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Sentencing Act 2002

Sentences, orders, and related matters - Home detention

80K: Application for cancellation of sentence of imprisonment and substitution of sentence of home detention

You could also call this:

"Asking the court to swap a short prison sentence for home detention"

Illustration for Sentencing Act 2002

If you are in prison for a short time, you can ask the court to change your sentence to home detention. You can do this if you have permission under section 80I. You need to tell the person in charge of the prison as soon as possible. You also need to give the court a report about you that is up to date, as said in section 80L. The court can change your sentence to home detention if they are satisfied with certain things, as stated in section 80A(2).

The court can choose how long you stay at home, but it must be at least 14 days and not more than 12 months. When the court makes this decision, they think about how much of your original sentence you have not served yet. If the court does not change your sentence, they look again at whether you can ask to change it, and they might let you ask again later.

If the court cancels your prison sentence, it is still considered a sentence where you are locked up, according to other laws.

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This page was last updated on

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM136411.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal help
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80J: Appeal against order granting leave to apply for cancellation of sentence of imprisonment and substitution of sentence of home detention, or

"Appealing a decision to change a prison sentence to home detention"

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80L: Updated pre-sentence report, or

"Updating your report to change your prison sentence to home detention"

Part 2Sentences, orders, and related matters
Home detention

80KApplication for cancellation of sentence of imprisonment and substitution of sentence of home detention

  1. An offender who is subject to a short-term sentence of imprisonment and who has leave to apply for cancellation of a sentence of imprisonment and substitution of a sentence of home detention under section 80I may apply to the court at any time.

  2. An application must be served as soon as practicable on the chief executive of the Department of Corrections.

  3. An application must be accompanied by a pre-sentence report updated in accordance with section 80L.

  4. On application under subsection (1), the court may, if satisfied of the matters in section 80A(2), cancel the sentence of imprisonment and substitute a sentence of home detention.

  5. A sentence of home detention substituted under subsection (4) may be for any period the court thinks fit, but must not be less than 14 days or more than 12 months.

  6. When substituting a sentence of home detention, the court must take into account the portion of the original sentence that remains unserved at the time of the order.

  7. If the court does not substitute a sentence of home detention, the court—

  8. must reconsider the issue of leave to apply for cancellation of the sentence of imprisonment and substitution of a sentence of home detention; and
    1. may make a further order granting the offender leave to apply to the court at any time for cancellation of the sentence of imprisonment and substitution of a sentence of home detention.

      1. A sentence of imprisonment that is cancelled under this section is a custodial sentence for the purposes of any other enactment.

      Notes
      • Section 80K: inserted, on , by section 44 of the Sentencing Amendment Act 2007 (2007 No 27).