This afternoon,
A law that has a high degree of support in the Chinese community,
The official announcement was restored,
This is the New Zealand Coalition Government
An action to strengthen public security and increase the punishment of crimes,
And the opposition party fiercely criticized -
01
Official announcement of the resumption of the "Three Strikes Law"
新西兰总理Christopher Luxon和司法部副部长Nicole McKee联合宣布，恢复在工党政府时期被废除的“三振法”（Three Strikes law）。
The Strikeout Act was first passed in 2010 during John Key's administration to punish serious violent and sexual offenders who repeat crimes.
The law states that if a prisoner commits a serious violent crime for the third time, he or she will be sentenced to the highest standard of imprisonment for life, with the possibility of parole.
The controversial law was repealed by the Labour government in 2022.
Labor believes the "three strikes" law limits the discretion of judges and could exacerbate the problem of prison overcrowding.
This afternoon, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon officially announced the reinstatement of the law.
Luxon said the government's goal is to reduce the number of victims of serious violent crimes by 20,000 by 2029.
The new Three Strikes law will cover the same 40 serious violent and sexual offenses as before, with the addition of new strangulation and choking offenses.
"The Strikes Act is a stern warning to stop some people from committing serious violent crimes," Luxon said. It lets criminals know that they face life in prison if they commit serious violent crimes again. ”
The law will apply to sentences of more than 24 months.
Deputy Attorney General Nicole McKee said she would submit a draft and document to the Cabinet by the end of June, followed by a bill to Congress.
Her intention is to take effect six months after the passage of the bill in order to make the necessary changes to the system after the adjustment.
02
Prime Minister: New law 'favours Māori'
In response to the accusations of the left parties that the law was "ineffective", Prime Minister Luxon said that if the legislation would save even one person from such crimes, then it would be worth it.
Luxon also said that the rise in crime during the Labor regime illustrates the need for a "three-strike law".
Luxon also argued that "it would benefit Māori," saying it would reduce the number of crimes suffered by Māori.
But some studies have found that the "strikeout law" has actually exacerbated the high number of Māori and Pacific Islanders in prison.
After the law changes, it is expected that 45 to 90 people will be sentenced to prison each year for the law, with a judicial cost of $11 million.
- Covers the same 40 serious violent and sexual offences as the previous law, with the addition of new strangulation and suffocation offences;
- introducing a new requirement that the "strikeout law" only apply to sentences of more than 24 months;
- expanding the use of "manifestly unjust" exceptions, allowing judges a degree of discretion to avoid overly harsh outcomes and to deal with exception cases;
- provide limited benefits to confessors to avoid re-traumatizing victims and improve court delays;
- Ensure that a person who commits murder in the second or third time is sentenced to a long sentence without parole.
Deputy Attorney General Nicole McKee said the new law would include "guiding principles" to enable judges to apply the provisions more effectively.
The "Three Strikes Law" is mainly aimed at serious violent crimes, and less serious criminal acts will not be subject to the "Three Strikes Law".
Under this system, the first and second offenses are subject to normal sentencing. However, in the event of a third offense, regardless of the severity of the third offense, the offender will face more severe consequences.
Even if the third offense is relatively minor, the offender will be sentenced to the maximum sentence for that offense.
03
The Labour Party and the Greens lashed out
Labour leader Chris Hipkins also held a press conference in Parliament today to slam the reinstatement of the Strikeout Act and a new round of layoffs from the Coalition Government for Customs and the Home Office.
Hipkins said today's layoffs relate to positions in the Home Office to combat violent extremism and money laundering. "Frontline staff at ports and airports have also been confirmed to be redundancied, including more than halving the number of Auckland detector dog trainers. ”
"This shows that the layoffs in the National Party government are all-encompassing," he said. ”
Duncan Webb, Labour's justice spokesman, said the reimposition of the Three Strikes Act was "the worst political gesture possible."
"The Strikes Act did not reduce serious crime, and in fact, there is little evidence that it deterred crime, but instead led to a serious distortion of third-time offenders. “
This, he said, led to an unfair verdict.
The Greens also issued a statement today saying, "The Three Strikes Act has failed before and will prove to fail again in the future." ”
04
The jewelry store was robbed twice in 9 days
While crime is still rampant in Oakland, police say crime is already declining in downtown Oakland.
Recently, the Partridge Jewell jewelry store in Auckland's Newmaket Westfield shopping mall was robbed twice in nine days, and this rampant level shocked many Auckland citizens.
The first happened last Friday night when it was almost closed.
The second happened around 7:30 p.m. yesterday.
Last year, Newmarket merchants invested a total of NZ$500,000 in security enhancements, but now it seems that the effect is not obvious.
Shelves that were smashed open and ransacked:
After the incident, the police cordoned off the scene for investigation. The security guards of the mall used large screens to shield the entrance of the store from passers-by looking inside.
As of press time, no one has been arrested in either case.
Still, Auckland police say crime is declining downtown.
Auckland Police said the data showed a drop in crime in the central city.
"While our analysis shows that crime rates have decreased in recent months, there is still a perception that anti-social and nuisance behaviour is affecting people's sense of safety in the CBD. ”