Rangitonga v Parker

[2016] NZHC 2434

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND ROTORUA REGISTRY

CRI-2016-470-25 [2016] NZHC 2434

BETWEEN

NEIHANA RANGITONGA

Appellant

AND

SHANNON LAING PARKER Respondent

Hearing:	(On the papers)
Counsel:	W T Nabney for Appellant M A Corlett QC for Respondent
Judgment:	13 October 2016

JUDGMENT OF BREWER J

This judgment was delivered by me on 13 October 2016 at 11:00 am pursuant to Rule 11.5 High Court Rules.

Registrar/Deputy Registrar

Solicitors/Counsel:            William Thomas Nabney (Tauranga) for Appellant

Marc Corlett QC (Auckland) for Respondent

RANGITONGA v PARKER [2016] NZHC 2434 [13 October 2016]

Background

[1]      Mr Rangitonga appeals against a decision of Judge PG Mabey QC delivered in the District Court at Tauranga on 18 July 2016 declining to strike out the prosecution against him on the ground of abuse of process.1

[2]      The notice of general appeal was filed in this Court on 5 August 2016.  The grounds of appeal are:

(a)      That  the  Learned  Judge  was  wrong  to  find  that  the  continued prosecution was not an abuse of process.

(b)That allowing the prosecution to continue is unfairly prejudicial to the appellant after he had been led to believe that the charge would not later be re-laid after it was earlier withdrawn by the Crown.

(c)      That the fact that the prosecutor is now a private prosecutor does not lessen the unfairness or prejudice.

[3]      I convened a telephone conference on 11 October 2016 to schedule the timetabling and other matters required for this appeal to come before a Judge.  As a preliminary matter, I asked Mr Nabney whether Mr Rangitonga had elected trial by jury.  This matter was not apparent on the file in front of me.   I asked because if Mr Rangitonga had elected trial by jury, then the High Court has no jurisdiction to

hear the appeal.  Jurisdiction lies with the Court of Appeal.2    Mr Nabney, who has

come recently to this proceeding as counsel, asked for time to check the District

Court file.

[4]      This morning I received a memorandum from Mr Nabney advising that on

6 July 2016 Mr Rangitonga entered a plea of not guilty to the charge he faces and elected trial by jury.

1      Parker v Rangitonga [2016] NZDC 12960.

2      Criminal Procedure Act 2011, s 297.

Decision

[5]      This Court has no jurisdiction to hear the appeal. The appeal is struck out.

Brewer J