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===Punishment===
===Punishment===


New Zealand's corporal punishment outweighs their use of capital punishment. The death penalty was removed for all offenses since year 1989 after the Private Member's Bill came into effect. This bill was passed, stating that treason was no longer punishable by death.<ref>http://www.amnesty.org.nz/our-work/end-death-penalty/new-zealands-stance-death-penalty</ref> The last person to be executed in New Zealand was Walter Bolton, who was convicted of poisoning his wife Beatrice. He was hanged for her murder at Mount Eden prison. <ref>http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/culture/the-death-penalty/the-last-execution</ref>. New Zealand's prisons have over 7,700 inmates, and has one of the highest imprisonment rates along with the United States. 80% of the inmates are serving their second prison sentencing, which reflects the use of incarceration as a solution to the crime problem is not effective. <ref>http://www.caritas.org.nz/?sid=1037,</ref> Since there is a high rate of incarceration in New Zealand, means this type of punishment is used often with such crimes such as murder, rape, theft, etc.
There is substantial evidence that New Zealand's schools use corporal punishment among their students. Green Party Sue Bradford attempted to take action to protect children who attend schools that are willing to impose corporal punishment on children.<ref>http://www.greens.org.nz/press-releases/action-needed-against-schools-flouting-corporal-punishment-law</ref>

New Zealand also uses fines and compensation has a way to cut down costs of holding a trial and bringing a criminal to prison. In New Zealand, the issuing of tickets for minor offenses continues to become an important sanction, with the growth of motor vehicle ownership, increased road traffic regulations, and technology advancements.<ref>http://www.justice.govt.nz/publications/global-publications/r/review-of-monetary-penalties-in-new-zealand/conclusions</ref>. Judge determines the amount of fine or compensation with two judgements; the severity of offense and the offender's financial status. Once each one is separately decided on, then the judge can sentence offenders convicted of the same offence to the same economic burden even if they have very different financial resources.<ref>http://www.justice.govt.nz/publications/global-publications/r/review-of-monetary-penalties-in-new-zealand/conclusions</ref>.

The purpose of punishment in New Zealand is restorative justice. Restorative justice is when the victim and the offender meet where they can discuss ways to help and give back the victim of the offense for what was taken away from them. This process is voluntary, and the offender must be able to admit their responsibility of the victim's suffering.<ref>http://www.justice.govt.nz/policy-and-consultation/restorative-justice</ref>


===Legal Personnel===
===Legal Personnel===

Revision as of 02:41, 6 November 2009

Part of the Comparative law and justice Wikiversity Project


Basic Information

New Zealand is a fascinating region that is unique from the rest of the world. The country's history, society, and culture is worth the time to learn and discover. New Zealand, also known as The Land of the Long White Cloud, currently has a total population of 4,213,418 [1]. The total population has a 0.99 males for every female; 20% are under the age of 14, while 12% are 65 years and older. New Zealand can be described as a urban center considering that 90% of the population lives in the cities.[2]

New Zealand, directly southeast of Australia, has a comparable size to Colorado. This country has a total landmass of 267,710 square kilometers, which includes the Antipodes Islands, Auckland Islands, Bounty Islands, Campbell Island, Chatham Islands, and Kermadec Islands. These islands in the South Pacific Ocean is part of the region known as Oceania.[3] New Zealand lies on the boundary between two great tectonic plates, the Indo-Australian and the Pacific, which is along the "ring of fire." Its geothermal activity, volcanoes, and erupting earthquakes forms a dominant mountainous landscape.[4]New Zealand's climate is temperate with sharp regional contrast.[5]

New Zealand is geographically divided into two islands; the North Island and the South Island. The North Island is distinctly different from the South Island due to its wildlife, and landscape. [6] The South Island is mountainous compared to the north.

