KEY POINTS:
The son of murdered Tokoroa school teacher Lois Dear, Kevin McNeil, is one of several victims of crime who have called for a tougher parole system - but the proposed measures have been described by a defence lawyer as "Guantanamo Bay".
Mr McNeil's submission, calling for more victim
rights and the abolition of parole, was presented by former Act MP Stephen Franks to Parliament's justice and electoral select committee yesterday as it considered the Criminal Justice Reform Bill.
Mrs Dear, a 66-year-old school teacher, was murdered by Whetu Te Hiko in her classroom on July 16 last year.
In his submission, Mr McNeil backed the Sensible Sentencing Trust's calls for the bill to abolish parole completely for serious and repeat offenders, and for prisoners to be monitored or supervised upon release.
Among the bill's provisions is extending non-parole periods from one third to two thirds of any jail term longer than one year.
Further changes to parole were added after the furore over a Parole Board decision to release Graham Burton, who killed Wainuiomata father Karl Kuchenbecker in January.
They allow the Parole Board to keep information it is considering confidential from the inmate, and for police to apply for the recall to prison of a paroled prisoner considered an "undue risk".
Barrister Michael Bott said the changes reminded him of Guantanamo Bay.
"You've got secret evidence given by secret people."
He said inmates could not defend themselves if they did not know what was being said about them, and could not challenge the motivation of those given the information.
"It goes against any notion of a fair hearing or natural justice."
Mr McNeil's submission was among several from people affected by violent crime, all backing the Sensible Sentencing Trust's calls for victim representation and abolishing parole for serious crimes.
They included George Thompson, whose sister Thelma was beaten to death with a cricket bat by her husband, Te Vita Noa, in 2005.
Speaking for the Sensible Sentencing Trust, Mr Franks said the changes in the bill did not go far enough.
He called for prisoners to be stripped of their rights to speak before the board, and for parole to be granted without a hearing.
The trust also wanted all released prisoners to be monitored for a period after their release.
Council of Civil Liberties spokesman and human rights lawyer Tony Ellis attacked the bill.
"If you pass this extra piece of legislation - where we will have hearsay and we'll have the police being able to make applications virtually in camera - then what's going to happen is it's going to be a far easier application to make that the New Zealand Parole Board is not independent."
He strongly condemned part of the bill affecting prisoner compensation.
"This legislation would benefit a fascist state," he told the committee.
Mr Ellis said the initial law, which aimed to give victims the right to any compensation prisoners got, should never have passed.
The law was written after five prisoners, whom Mr Ellis represented, were awarded $130,000 in total for inhumane treatment by prison officers at Auckland Prison. The Supreme Court is yet to rule on an appeal.
"The legislation is not simply unprincipled but would be at home in a fascist state such as Germany under the Nazi regime in 1933."
He said the law was a failure because its cost had climbed far higher than the compensation payouts, and was an abuse of human rights.
"Any member voting for the bill should recall that the defence of superior orders did not succeed at the Nuremberg war crimes trials."
Criminal Justice Reform Bill
* Aims to reduce the number of people in prison by relaxing bail rules and creating new sentences such as home and community detention to replace jail for less-serious offences.
* Lengthens non-parole periods to two thirds of a sentence, up from one third and allows no parole for prisoners with jail terms of 12 months or less.
* Gives the Parole Board power to summon witnesses and keep some information confidential from the prisoner and his or her lawyers. This could, for example, protect the source of the information.
* Requires that police be told when a prisoner is released on parole.
* Allows Commissioner of Police to apply to have a paroled prisoner recalled to jail if there is an "undue risk" to public safety.
* The Sentencing Council will set guidelines and work on policy for sentencing and parole. It will include four judges and five non-judges, chosen by the Government.
