Aranui v The the Queen - [2022] NZCA 25

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF NEW ZEALAND

I TE KŌTI PĪRA O AOTEAROA

CA394/2021
[2022] NZCA 25

BETWEEN	RAYMOND ARANUI Appellant
AND	THE QUEEN Respondent

Hearing:	9 November 2021
Court:	Miller, Goddard and Katz JJ
Counsel:	DHP Schellenberg for Appellant B D Tantrum and DMA Wiseman for Respondent
Judgment:	22 February 2022 at 3.00 pm

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

The appeal is dismissed.

____________________________________________________________________

REASONS OF THE COURT

(Given by Katz J)

Raymond Aranui was found guilty by a jury of one charge of wounding with intent to injure.[1] He was sentenced by Judge B A Gibson to six months’ community detention and one year of intensive supervision.[2]
[1]Crimes Act 1961, s 188(2). Maximum penalty of seven years’ imprisonment.
[2]R v Aranui [2021] NZDC 16235.
Mr Aranui appeals against his conviction on the basis that:
(a)the trial Judge erred by ruling that hearsay statements of the complainant were admissible;
(b)the trial Judge’s summing-up was unbalanced, because it failed to adequately summarise the defence case; and
(c)the jury’s verdict was unreasonable and went against the weight of the evidence.
The Court must allow the appeal if it is satisfied that a miscarriage of justice has occurred for any reason.[3] A miscarriage of justice includes any error, irregularity, or occurrence in or in relation to or affecting the trial that:[4]
(a)has created a real risk that the outcome of the trial was affected; or
(b)has resulted in an unfair trial or a trial that was a nullity.

The trial

[3]Criminal Procedure Act 2011, s 232(2)(c).

[4]Section 232(4).

Mr Aranui had been in a relationship with the complainant for about three months at the time of the offending.

The prosecution case at trial

The prosecution case was that at around 3.15 am on 27 January 2020, Mr Aranui and the complainant were together on a street in Grey Lynn, Auckland. They were having a loud verbal altercation. Mr Aranui yelled at the complainant to “fucking shut up” and then grabbed her by the back of the neck and forced her to walk along the street.
After a short time, the complainant struggled free of Mr Aranui’s grip and attempted to flee. Mr Aranui chased after her. When he caught up, he picked her up by the waist, lifted her up off the ground, and then tipped her whole body over, slamming her headfirst onto the ground with her full bodyweight on her shoulder and neck. While the complainant was on the ground, Mr Aranui struggled briefly with her. The complainant began kicking out at him in an attempt to defend herself. Mr Aranui managed to grab hold of the complainant’s ankles and dragged her by her feet along the concrete towards the footpath on the side of the street.
At some stage during this incident, Mr Aranui allegedly punched the complainant repeatedly to the face. A member of the public called 111 and police arrived at the scene shortly afterwards.
The complainant suffered a swollen black eye, swelling to the left…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Aranui v The the Queen

Details

AGLC: Aranui v The the Queen [2022] NZCA 25
Case: [2022] NZCA 25
Decision Date: 22 February 2022 at 3.00 pm

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Raymond Aranui appeals against his conviction for wounding with intent to injure, arguing that the trial Judge made errors in admitting hearsay evidence, failing to adequately summarise the defence case, and that the jury’s verdict was unreasonable. The Court of Appeal found no merit in any of the grounds of appeal. The Court held that the Judge did not err in admitting the hearsay statements made by the complainant to Constable Abdullali, as they were found to be sufficiently reliable. The Court found that the Judge’s summing up, while not perfect, did not fail to fairly summarise the defence case. The Judge’s comments about the honesty of the Crown witnesses reflected the defence closing arguments, and did not improperly express the Judge’s own views. Finally, the Court held that the jury’s verdict was not unreasonable, as there was sufficient evidence to meet the “beyond reasonable doubt” threshold. The appeal is dismissed.

Orders