Court rules against sentencing guidelines

File photo / Greg Bowker

The Supreme Court says the Court of Appeal inappropriately departed from the provisions of the Sentencing Act in introducing guidelines for a sliding scale for discounts for guilty pleas.

The Supreme Court also said discounts for guilty plea should not exceed 25 per cent of a sentence.

The Court of Appeal in September issued guidelines for discounts on guilty pleas, saying defendants should get a 33 per cent discount for a guilty plea at the first reasonable opportunity, 20 per cent at a status hearing or callover, and 10 per cent if made three weeks before a trial or hearing.

The court outlined its guidelines in the case of Raymond Everest Hessell, who in 2008 was convicted and jailed for two years and eight months after admitting unlawful sexual contact with two teens.

He argued he should have been given more credit for his guilty plea, which the appeal court rejected.

The Supreme Court today also dismissed Hessell's appeal, but said the Court of Appeal's guidance involved a departure from the requirements of the Sentencing Act, which outlines that sentencing judges evaluate the fill circumstances of each individual case.

It said that discounts were proper procedure, but should only be applied after all relevant matters of a case had been evaluated and a provisional sentence reflecting them had been decided.

It said the reduction for a guilty plea should not exceed 25 per cent. "That upper limit reflects the fact that remorse is dealt with separately."

In the Hessell case, the court found the 10 per cent discount was clearly within the sentencing judge's discretion and that the appeal court decision in the case was correct.

- NZPA