The most common religions in New Zealand are Anglican, Roman Catholics, Presbyterians.[7] Ethic groups of New Zealand are diverse; 69% are European, 8% are Maori, 6% are Asian, and 4% are Pacific islanders. There is 8% of people who have a mix of these ethic groups. [8] New Zealanders speak of the official language of English, Maori, and Sign Language.[9]

Economic Development, Health, and Education

New Zealand has a thriving, developed economy with a Gross Domestic Product of $116.7 billion. New Zealand also has a substantially high standard of living with a GDP per capita of $28,000, and with an average annual income between 30,000 to 55,000. New Zealand is highly reliant on free trade. New Zealand's exports account for 24% of its output, which means they are vulnerable to global economic crises. New Zealand is a gross exporter in dairy products, meat, wood and wood products, fish, machinery, and a gross importer in machinery and equipment, vehicles and aircraft, petroleum, electronics, textiles, plastics. Key industries in New Zealand include food processing, wood and paper products, textiles, machinery, transportation equipment, banking and insurance, tourism, mining. The New Zealand dollar is the currency. [10].

New Zealanders have a high level standard of live; it was ranked 20th on the 2008 Human Development Index. [11] This ranking reflects the low infant mortality rate; which is 4.92 per 1,000 live births. Males have a life expectancy of 78 years, while the females have a life expectancy of 82 years.

The literacy expectancy for both females and males are relatively high with a 99%. New Zealand is ranked 12th among 30 other nations. 76% of New Zealanders between the ages of 25 and 64 have reached a high school or college level education. [12]

Brief History

  • Last major landmass to be discovered
  • The official document that shaped New Zealand law was the Treaty of Waitangi signed in 1840 between British Crown and Maori; allowing Maori have their own independence.
  • Maori settlers were the first to land in New Zealand
  • According to Maori, Kupe was the first to explore this land using stars as a guide to exploration
  • Abel Tasman was the first explorer to discover New Zealand
  • tensions arose during times before Treaty of Waitangi when the Maori felt they did not receive full and fair prices on their land[13]
  • The Battle of "Gate Pa" is the battle that made the overwhelming impact in the history of the New Zealand Wars.
  • British forces and Maori forces against each other.

Governance

  • New Zealand's government is a constitutional monarchy: monarch is the head of state(Queen Elizabeth) with restricted powers [14]
  • New Zealand doesn't have a formal, written constitution, but rather it is a combination of several acts of Parliament such as:
    • Legislature Act 1908, Constitution Act 1986, New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990, Electoral Act 1993
    • These laws incorporate provisions on suffrage, the term of Parliament, the powers of Parliament, the formation of the Government, and individual rights.
    • The crucial purpose for these documents is to restrict such powers of the Sovereign(monarch) and give political power to representatives elected by the people.
    • The creation of these acts and laws reflect the struggling appeals of New Zealanders to acquire rights
    • The parliamentary system is known as the Westminster model[15]
  • The Magna Carta also influenced the laws of New Zealand today:
    • In 1215, English noblemen rebelled against the King John to give them certain rights such as (1) due process of law, (2) consent for taxation (3) and the involvement in public opinion through common council[16]
  • Unicameral legislature- unicameral
  • New laws start as documents called bills.(initiation of proposed new laws)
    • There are formal stages in which Parliament considers for each type of bill
    • If they pass through every stage they become new laws called Acts of Parliament[17]

Historical Background

  • As far back as the 13th century England
  • In 1295 King Edward I called upon the Model Parliament, generally regarded as the first representative assembly
  • The Bill of Rights 1688 established Parliament’s powers in law-making, taxation, and supply, gave absolute freedom of speech in Parliament, and allowed for free elections and for Parliaments to be held frequently.
  • The government consisted of the Sovereign, the Legislative Council (upper house), and the House of Representatives (lower house) until in 1950 when there was a change in government structure. [18]

Government structure

  • Parliament
    • who make the laws
  • Government who administers the laws
    • Anad Satyanand- Governor-general: has power to choose prime minister as well as dissolve parliament
    • John Key- prime minister
  • Judiciary who interprets the laws
    • Supreme Court of New Zealand[19]

Elections

  • For the past 13 years, New Zealand has used the mixed member proportional (MMP) voting system through the electoral strategy of first past the post or appointed from party lists
  • Reserved seats for Maori members.
  • Suffrage is given to everyone over the age of 18 years and women as well.[20]
  • Requirements to vote:
    • Must be 18 years or older
    • A New Zealand citizen or permanent resident who has lived in New Zealand for one year or more without leaving the country

Judicial Review

By definition, its when an aggrieved citizen is given power to confront an abuse of public power. [21]

