Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014

Detention and supervision of persons posing very high risk of imminent serious sexual or violent offending - Public protection orders - Imposition of public protection orders

13: Court may make public protection order

You could also call this:

"Court can stop someone from hurting others if they think that person is a risk"

Illustration for Public Safety (Public Protection Orders) Act 2014

The court can make a public protection order against someone if they think that person is likely to commit a serious sexual or violent offence. You might be wondering what a public protection order is, but first, the court needs to consider all the evidence, including what health assessors say. The court must be satisfied that the person meets certain conditions, including being at high risk of committing an offence if they are released from prison or left unsupervised.

The court also needs to be satisfied that the person has certain characteristics, such as a strong urge to commit a particular type of offence. They must also have trouble controlling their emotions and impulses, and not care about how their actions affect others, as explained in a broader sense, not just as defined in section 3. The person might also have difficulty forming relationships or be socially isolated.

If the court is satisfied that the person meets these conditions, they can make a public protection order to help keep the community safe. This decision is based on the evidence presented, and the court must carefully consider all the information before making a decision about you or someone else.

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This page was last updated on 7 August 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM4751106.

Topics:

Crime and justice > Criminal lawCrime and justice > Courts and legal help

12: Assessment whether respondent mentally disordered or intellectually disabled, or

"Checking if someone has a mental health issue or disability before a court makes a protection order"

14: Notification of victims, or

"Telling victims what the court decides about a public protection order"

Part 1Detention and supervision of persons posing very high risk of imminent serious sexual or violent offending
Public protection orders: Imposition of public protection orders

13Court may make public protection order

After considering all of the evidence offered in a proceeding on an application for a public protection order, and, in particular, the evidence given by 2 or more health assessors, including at least 1 registered psychologist, the court may make a public protection order against the respondent if the court is satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that—
the respondent meets the threshold for a public protection order; and
there is a very high risk of imminent serious sexual or violent offending by the respondent if,—
1. where the respondent is detained in a prison, the respondent is released from prison into the community; or
2. in any other case, the respondent is left unsupervised.

The court may not make a finding of the kind described in subsection (1)(b) unless satisfied that the respondent exhibits a severe disturbance in behavioural functioning established by evidence to a high level of each of the following characteristics:
an intense drive or urge to commit a particular form of offending:
limited self-regulatory capacity, evidenced by general impulsiveness, high emotional reactivity, and inability to cope with, or manage, stress and difficulties:
absence of understanding or concern for the impact of the respondent's offending on actual or potential victims (within the general sense of that term and not merely as defined in section 3):
poor interpersonal relationships or social isolation or both.