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Criminal Procedure Act 2011

General provisions - Public access and restrictions on reporting - Suppression of names

202: Court may suppress identity of witnesses, victims, and connected persons

You could also call this:

"The court can keep secret the names of witnesses, victims, and others involved in a court case to keep them safe."

Illustration for Criminal Procedure Act 2011

When you are in court for a crime, the court can stop people from saying who a witness, victim, or someone connected to the case is. The court can do this if saying their name would cause them hardship, put them in danger, or stop the court from being fair. The court can also do this if saying their name would put someone else in danger or stop the police from doing their job.

You might wonder how this works if the person accused of the crime already has their name hidden. The court can still hide the names of witnesses, victims, or connected people, even if the accused person's name is already hidden. But hiding the name of a witness, victim, or connected person does not mean the court can hide the name of the accused person, according to section 200, or what they are accused of.

The court makes this decision to keep people safe and make sure the court is fair. It is an important part of how the court works in New Zealand. The court can make these decisions based on what is best for the people involved in the case, as seen in the previous laws.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM3360349.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal helpCrime and justice > Victim support
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"Protecting the identity of people accused of certain sexual crimes"

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203: Automatic suppression of identity of complainant in specified sexual cases, or

"Protecting the person who reports a serious sexual offence by keeping their identity secret"

Part 5General provisions
Public access and restrictions on reporting: Suppression of names

202Court may suppress identity of witnesses, victims, and connected persons

  1. A court that is hearing a proceeding in respect of an offence may make an order forbidding publication of the name, address, or occupation of any person who—

  2. is called as a witness; or
    1. is a victim of the offence; or
      1. is connected with the proceedings, or is connected with the person who is accused of, or convicted of, or acquitted of the offence.

        1. The court may make an order under subsection (1) only if the court is satisfied that publication would be likely to—

        2. cause undue hardship to the witness, victim, or connected person; or
          1. create a real risk of prejudice to a fair trial; or
            1. endanger the safety of any person; or
              1. lead to the identification of another person whose name is suppressed by order or by law; or
                1. prejudice the maintenance of the law, including the prevention, investigation, and detection of offences; or
                  1. prejudice the security or defence of New Zealand.

                    1. Subsection (1) applies whether or not the court has made an order under section 200 suppressing the identity of the defendant.

                    2. An order under subsection (1) suppressing the identity of a witness, victim, or connected person may not prevent publication of the name of the defendant (which may be prohibited only by an order made under section 200) or the nature of the charge.

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