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Sentencing Act 2002

Sentences, orders, and related matters - Imprisonment - Imposition of minimum period of imprisonment in relation to determinate sentence of imprisonment

86: Imposition of minimum period of imprisonment in relation to determinate sentence of imprisonment

You could also call this:

"Minimum prison time before parole can be considered"

Illustration for Sentencing Act 2002

If you commit a crime and the court sentences you to more than 2 years in prison, the court can also decide that you must serve a minimum amount of time in prison before you can be considered for parole. The court can choose a minimum time that is longer than what is normally required under section 84(1) of the Parole Act 2002 if it thinks that time is not enough to hold you accountable for the harm you caused, to denounce your actions, to deter you or others from committing the same crime, or to protect the community from you.

When the court decides on a minimum time, it must not be more than two-thirds of your total sentence or 10 years, whichever is less. If the court makes this decision, it is considered part of your sentence for the purposes of Part 6 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM136450.

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Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal help
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Part 2Sentences, orders, and related matters
Imprisonment: Imposition of minimum period of imprisonment in relation to determinate sentence of imprisonment

86Imposition of minimum period of imprisonment in relation to determinate sentence of imprisonment

  1. If a court sentences an offender to a determinate sentence of imprisonment of more than 2 years for a particular offence, it may, at the same time as it sentences the offender, order that the offender serve a minimum period of imprisonment in relation to that particular sentence.

  2. The court may impose a minimum period of imprisonment that is longer than the period otherwise applicable under section 84(1) of the Parole Act 2002 if it is satisfied that that period is insufficient for all or any of the following purposes:

  3. holding the offender accountable for the harm done to the victim and the community by the offending:
    1. denouncing the conduct in which the offender was involved:
      1. deterring the offender or other persons from committing the same or a similar offence:
        1. protecting the community from the offender.

          1. Repealed

          2. A minimum period of imprisonment imposed under this section must not exceed the lesser of—

          3. two-thirds of the full term of the sentence; or
            1. 10 years.

              1. For the purposes of Part 6 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2011, an order under this section is a sentence.

              Notes
              • Section 86(2): replaced, on , by section 7 of the Sentencing Amendment Act 2004 (2004 No 68).
              • Section 86(3): repealed, on , by section 7 of the Sentencing Amendment Act 2004 (2004 No 68).
              • Section 86(5): amended, on , by section 7 of the Sentencing Amendment Act (No 2) 2011 (2011 No 93).