Courts and Criminal Law

New Zealand has an adversarial court system[22]. Courts serve a variety of purposes, such as enforcing the criminal law, settle civil disputes among citizens, protecting the rights of the individual, ensuring that government agencies follow the law, and interpreting the law. The judiciary is independent of the Legislature, Parliament, and the Executive Branch for its sole purpose that the judge in position is subject only to law. Judges make their decisions for themselves and no one else. Essentially, judges are autonomous from government influence. Judges cannot be bias when making decisions, which needs to follow established legal principles. Statues and the common law are the two main sources or authorities of law. In conclusion, Parliament has the power to repeal, modify, or develop the common law by statute. If the judges' interpretations of the laws are vague and disagreeable, Parliament can also amend the legislation to make its interpretation crystal clear. The courts are open to the public, which includes news media and members of the public, and it creates a reality of confidence and trust in the justice system.

New Zealand's court system can be separated into three divisions: the higher courts, the district courts, and other courts such as family, environment, and employment courts. Under the District Courts Act 1947, the District Court are able to hear bother criminal and civil matters. These types of courts hear the most serious crimes such as rape, aggravated robbery, and sexual violation and the minor misdemeanors. There are exceptions such as murder, manslaughter, and Class A drug offenses cannot be heard by the District Court. The District Court, involving civil claims, can hear cases over money and property and can also involve commercial transactions.[23]

Barristers, solicitors, and judges are all considered lawyers. Practitioners of this law practice must obtain a current practicing certificate either as a barrister, a solicitors, or a barrister and a solicitor. A solicitor's duties revolve around commercial transactions and conveyancing. If such cases go to court, then the barrister is in charge. Their role is part of the criminal and civil litigation. Barrister sole refers to someone who takes up a solicitor's legal advice or instructions, which has become a popular profession. Barristers sole's income depends essentially on their prominence and reputation since their work is based upon the workings of other lawyers. Most of the people in the legal profession, are private practitioners or barrister soles.

The legal schooling for young people pursuing law career depends on their opportunities and their father's lawyer status. In Auckland, private and elite schooling are expensive. Compared to U.S. currency, private school expenses are around $79,800. As a result, higher classes in this society has a better advantage to becoming a lawyer.[24]

The Chief Justice of New Zealand has four primary roles; judicial leader among other judges, administrator of government, communication with the executive branch and the judiciary, and representing the Judiciary. The chief justice has seniority over all other judges, and plays a key role with the executive branch and the judiciary. The governor general or the attorney general are the ones who select the Chief Justice.[25]

The jury plays a key role in determining the fate of the criminal. Once the evidence has been presented in the court, the judge sums up the facts of the case as well as explain relevant principles of law. Then, the jury will decide if the accused is guilty or not. During the trial you are usually allowed to take notes. Points of law and evidence can be repeated for clarification. A full consensus or agreement needs to be reached in order to make a final verdict. If no decision is not made, then the judge has the power to order a retrial. In consideration to the expenses of the trial, the judge asks the jury to reconsider their decisions once again. [26]

Since the New Zealand court system is part of an adversarial form, there is no presence of presumption of guilt. It's the burden of the prosecution to determine if the accused is guilty. The accused has the right to remain silent throughout the trial proceedings and investigation.





Punishment

New Zealand's corporal punishment outweighs their use of capital punishment. The death penalty was removed for all offenses since year 1989 after the Private Member's Bill came into effect. This bill was passed, stating that treason was no longer punishable by death.[27] The last person to be executed in New Zealand was Walter Bolton, who was convicted of poisoning his wife Beatrice. He was hanged for her murder at Mount Eden prison. [28]. New Zealand's prisons have over 7,700 inmates, and has one of the highest imprisonment rates along with the United States. 80% of the inmates are serving their second prison sentencing, which reflects the use of incarceration as a solution to the crime problem is not effective. [29] Since there is a high rate of incarceration in New Zealand, means this type of punishment is used often with such crimes such as murder, rape, theft, etc. There is substantial evidence that New Zealand's schools use corporal punishment among their students. Green Party Sue Bradford attempted to take action to protect children who attend schools that are willing to impose corporal punishment on children.[30]

New Zealand also uses fines and compensation has a way to cut down costs of holding a trial and bringing a criminal to prison. In New Zealand, the issuing of tickets for minor offenses continues to become an important sanction, with the growth of motor vehicle ownership, increased road traffic regulations, and technology advancements.[31]. Judge determines the amount of fine or compensation with two judgements; the severity of offense and the offender's financial status. Once each one is separately decided on, then the judge can sentence offenders convicted of the same offence to the same economic burden even if they have very different financial resources.[32].

