Lincoln v Police - [2023] NZHC 467

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND CHRISTCHURCH REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA ŌTAUTAHI ROHE

CRI-2022-409-000160

[2023] NZHC 467

BETWEEN
RICHARD LINCOLN

Appellant

AND

NEW ZEALAND POLICE

Respondent

Hearing: 9 March 2023

Appearances:

Appellant appears in Person W S Taffs for the Respondent

Judgment:

10 March 2023

JUDGMENT OF GENDALL J

Introduction

[1] The appellant, Mr Richard Lincoln was charged with and found not guilty of assaulting Geoffrey Cavell with a blunt instrument on the basis that the prosecution had failed to prove the charge beyond a reasonable doubt. He applied for an order for costs under s 5 of the Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967 (CCCA) on 24 February 2022.1 He sought $1,356.90 in disbursements on the grounds of purported misconduct of police, the prosecutor, registry and judiciary.2 The Crown opposed the application and said these claims were entirely without merit.

1 Mr Lincoln, it seems represented himself and the parties agreed at a teleconference on 25 March 2022 that the matter would be dealt with on the papers.
2 That schedule of costs sets out travel and accommodation expenses.

RICHARD LINCOLN v NEW ZEALAND POLICE [2023] NZHC 467 [10 March 2023]

[2] Mr Lincoln’s application was denied on 5 May 2022 in the Christchurch District Court.3 Mr Lincoln appeals this decision. The appeal has been brought out of time. He seeks that the Court reverses the order made in the District Court and awards all the disbursements he applied for. The Crown opposes any award and contends this appeal ought to be dismissed.

District Court decision

[3] Judge Gilbert in the District Court was the Judge who sat on the hearing of Mr Lincoln’s assault trial. He also dealt with Mr Lincoln’s application for costs on the papers and did so with the benefit of written submissions.

[4] In his judgment, he recorded that much of Mr Lincoln’s submissions were irrelevant to the application, and they were intemperate and inflammatory.4 The Judge stated that he understood the submissions but would not “engage with them outside of those matters that [he] consider[ed] relevant to the issue of costs in the prosecution” as to do so “would be to dignify Mr Lincoln’s rant in a way it does not deserve”.5

[5] Judge Gilbert confirmed that he considered there was sufficient evidence for the police to charge Mr Lincoln with assault with a weapon. This included the statement from the complainant, a corroborating statement from a witness, Mr Ebben, who observed the incident, and further that Mr Lincoln made comments to police that were contrary to these statements (although he did not give a formal interview).6 The Judge noted that Mr Lincoln was found not guilty principally because the evidence Mr Ebben gave at trial differed from his previous statements to police, and the Judge could not determine what happened on the day in question as a result.7

[6] The fact that there was a history between Mr Lincoln and Mr Cavell, the victim, and between Mr Lincoln…

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.

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Details

Case: [2023] NZHC 467
Decision Date: 10 March 2023

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of Lincoln v Police, Mr Richard Lincoln, the appellant, appeals against a decision of the Christchurch District Court, which dismissed his application for an order for costs under the Costs in Criminal Cases Act 1967 (CCCA). Mr Lincoln was found not guilty of assaulting Geoffrey Cavell with a blunt instrument. The appeal was brought out of time, and the Crown opposed it, contending it should be dismissed. The appeal raises issues concerning the exercise of the court's discretion in deciding whether to award costs to a successful defendant and the relevance of various factors to be considered under the CCCA.

Mr Lincoln's appeal focuses on the alleged errors of the District Court Judge in his assessment of the factors relevant to the decision on costs. Mr Lincoln argues that the Judge failed to engage with his submissions related to the "bad faith" nature of the proceedings, considered inadmissible evidence, and did not consider the history of police interactions with him. The Crown submits that the appeal should be dismissed as it is without merit and largely vexatious.

The Court found that it would not be in the interests of justice to grant leave to appeal due to the delay in filing the appeal, the lack of justification for the delay, and the low merits of the appeal. The Court assessed Mr Lincoln's submissions concerning bad faith prosecution, evidential sufficiency, and the consideration of irrelevant factors. The Court concluded that the District Court Judge did not err in assessing these criteria and found no error in the Judge's decision to refuse an order for costs. Therefore, the appeal was dismissed.

Leave to appeal out of time is declined, and the substantive appeal is dismissed.

Orders