R v Miles

In the case of R v Miles, the High Court of New Zealand, Wanganui Registry, was tasked with sentencing Gavin John Miles for a series of sexual offences against young children committed between 1990 and 2002. Miles was already serving a sentence for more recent offences in 2012 and 2013, and the court was required to determine whether an additional term of imprisonment, potentially preventive detention, was necessary. The court needed to consider the nature and extent of Miles' offending, his age at the time, and the risk of re-offending if he were released. The primary legal issue was whether the circumstances justified a sentence of preventive detention under section 87 of the Sentencing Act 2002.

The court began by conducting a re-sentencing exercise for all the admitted offending, treating it as if it had occurred in 2013. The court determined an appropriate starting point for the sentence and applied discounts for mitigating factors such as Miles' age at the time of the earlier offences, his cooperation with the police, and his guilty pleas. After applying these discounts, the court arrived at a finite sentence of six years and nine months. The court then considered whether a minimum period of imprisonment (MPI) should be imposed, ultimately deciding on an MPI of four years. The court then turned to the question of preventive detention, evaluating several factors including the pattern of Miles' offending, the seriousness of the harm caused, and the likelihood of re-offending. Expert reports indicated a high risk of re-offending unless adequate measures were taken. Given the chronic nature of Miles' offending and the high risk of re-offending, the court concluded that preventive detention was the appropriate sentence. The court imposed a term of preventive detention with a minimum period of imprisonment of five years.