Manukau v The Queen

This appeal was dismissed by the Court of Appeal of New Zealand for non-prosecution. The appellants, Joseph Manukau and Tia Richards, were convicted in August 2020 on various charges including assault on a child, child neglect, and wounding with intent to injure. Manukau was sentenced to 12 months’ home detention, and Richards to 12 months’ intensive supervision, both of which they have completed. Manukau filed a notice of appeal in February 2021, and Richards followed suit in May 2021. Both appellants were assigned legal aid counsel, and their appeals were scheduled to be heard together in November 2021. However, despite multiple directions and extensions from the Court, neither appellant filed the required grounds of appeal or submissions. As a result, the Court dismissed the appeals for non-prosecution.

The legal issues before the Court were whether the appellants had properly prosecuted their appeals in accordance with the directions and orders of the Court. The appellants were required to file and serve full particularised grounds of appeal and submissions by specified dates, but they failed to do so. The Court noted that the appellants were now self-represented, having been unable to secure full grants of legal aid. Despite the final extension granted by the Court, the appellants did not comply with the requirements. The Court had to determine whether to dismiss the appeals for non-prosecution.

The Court held that the appellants had failed to comply with the Court’s directions and orders, despite multiple opportunities to do so. The Court noted that the appellants were now self-represented, but this did not excuse their failure to comply with the Court’s requirements. Given the appellants' non-compliance, the Court dismissed the appeals. The Court emphasised that the dismissal was a consequence of the appellants' failure to prosecute their appeals as directed, and not a determination on the merits of the original convictions and sentences.

The final orders of the Court were that the appeals of both Joseph Manukau and Tia Richards were dismissed for non-prosecution. The Court made no orders as to costs.