R v Te Whiu

Mohi Taylor John Te Whiu was sentenced in the High Court of New Zealand for three counts of sexual violation by rape. Te Whiu had been in a relationship with the victim for approximately 18 months, which had recently ended when the offences occurred. Despite the victim's refusal to engage in sexual activity, Te Whiu raped her three times over the course of six hours. Te Whiu's defence was that the sexual activity was consensual, but the jury rejected this claim.

The court was required to determine whether Te Whiu should be sentenced to a fixed jail term or if preventive detention was necessary due to the risk he posed to the community. The court considered various factors, including the pattern of serious offending, the seriousness of harm caused by the offending, the risk of reoffending, the absence or failure of efforts to address the causes of the offending, and the offender's willingness to engage in interventions.

The court determined that Te Whiu should be sentenced to preventive detention due to the high risk he posed to women in relationships, the seriousness of the harm caused by the offending, and the lack of evidence that he had addressed the causes of his offending behaviour. The court also considered that Te Whiu had a significant history of violent and sexual offending, including a previous conviction for raping an 11-year-old girl. The court imposed a sentence of preventive detention with a minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a protection order in favour of the victim.

In summary, the court sentenced Te Whiu to preventive detention for his three counts of sexual violation by rape, recognising the high risk he posed to women in relationships and the seriousness of the harm caused by the offending. The court also imposed a minimum term of imprisonment of five years and a protection order for the victim.