New Gisborne court list aims to cut delays for mentally impaired defendants

Gisborne District Court has introduced a new specialist list to reduce the number of defendants with mental impairment subjected to delays. Inset: Chief District Court Judge Heemi Taumaunu, born in Gisborne, championed the Te Ao Marama programme. Photo / Ministry of Justice

Gisborne District Court is only the second court in the country to introduce a new measure to reduce the number of defendants with mental impairment subjected to delays.

The first dedicated hearings on a new Criminal Procedure (Mentally Impaired Persons) List began this morning, according to a statement from the Chief District Court Judge’s Chambers.

A list court is a form of scheduling that gathers a particular type of hearing in a set time slot.

This new list will sit every four weeks for half a day and is for cases where issues of fitness to stand trial or insanity have been raised.

Gisborne is introducing the list as part of the Te Ao Mārama – Enhancing Justice for All nationwide initiative.

The judicially led initiative was introduced in 2021 by Chief District Court Judge Heemi Taumaunu, who was born in Gisborne and spent his early childhood in Tolaga Bay.

Iwi, communities and court and justice sector agencies partner through the programme to ensure all court participants, including victims and whānau, can understand and better participate in cases that relate to them.

It is in eight District Court locations – Kaitāia, Kaikohe, Whangārei, Hamilton, Tauranga, Gisborne, Napier and Hastings.

Te Rūnanga o Tūranganui a Kiwa (Trotak) was asked to help establish Te Ao Mārama in Gisborne.

Taumaunu explained to the NZ Herald in 2022 that part of the kaupapa was bringing the “alternative pathways” of specialist courts into the mainstream, as opposed to a one-size-fits-all approach.

Specialist courts use different tools where appropriate, such as directing offenders to addiction treatment, integrating tikanga Māori into the process and involving communities in the resolution.

Examples of this are the Family Violence Intervention Court introduced in Gisborne in 2018 or the Young Adult List Court introduced in 2022.

Gisborne is only the second District Court location to introduce a Criminal Procedure (Mentally Impaired Persons) List. The first started in Auckland in 2020.

“Unnecessary delays impede timely access to justice. The new approach will help to reduce delays and the number of defendants unnecessarily subjected to the fitness process,” the statement from the Chief District Court Judge’s Chambers reads.

“The list will see defendants dealt with in a sensitive and appropriate way and improve the efficiency of processes for health professionals and defendants required to attend court.”

Renee Smith, senior responsible owner for the Te Ao Mārama initiative, said in a statement that the list would improve the quality of justice received by defendants going through it.

“We are really excited about this new solution-focused list and the positive outcomes and difference it can make for those appearing before the court,” Smith said.

“The aim of this list is to improve the efficiency of mental health advice, along with improving the consistency in the way these cases are managed.”

In the About section on the District Courts website, it is stated that “timely justice is fundamental” to the Te Ao Mārama kaupapa.

“Lengthy delays for those waiting for their cases to be heard carry a human toll for everyone involved,” the website reads.