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Home / New Zealand

Paul Henry assault hinging on evidence

NZ Herald
7 Oct, 2015 06:07 AM4 mins to read

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Paul Henry was allegedly hit and spat on during a protest outside SkyCity this year. Photo / Supplied

Paul Henry was allegedly hit and spat on during a protest outside SkyCity this year. Photo / Supplied

A judge's verdict over whether a protester assaulted broadcaster Paul Henry by shoving and spitting at him may hinge on a point of law.

Diego Leonardo Chavez, 35, faces one charge of assault, after police withdrew a lesser charge in Auckland District Court this morning.

Chavez, today wearing a hoodie emblazoned with "anti-capitalist", was allegedly at a protest outside Prime Minister John Key's post-Budget speech at Auckland's SkyCity events centre on May 22.

The court heard evidence today that the defendant launched himself at Mr Henry and spat at him on the neck.

After four prosecution witnesses - including the veteran TV presenter, police and security - Chavez decided not to give or call evidence.

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His lawyer Luke Wilson said all identification evidence should be ruled inadmissible by Judge David Sharp because police did not follow formal procedure using photo montages, as required by law.

The judge said he had wanted to give a verdict at the end of today's hearing but adjourned the matter for further written argument on the application of the specific section of the Evidence Act.

Earlier in the day, the court heard from Mr Henry who said he was suddenly confronted by a screaming mob of semi-deranged people as he was on the way to attend a charity lunch.

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"It was very threatening, extraordinarily threatening," he said. READ MORE

"That's the huge issue for me. It was very aggressive. A couple of them were screaming at me right in my face, literally just standing there right in my face. So the options were reducing and it felt like it was becoming more and more inflamed."

Henry said he could not pick out exactly what was being said to him but thought he heard a chant of "mouthpiece of the rich".

Then as he was shepherded away, he was allegedly attacked.

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"From behind, someone spat on me and I was pushed. For me that was the final straw. People have a right to protest and expression is very important and should be upheld. But this was way beyond where people should go," Henry said.

"The thing I mostly remember was being spat on, which is just such a vile thing to do."

He told the court he did not want to show the impact the incident had on him.

"There's a fair amount of bravado involved when you're a male and I was very conscious I didn't want people to see I was harassed or that there was an emotional strain on me but the reality is it's a very frightening situation, something like that," he said.

The transcript of Chavez's initial police interview was read to the court this morning.

Though he would not answer all questions, Chavez voiced some strong opinions about Henry, whom he described as "racist".

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"If Paul Henry says I [shoulder-charged him] you can't believe him because he's a liar and a racist ... just turn on the TV," he said.

In the interview, the officer in charge of the case, Sergeant David Mayes, suggested Chavez had taken the opportunity to "teach [Henry] a lesson".

"What I say is that if he's going to walk on the street with his bigotry and making fun of people, that's going to happen," Mr Chavez replied.

Judge Sharp will give his decision next month.

If found guilty of the charge, Chavez could face up to a year in jail.

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THE LAW

Evidence Act 2006, Section 45 (2)

If a formal procedure is not followed by officers of an enforcement agency in obtaining visual identification evidence of a person alleged to have committed an offence and there was no good reason for not following a formal procedure, that evidence is inadmissible in a criminal proceeding unless the prosecution proves beyond reasonable doubt that the circumstances in which the identification was made have produced a reliable identification.

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