R v Forrest CA383/06

The Court of Appeal of New Zealand was asked to decide an application for special leave to appeal a judgment delivered by Panckhurst J on 29 April 2005. The applicant, Brendon Douglas Forrest, sought leave to appeal against his sentence imposed for arson and threatening to kill. The applicant, who has been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome, was sentenced to an effective term of four and a half years imprisonment, comprising a three and a half year term for arson and a one year cumulative term for threatening to kill. The applicant argued that the sentencing judge made an error in the description of facts and that the one year term should not have been imposed cumulatively. The Crown argued that the applicant's arguments did not give rise to a question of law of the requisite importance.

The Court of Appeal found that the applicant's arguments did not give rise to a question of law of the requisite importance about the application of either s 84 or s 85 of the Sentencing Act 2002. The Court found that the sentencing judge correctly applied s 84 of the Act in imposing a cumulative sentence for the threatening charge. The Court also found that the seriousness of the offending was such that the final sentence was well within the available range. The Court of Appeal declined the application for special leave to appeal.