THE KING vGURINDERPAL SINGH BRAR

Gurinderpal Singh Brar was sentenced by Woolford J in the High Court at Auckland following a six-week jury trial in which Brar was found guilty of the attempted murder of Harnek Singh. The maximum penalty for attempted murder is 14 years' imprisonment. The court had to determine an appropriate sentence for the offence, taking into account the aggravating and mitigating factors, as well as the purposes of sentencing.

The court considered the gravity of the offending, the extent of planning and premeditation, the extreme violence of the attack, and the multiple attackers. The religious or ideological motivation behind the attack was also considered an aggravating factor. Given the severity of the offending, the court adopted a starting point of 14 years' imprisonment. The court found no mitigating factors in relation to the offending itself.

In relation to personal mitigating factors, the court rejected the submissions for discounts based on Brar's previous good character and cultural background. The court found that Brar's influence on his congregation and his role in the offending negated any discount for previous good character. The court also found that Brar's cultural background did not sufficiently mitigate his culpability for the offending. However, the court accepted that a discount was available for the time Brar spent on electronically monitored bail, and reduced the sentence by six months' imprisonment.

The court imposed a minimum period of imprisonment of nine years to address the concerns under s 86 of the Sentencing Act 2002, including holding Brar accountable for the harm done to the victim and the community, denouncing the conduct, deterring Brar or others from committing the same or a similar offence, and protecting the community from Brar.

The final orders of the court were that Brar be sentenced to 13 and a half years' imprisonment with a minimum period of imprisonment of nine years on the charge of attempted murder.