to try to identify what is causing the activation. If further investigation is needed, a "pat down" search is carried out on the area using the backs of hands.
When the Bay of Plenty Times asked the ministry if it was concerned about what was found during the past year, ministry health, safety and security general manager Naeve Neilson said often people attending court were not aware of the types of items they could bring, which was apparent from the array of items that had to be confiscated this year.
"We are committed to keeping all court participants safe and our court security officers are highly trained in dealing with whatever comes through the doors, and act swiftly and professionally to ensure no objectionable item is carried into the courthouse."
Date Item/Details
5/11/2019 Credit card knife
6/11/2019 Discovery of weapon Knuckledusters
8/11/2019 Credit card knife and pocket knife
8/11/2019 Cannabis and a small point bag with a white powdery substance
8/11/2019 Paraphernalia pocket knife with drug residue on blade
15/11/2019 Homemade knife found during external patrol
19/11/2019 Syringe and needles
20/11/2019 Glass pipe
25/11/2019 Cannabis
28/11/2019 Two small bottles of alcohol
3/12/2019 Marijuana grinder and a syringe full of cannabis oil
3/12/2019 Card knife
4/12/2019 Fold-out knife
5/12/2019 Methamphetamine pipe
6/12/2019 Large screwdriver found during external patrol
12/12/2019 A glass meth pipe and cannabis tin with some cannabis
12/12/2019 P pipe
18/12/2019 Credit card knife
20/12/2019 A small bag of marijuana along with craft knife blades
23/12/2019 Credit card knife
9/01/2020 Methamphetamine pipe
14/01/2020 Scissors found during external patrol
15/01/2020 Methamphetamine pipe
16/01/2020 Two syringes with a needle attached found during external patrol
17/01/2020 Meat cleaver
23/01/2020 Hunting knife
30/01/2020 Butterfly knife and folding knife
3/02/2020 Knife found during external patrol
10/02/2020 Flick knife
13/02/2020 Methamphetamine pipe
20/02/2020 Marijuana pipe has been located along with a small bag of marijuana and two pairs of scissors with residue on them
21/02/2020 2 x rounds of ammunition
21/02/2020 Pipe and small fold-out knife
14/02/2020 Methamphetamine pipes and three small bags with white crystal residue
21/02/2020 Pipe
24/02/2020 Marijuana pipe found during external patrol
24/02/2020 Pipe
27/02/2020 Credit card knife
27/02/2020 Credit card knife
28/02/2020 Pipe with drug residue
27/02/2020 1 x round of ammunition
28/02/2020 Key knife
2/03/2020 Knuckledusters
3/03/2020 Key knife
5/03/2020 11x glass bottles of tonic water found during external patrol
6/03/2020 11x glass bottles of Coca Cola found during external patrol
10/03/2020 2 x meth pipes, electronic scales and a substantial amount of point bags, some of which still contained residue
12/03/2020 Methamphetamine pipe (broken)
13/03/2020 1 x 9mm round of ammunition
16/03/2020 3 x scissors and 2 x screwdrivers with drug residue on them, blades
19/03/2020 Marijuana
20/03/2020 1 x 9mm round of ammunition
23/03/2020 6 inch knife found during external patrol
30/04/2020 Credit card knife
30/04/2020 Credit card knife
7/05/2020 Credit card knife
20/05/2020 Cannabis
28/05/2020 Large marquee peg with cloth wrapped around the handle, two screwdrivers and a pair of leather gloves
2/06/2020 Key knife
2/06/2020 Knife
3/06/2020 Heavy duty hacksaw blade with a makeshift handle taped on to it
5/06/2020 30cm long wooden baton
5/06/2020 Credit card knife
10/06/2020 Knuckledusters
15/06/2020 Key knife
15/06/2020 Credit card knife
16/06/2020 Corkscrew bottle opener with knife
19/06/2020 Glass pipe
19/06/2020 Knife
22/06/2020 Knife
3/07/2020 Cannabis, pipe, needles (clean and used) and syringes
6/07/2020 Knuckleduster belt buckle
10/07/2020 Glass pipe
13/07/2020 Cannabis pipe and meth pipe
17/07/2020 Cannabis
24/07/2020 Credit card knife
28/07/2020 Credit card knife
28/07/2020 15cm long knife found during external patrol
29/07/2020 Knuckledusters
3/08/2020 50mm pointed end spike with finger hole
7/08/2020 Homemade bong found during external patrol
10/08/2020 Small glass container with a pipe cut into the top which gave off the smell of marijuana.
22/08/2020 Possession of drugs methamphetamine
3/09/2020 Marijuana
23/09/2020 2 x meth pipes with residue and electronic scales
24/09/2020 Knuckledusters
28/09/2020 Bong and needles
9/10/2020 Homemade cannabis pipe and a point bag with a white sponge inside
13/10/2020 Knife and other items of interest (unspecified)
16/10/2020 Knife and other tools (unspecified)
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