One of the country's most notorious sex offenders was due to be tried before a judge for breaches of release conditions yesterday but changed his mind at the last minute and asked for a jury trial.
Stewart Murray Wilson, who was last year paroled after serving 18 years in prison for various sexual crimes, appeared before Judge Chris Field in the Whanganui District Court charged with two breaches of release conditions.
He is accused of using his cellphone in February to call a female he was instructed not to contact.
At a previous appearance, Wilson had pleaded not guilty and elected a trial before a judge alone, which was set for yesterday. However, he informed lawyer Andrew McKenzie late on Monday he wished to be tried by a jury.
Mr McKenzie said his client had the right to elect a trial by jury at any time before the trial began. "The Crown application to block Wilson's election is, in my view, misguided," he told the court.