Waitohi v The King

In the High Court of New Zealand, Repara Waitohi appealed against his 27-month imprisonment sentence for family violence charges, which the District Court at Auckland had imposed on 1 November 2023. The appeal centred on the sentencing judge's failure to discount the sentence for Waitohi's expressed remorse. The appeal was heard on 12 December 2023, with Joon Yi representing the appellant and A F Mackenzie appearing for the respondent. The judgment was delivered on 13 December 2023. The primary legal issue in this appeal was whether the sentencing judge erred in not applying a discount for the appellant's expressed remorse, which the appellant's counsel argued should have resulted in a 10% reduction in the sentence. The court examined the principles of sentencing, particularly the requirement to consider remorse as a mitigating factor under Section 9(2)(f) of the Sentencing Act 2002.

The court found that while the sentencing judge acknowledged the appellant's expression of remorse, it was not sufficient to warrant a discount in this case. The judge had noted that Waitohi, with a history of family violence against multiple victims, needed to demonstrate genuine and tangible remorse. The judge had considered the appellant's apology and remorse letter but concluded that these were insufficient in light of his ongoing violent behaviour. The court affirmed that remorse, to be effective in reducing a sentence, must be genuine and demonstrated through tangible actions, not just expressions of sorrow. Given that Waitohi's history showed a pattern of violence and a lack of genuine behavioural change, the court upheld the sentence, finding it was not manifestly excessive. Therefore, the appeal was dismissed.