Illegal wedding sentencing delayed

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Two men found guilty of charges relating to an unlawful wedding will have to wait until February to find out their sentences.

They were meant to be sentenced in the Christchurch District Court today after being convicted at a defended hearing before Judge Jane Farish, Christchurch Court News website reported.

But the sentencing could not go ahead because of the illness of defence counsel James Rapley and Judge Farish further adjourned it to February 1.

The Rev Maurice Manawaroa Gray, a 54-year-old minister from Christchurch, was convicted early this month on a charge of making a false declaration on the document relating to the wedding.

Geoffrey Robert Topham Hall, a 56-year-old funeral director from Kaiapoi, was convicted of the false declaration charge, and of falsely pretending to be a marriage celebrant.

Both men had denied the charges.

The groom at the 2006 wedding, Philip Ellis, was present for the sentencing session.

The Department of Internal Affairs prosecuted the pair, saying that the Rev Gray had not been present at the ceremony where he needed to supervise the unregistered celebrant Hall. A video recording of the wedding formed part of the evidence.

- NZPA