Gorgus v R

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW ZEALAND

SC 125/2016
[2016] NZSC 161

BETWEEN	ASHOR GORGUS Applicant
AND	THE QUEEN Respondent

Court:	Glazebrook, OʼRegan and Ellen France JJ
Counsel:	Applicant in person K S Grau for the Respondent
Judgment:	7 December 2016

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.

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REASONS

Mr Gorgus was sentenced in the District Court at Auckland to four years and one months imprisonment, having pleaded guilty to a number of charges including burglary, wilful damage and two charges of possession of utensils for methamphetamine use.[1]
[1]R v Gorgus [2015] NZDC 20428 (Judge Dawson).
His appeal was dismissed by the High Court.[2] The Court of Appeal declined Mr Gorgus’ application for leave to bring a second appeal.[3]
[2]Gorgus v Police [2015] NZHC 3127 (Muir J).
[3]Gorgus v R [2016] NZCA 508 (Harrison, Brown and Brewer JJ).
There is no jurisdiction for this Court to grant leave to appeal against a decision of the Court of Appeal declining leave to appeal.[4] This means that the application for leave to appeal must be dismissed for want of jurisdiction.
[4]Pursuant to section 213(3) of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011.

Solicitors:
Crown Law Office, Wellington for Respondent

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Ashor Gorgus applied to the Supreme Court of New Zealand for leave to appeal against the decision of the Court of Appeal, which had declined his application for leave to bring a second appeal. The Court of Appeal had dismissed Gorgus' appeal against his conviction and sentence for burglary, wilful damage, and possession of utensils for methamphetamine use. The Supreme Court was asked to decide whether it had jurisdiction to grant leave to appeal against the Court of Appeal's decision declining leave to bring a second appeal.

The court held that it does not have jurisdiction to grant leave to appeal against a decision of the Court of Appeal declining leave to bring a second appeal. This is pursuant to section 213(3) of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011, which provides that the Court of Appeal is the final court of appeal for all criminal matters in New Zealand. The Supreme Court can only grant leave to appeal in exceptional circumstances where the Court of Appeal has made an error of law or where there are significant grounds for doubt as to the correctness or completeness of the Court of Appeal's decision. However, in this case, the Court of Appeal had already considered Gorgus' appeal and had declined leave to bring a second appeal. Therefore, the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction to grant leave to appeal against that decision.

The application for leave to appeal is dismissed for want of jurisdiction. The court held that it does not have jurisdiction to grant leave to appeal against a decision of the Court of Appeal declining leave to bring a second appeal. The Court of Appeal is the final court of appeal for all criminal matters in New Zealand, and the Supreme Court can only grant leave to appeal in exceptional circumstances. In this case, the Court of Appeal had already considered Gorgus' appeal and had declined leave to bring a second appeal, so the Supreme Court had no jurisdiction to grant leave to appeal against that decision.

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established