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Evidence Act 2006

Trial process - Corroboration, judicial directions, and judicial warnings

127: Delayed complaints or failure to complain in sexual cases

You could also call this:

"When someone is hurt and doesn't tell straight away in a sexual offence case"

Illustration for Evidence Act 2006

If you are in a court case about a sexual offence, someone might say that the person who was hurt did not complain right away. The Judge can tell the jury that there are good reasons why someone who was hurt might wait to complain or not complain at all. This is something the Judge can do to help the jury understand the situation.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM393966.

Topics:
Crime and justice > Courts and legal helpCrime and justice > Victim support
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126A: Judicial directions about misconceptions arising in sexual cases, or

"Judge must correct wrong ideas in sexual offence court cases"

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128: Notice of uncontroverted facts, or

"Facts everyone agrees on that the Judge can notice and use in a court case"

Part 3Trial process
Corroboration, judicial directions, and judicial warnings

127Delayed complaints or failure to complain in sexual cases

  1. Subsection (2) applies if, in a sexual case tried before a jury, evidence is given or a question is asked or a comment is made that tends to suggest that the person against whom the offence is alleged to have been committed either delayed making or failed to make a complaint in respect of the offence.

  2. If this subsection applies, the Judge may tell the jury that there can be good reasons for the victim of an offence of that kind to delay making or fail to make a complaint in respect of the offence.