The purpose of punishment in New Zealand is restorative justice. Restorative justice is when the victim and the offender meet where they can discuss ways to help and give back the victim of the offense for what was taken away from them. This process is voluntary, and the offender must be able to admit their responsibility of the victim's suffering.[33]

Law Enforcement

  • single centralized police structure
  • The law enforcement in New Zealand are divided into two Police Maritime Units: one in Auckland, and the other in Wellington.
    • Auckland Police Maritime Unit: part of the Auckland Metro Operations Group
    • Wellington Police Maritime Unit: comprised of a Senior sergeant, sergeant, and ten constables(under the Operational Services Manager)[34]

Police training:

  • enforcement officials are chosen by screening procedures; a mandatory, consistent procedure that is applied to every trainee:
    • Competitive examinations of applicants
    • applicant interviews
    • security checking of applicants
  • Screening procedures also focus on the following applicant requirements:
    • moral qualifications
    • psychological qualifications
    • physical qualifications
  • All law enforcement officials receive professional training in:
    • effective exercise
    • lawful use of force and firearms
    • psychological impacts of police actions are recognized by law enforcement officials
    • stress counseling in situations where force and firearms are used
  • training of law enforcement also includes knowledge of:
    • issues of police ethics
    • issues of human rights
    • other options to the use of force and firearms
    • the mediation of conflicts
    • the understanding of crowd behavior
    • skills of persuasion, negotiation, and mediation
  • professional training lasts, for all law enforcement officials, ranges from thirty-one to fifty hours per year
  • measures are learned to combat the following crimes:
    • organized crime , drug-related crime
    • money laundering
    • environmental crime
    • terrorism
    • domestic violence[35]

Corruption Perception Index(data in 2008)

  • New Zealand has a CPI score of 9.3 among 180 countries, showing a relationship between corruption and poverty[36]

Orientation of Law Enforcement:

  • New Zealand Police officers don't usually carry firearms while on patrol, but rather use less harmful defenses such as pepper spray and batons[37]
  • well established community-policing tradition(based on survey of 440 officers)
  • avowed community-policing orientation, police officers, not all, perceived the reality of work rather their duty to protect their citizens[38]

Military Corporation

  • Armed Offenders Squad (AOS, commonly compared to SWAT in the United States.
  • Maintain a full-time counter-terrorist unit, the Special Tactics Group (STG)
    • experienced in tactics vital in high-risk dangerous situations
    • the last resort of law enforcement (available before a police Incident Controller calls in help from the Military
    • If New Zealand's internal resources are unable to face with the issue, such as a serious terrorist attack, the Police Incident Controller may call New Zealand's Defence Force and Special Forces[39]

Crime Rates and Public Opinion

Rates of Key Crimes in
Drug and Antisocial Offenses
  • Second most occurred crime; 41% of the recorded offenses are crimes such as family offenses, vagrancy, and sale of liquor,[40]
 Theft
  • Dishonesty crimes occurs the most; 50% of all dishonesty offenses are theft[41]
 Homicide
  • In 2006, out of a total of 424,134 crimes that occur in New Zealand only 98 of those crimes are homicide, 2.4% of all crimes[42]
 Assualt
  • Out of the total crimes in 2006, a sum of 47,112 assaults occur; 11% of all crimes[43]
 Cheat
  • Fraud occurs 8% of the time[44]

Public opinion on crime is highly influenced by the media, which distorts the actual truth of the criminality in New Zealand. In a recent survey of the view of crime in New Zealand, more people overestimated the crimes rates than the actual crimes rates. People who exaggerated this information were women, Maori or Pacific people, be over 60, uneducated, poor, and not have been a victim of a crime. The occurrence of crime in New Zealand is relatively low considering its rank 52 in consideration to murder rates compared to other countries such as Netherlands, Germany, and Spain[45]

The survey also asked people of New Zealand to rank the criminal justice professionals in consideration to their trust for each of them:

  1. Police and community services
  2. Juries, probational officers, and criminal lawyers
  3. Judges and prison services

How about sentencing: New Zealanders believe in a wide range of sentencing, but mostly preferable rehabilitation, deterrence and retribution.[46]

