Sentencing ‘varies’
PA Wellington A Chief District Court Judge, Silvia Cartwright, accepts there are differences in sentencing from court to court, but is not worried by it. In the Auckland District Court, on Friday, Judge Lynton Laing said that although there was only one law in New Zealand, there were significant regional variations affecting sentencing. He told a man convicted of drunk driving that if he had appeared in certain courts, which he could name, he would almost certainly have gone to prison. Judge Laing fined the man $lBOO and banned
him from driving for two years. The defendant’s lawyer, Mr Bob Hesketh, agreed that there were regional variations, saying the further south you went, the tougher the sentences. However, Chief Judge Cartwright said the differences were not so clearcut. “It’s been my experience in Dunedin that on certain matters they were very liberal compared to what I’m accustomed to in Auckland.” She said there were different penalties available for similar offences but that no analysis had been done to determine any patterns.
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Press, 19 July 1989, Page 26
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173Sentencing ‘varies’ Press, 19 July 1989, Page 26
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