R v Oldeman

The case of R v Oldeman involved Barry John Oldeman who pleaded guilty to two charges: permitting premises to be used for the manufacture of methamphetamine and supplying Class A controlled drugs. The High Court of New Zealand, Hamilton Registry, presided over the case, which included counsel for the Crown and the prisoner, and resulted in Oldeman's sentencing on 5 July 2013. The primary legal issues the court had to decide included determining the appropriate starting points for the charges and the appropriate uplift for the related charges. The court also had to consider mitigating factors and decide on the final sentence and any ancillary orders.

The court began by identifying the lead offence as the supply of methamphetamine, which fell within band two as per the case of R v Fatu. The court set a starting point of five years' imprisonment for this offence. For the charge of permitting premises to be used for manufacturing, the court considered various cases and agreed with the defence counsel that a starting point of up to three years was justified. After considering the totality of the offending, the court allowed an uplift of one year, resulting in a combined starting point of six years' imprisonment. The court also granted a substantial discount for Oldeman's pleas of guilty, reducing the starting point by 20%.

Ultimately, the court sentenced Oldeman to four years and ten months' imprisonment for supplying methamphetamine and a concurrent sentence of two years and four months' imprisonment for permitting premises to be used for the manufacture of methamphetamine. The court made an order for the forfeiture of $7,900 in cash found at Oldeman's home and discharged him on the manufacturing charge as the Crown indicated it would not offer any evidence against him on that count.