The Howard League

Canterbury + Otago + Wellington

Guilty verdict for Sensible Sentencing Trust

The Sensible Sentencing Trust has misrepresented the Law Commission’s work and proposes to mislead victims, the Howard League said today.

The Howard League stands by the law that people who are insane and cannot understand what they are doing should not be convicted of crimes.

“The Law Commission reviewed the insanity defence in 2010, and found that, while it was not perfect, it was the best option available to New Zealand, Howard League spokesperson Mr Rogers said.

“Yet this week the Sensible Sentencing Trust has proposed that, in order to comfort victims, people who are acquitted by reason of insanity should instead be given a criminal conviction, under the label ‘proven but insane.’

“The Sensible Sentencing Trust accused the Law Commission of having put reform in the ‘too hard basket,’ when the Law Commission had actually determined that any change posed such problematic risks that the current insanity defence was the best option.

“The Law Commission explicitly reviewed and rejected the ‘proven but insane’ option proposed by the Sensible Sentencing Trust, and looking at its failure in the USA, determined that it was not an appropriate model in New Zealand.

“Understanding what you were doing is part of every significant crime. If somebody didn’t understand what they were doing, punishment is not an appropriate response. Treatment is the best route, and is provided for under the current laws.

“Victims won’t be comforted by being mislead. Giving victims the image that the person who hurt them was ‘guilty’, when in fact that person did not understand what they were doing, is unhelpful and misleading, said Mr Rogers.

The Howard League is an independent, not-for-profit organisation. It works with volunteers from all around the community to help New Zealand get smart on crime and punishment.

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