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Criminal Procedure Act 2011

Procedure before trial - Sentence indications

61: Giving sentence indication

You could also call this:

"Asking the court to estimate your punishment before the trial starts"

Illustration for Criminal Procedure Act 2011

If you are the defendant in a trial, you can ask the court for a sentence indication before the trial starts. The court can give you a sentence indication if it has enough information to do so. You need to ask for the sentence indication before the trial.

The court needs certain information before it can give a sentence indication, especially for some types of indications described in section 60(c). This information includes a summary of the facts that you and the prosecutor agree on. The court also needs to know about any previous convictions you have.

The court must also have a copy of any victim impact statement prepared under the Victims' Rights Act 2002. This statement is about how the offence affected the victim. The court uses this information to decide on a sentence indication.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM3360116.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal help
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60: Meaning of sentence indication, or

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62: Further provisions relating to giving sentence indication, or

"What happens when a court gives a sentence indication and what you can do about it"

Part 3Procedure before trial
Sentence indications

61Giving sentence indication

  1. A court may give a sentence indication, but only at the request of the defendant made before the trial.

  2. Subject to subsection (3), if the defendant requests a sentence indication the court may give one if it is satisfied that the information available to it at that time is sufficient for that purpose.

  3. Without limiting the information that the court may require before giving a sentence indication, the court must have the following information before giving a sentence indication of a kind described in section 60(c):

  4. a summary of the facts on which the sentence indication is to be given, agreed on by the prosecutor and the defendant; and
    1. information as to any previous conviction of the defendant; and
      1. a copy of any victim impact statement that has been prepared in relation to the offence concerned under the Victims' Rights Act 2002.