Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Crimes Act 1961

Threatening, conspiring, and attempting to commit offences

312: Accessory after the fact to crime

You could also call this:

“Helping someone who did a bad thing after they did it can get you in trouble too.”

You can be punished if you help someone after they have committed a crime. This is called being an “accessory after the fact”. The punishment depends on how serious the original crime was.

If the original crime could lead to life in prison, you could go to prison for up to 7 years for helping. If the original crime could lead to 10 or more years in prison, you could go to prison for up to 5 years for helping.

For less serious crimes, your punishment would be no more than half of what you would get if you had actually committed the crime yourself.

This rule applies only when there isn’t already a specific punishment written in the law for being an accessory after the fact for that particular crime.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM330796.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal law
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311: Attempt to commit or procure commission of offence, or

“You can get in trouble for trying to do a crime or getting someone else to do it, even if the crime doesn't happen.”

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312A: Interpretation, or

“This section explains what words and phrases mean in the law, but it's no longer used.”

Part 11 Threatening, conspiring, and attempting to commit offences

312Accessory after the fact to crime

  1. Every one who is accessory after the fact to any imprisonable offence, being an offence in respect of which no express provision is made by this Act or by some other enactment for the punishment of an accessory after the fact, is liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 7 years if the maximum punishment for that offence is imprisonment for life, and not exceeding 5 years if such maximum punishment is imprisonment for 10 or more years; and in any other case is liable to not more than half the maximum punishment to which he or she would have been liable if he or she had committed the offence.

Compare
  • 1908 No 32 ss 352, 353
Notes
  • Section 312: amended, on , by section 7 of the Crimes Amendment Act 2013 (2013 No 27).