Police News May 09.indd - New Zealand Police Association

PoliceNewsThe Voice of PoliceChanges to disclosure effective from 29 JuneBy Rob Lee, Communications Adviser, NZ Police PNHQLegislative changes around criminal disclosure come intoeffect in late June this year, impacting on the way Police willcarry out its future disclosure practices.On 29 June, the Criminal Disclosure Act 2008 will beintroduced as part of the Criminal Procedure Bill. The primaryaim of the legislation is to improve the delivery of criminalpre-trial processes.The Act applies to the disclosure of prosecution materialsrelevant to all criminal proceedings in New Zealand. It intendsto promote fair, effective, and efficient disclosure of relevantinformation between the prosecution and the defence, and bynon-parties.CompliancePolice are now working toward ensuring compliance with thelegislation and introducing more timely and better qualitydisclosure procedures and files from the time a person ischarged, through to the time they appear in court.The Police Prosecution Service (PPS) and Strategic ChangeGroup are leading a project to provide staff with the necessaryknowledge, skills and resources to carry out the new disclosureprocedures.Acting National Prosecutions Manager, Inspector CraigTweedie, said the changes are about providing informationto the right people at the right time, enabling quicker, moreeffective decision-making and reducing delays in the criminaljustice system.The key principle is that in criminal proceedings theprosecution is required to disclose all relevant information,unless there is good reason to withhold it.Fairer system“This leads to a more efficient and fairer criminal justice systemwhich recognises the rights of the accused, the victim and thewider interests of the state,” Inspector Tweedie said.He said it’s also important to get the best possible result for thestaff who work hard to bring a case before the court.“By improving our disclosure procedures we want to reducethe number of withdrawals and adjournments arising frominsufficient disclosure.“We want to reduce the number of hearings to dispose of acase by improving the quality and timeliness of our disclosureand committal procedure.”The changes will also provide improved service to justicesector stakeholders including judges, defence counsel, courtregistry staff and public defender scheme staff.Details in Police ManualThe procedural changes and obligations are detailed in theCriminal Disclosure chapter of the Police Manual. It outlines theresponsibilities for the preparation and release of informationthrough the six key disclosure stages: from preparing case filesthrough to additional and ongoing disclosure.Both PPS and the Strategic Change Group are nowGeneral Overview of DisclosureDisclosure by prosecutor to defendantCriminal proceedings commenceInitial disclosure occurs(generally not later than 21 daysafter commencement of proceedings)Does defendant request moreinformation from prosecutor?NODefendant uilty*Full disclosure occurs as soonNOYESdisclosure for all relevant informationDoes a defendant to whom fullrequest further specific informationfrom prosecutor?No further disclosure requiredfrom prosecutorDefendant entitled tosome additionalinformation(unless withheldunder grounds in Act)YESDefendant entitled to any otherrelevant information (other thanunder a withholding provision)*Full disclosure is not required if the defendant pleads guilty instead of notguilty to a charge laid summarily.Source: Diagram adapted from Section 3 of the Criminal Disclosure Act 2008.• The flow chart shows a general overview of disclosure.communicating the changes to district management teamsthrough face-to-face meetings.A new intranet-based information pack called the FieldResource Kit has been developed to enable staff at all levels tounderstand what the disclosure changes mean for them andwhat they will have to do from 29 June.Information for frontlinersThe kit provides simple ‘short and sharp’ information forfrontline staff through to more detail for supervisors andmanagement teams.88May 2009