Samuel ANDERSON 10/9/2020

Parole Hearing

Under section 21(1) of the Parole Act 2002

Samuel ANDERSON

Hearing: 10 September 2020

at Otago Corrections Facility

by AVL from New Zealand Parole Board, Wellington

Members of the Board: Sir Ron Young (Chairperson), Ms K Coutts, Mr C King

DECISION OF THE BOARD

  1. Mr Anderson, who is 29 years of age, was sentenced to four years and five months’ imprisonment for assault with intent to injure, threatening to kill and selling antidepressants, being MDMA.  He has a final release date of August 2023, and a low security classification.  He does have one page of previous convictions, including a two and a half year sentence in 2014 for violent offending against a partner.  The current offending was also against a partner.
  2. At the beginning of the hearing today, we reported to Mr Anderson on feedback we had received from his victim, who we saw the previous day.  As we have said, this was violence in Mr Anderson’s relationship.  He at one stage headbutted his partner.  He knocked her out.  He then punched her, knocked her over, kneed her, gouged her eyes and then began punching her again.  These events occurred on several occasions.  He was also found to be selling MDMA – that appeared to be on 30 occasions during 2019.  Finally, he threatened to kill his partner.
  3. This is Mr Anderson’s first appearance before the Board.  He has completed the DTP in prison, and was said to have done well.  The PAR report identified a severe addiction to methamphetamine.
  4. Today, Mr Anderson agreed that what he needed was a violence prevention programme of some form.  We imagine he had in mind the short SVPP.  He said  he was committed in any event to completing a violence prevention programme.  He completed the MIRP in 2014, when he was last convicted and imprisoned for violence towards women, but  he has re‑offended both in terms of a drug addiction and also further violence towards his partner.
  5. We think the way forward now, rather than simply asking him to repeat the MIRP, is to get a psychological report to assist us in identifying his risk, what rehabilitation programmes are appropriate, and what reintegration might be appropriate.  We will therefore see him again by the end of January 2021, when we hope we will have that report.
  6. We also note that Mr Anderson told us that he had been receiving (withheld) in the community for (withheld).  He told us that when he came to prison he was not able to get that (withheld).  It would be appropriate, we think, at least for there to be some enquiry about what (withheld) would be appropriate for him.  We expect that information could be included either in the PAR or the psychological assessment for the next hearing.
  7. In the meantime, he remains an undue risk.

Sir Ron Young

Chairperson