Sources of Data

  1. United Nations Office on Drugs & Crime
  2. International Crime Victim Survey
  3. United Nations Interregional Criminal Justice Research Institute (UNICRI)

Sources of Problems

  1. Lack of trust in police officers
  2. Record serious crimes and disregard minor ones
  3. Police reported process different from others
  4. Legal definition of crime and the consensus view of the definition of crime among people[47]

Crime is considered low in New Zealand compared to other countries; New Zealand has the fifth highest percentage of the population who are satisfied with their lives[48]

Rights

Family Law

  • New Zealand is under common law.

Social Inequality

Human Rights

Works Cited

  1. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  2. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  3. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  4. ↑ http://mstecker.com/pages/nz_fp.htm
  5. ↑ http://www.privateislandsonline.com/newzealand_info.htm
  6. ↑ http://mstecker.com/pages/nz_fp.htm
  7. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  8. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  9. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  10. ↑ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nz.html
  11. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand
  12. ↑ http://www.stats.govt.nz/Publications/Product-Development-and-Publishing/nz-in-the-oecd/Education.aspx
  13. ↑ http://history-nz.org/parihaka.html
  14. ↑ http://www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/AboutParl/HowPWorks/FactSheets/0/e/7.htm
  15. ↑ http://www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/AboutParl/HowPWorks/FactSheets/0/e/7.htm
  16. ↑ http://www.beehive.govt.nz/Documents/Files/NZ%20Constitution%20Cabinet%20Office%20backgrounder.pdf*
  17. ↑ http://www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/AboutParl/HowPWorks/Laws/
  18. ↑ http://www.parliament.nz/en-NZ/AboutParl/HowPWorks/FactSheets/0/e/7.htm
  19. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_New_Zealand
  20. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Politics_of_New_Zealand,
  21. ↑ http://www.findlaw.com/12international/countries/nz/articles/1144.html
  22. ↑ http://books.google.com/books
  23. ↑ http://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/
  24. ↑ http://books.google.com/books?id=2SPiIRFY4_sC&pg=PA324&lpg=PA324&dq=Lawyers+and+judges+in+New+Zealand
  25. ↑ http://www.courtsofnz.govt.nz/about/judges/role-chief
  26. ↑ http://www.grownups.co.nz/read/products_services/consumer/jury-duty
  27. ↑ http://www.amnesty.org.nz/our-work/end-death-penalty/new-zealands-stance-death-penalty
  28. ↑ http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/culture/the-death-penalty/the-last-execution
  29. ↑ http://www.caritas.org.nz/?sid=1037,
  30. ↑ http://www.greens.org.nz/press-releases/action-needed-against-schools-flouting-corporal-punishment-law
  31. ↑ http://www.justice.govt.nz/publications/global-publications/r/review-of-monetary-penalties-in-new-zealand/conclusions
  32. ↑ http://www.justice.govt.nz/publications/global-publications/r/review-of-monetary-penalties-in-new-zealand/conclusions
  33. ↑ http://www.justice.govt.nz/policy-and-consultation/restorative-justice
  34. ↑ http://www.police.govt.nz/service/maritime/wellington.html
  35. ↑ http://www.uncjin.org/Standards/Conduct/ccl/newzeal.pdf
  36. ↑ http://www.csrinternational.org/?tag=corruption-perception-index
  37. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Police
  38. ↑ http://www.emeraldinsight.com
  39. ↑ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_Police
  40. ↑ www.stats.govt.nz/.../crime%20in%20new%20zealand/crime-in-nz.aspx -
  41. ↑ www.stats.govt.nz/.../crime%20in%20new%20zealand/crime-in-nz.aspx -
  42. ↑ http://www.safenz.org.nz/statistics.htm
  43. ↑ http://www.safenz.org.nz/statistics.htm
  44. ↑ www.stats.govt.nz/.../crime%20in%20new%20zealand/crime-in-nz.aspx -
  45. ↑ http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita
  46. ↑ uk.toluna.com/
  47. ↑ http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/Compiling-and-comparing-International-Crime-Statistics.html
  48. ↑ http://www.socialreport.msd.govt.nz/2004/conclusion/nz-oecd-countries.html
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