David Seymour launches the Act Party bus. Photo / Sylvie Whinray
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A former police officer turned barrister has described Act’s get tough on gangs and Bring Back Three Strikes Law & Order policies as populist political posturing to the masses.
Yesterday Act leader David Seymour reinforced his parties tough stand on crime and if elected would:
* Ensure tougher sentences for serious crimes
* Build more prisons
* Re-establish the Three Strikes policy
* Direct IRD to look into illegal earnings of gang members
* Get rid of cultural reports
* Disqualify gang members from holding a firearms licence, and impose tougher sentences for crimes on vulnerable workers.
But Auckland criminal barrister and former police officer Tony Bouchier said Act’s rhetoric was part of the three-year election cycle in which the political parties use crime as a political football and a voter punchline.
Bouchier - whose wife Josephine is a retired judge - said the reality of crime is why are there so many police driving a desk and not out catching criminals.
“My view is the greatest deterrent to crime is the possibility of getting caught committing the crime,” Bouchier told ZB Early Edition host Kate Hawkesby.
“And we’ve got a police department at the moment that’s got more police officers than it’s ever had.
“It’s got bigger and has a bigger budget than it’s ever had.
“There seems to be more people driving desks than cars. I think the possibility of getting caught is the greatest deterrent to crime, not bringing in Three Strikes.”
Bouchier said crime was used as a political football - especially at election time - and the almost frenzied hysteria played to the uninformed masses.
“Well, we’re in that sort of cycle, aren’t we?,” Bouchier said.
“It’s election time and it seems to be a competition between parties and who can be the toughest on crime.”
He said the criminal bar association had canvassed all political parties this year to see where they stood on law and order.
“We wrote to all the major parties and asked them not to use crime and sentencing as a political football,” Bouchier said.
He said the statistic Seymour rolled out that one in three adults in New Zealand had been a victim of crime in the last 12 months would evoke anger, outrage and likely hysteria.
“That statistic is one that can sort of stir the ashes a little bit.
“But during an election process this tough on crime business comes up.
“They (politicians) lose site of what the science is as far as crime and punishment is concerned.
“It’s becoming more of more of a political football.
“But the experts out there show that what we are doing at the moment is working.”
Bouchier said the prison population of nearly 11,000, in 2018 was reduced to about 7500.
“We no longer (have) a serious statistic in the OECD of incarcerating people,” he said.
“What’s happening at the moment is working.
“What the press seem to focus on are those times when people are sentenced to non-custodial sentences that don’t work.
“On the whole things are working, there is a change.”
“But the politicians aren’t the experts on this.
“There are academics and people who look at crime, for example, the Three Strikes law. Everybody knows it doesn’t work, it doesn’t work in the United States.
“It didn’t work in New Zealand and the courts didn’t agree with it and they (Act) want to bring that back.
“What about things like the viability of using the IRD to navigate a gang member’s income - that happens anyway.
“Do you think the IRD is sitting on their hands and ignoring some of the illicit gains that some, not only gangs but other criminals obtain? That’s happening anyway.
“I can’t imagine there’s anybody that would support that sort policy.”
Hawkesby told Bouchier that New Zealanders felt the criminals were running the country.
“It’s difficult when it feels like criminals have been running the show for so long?,” she asked.
“It doesn’t feel effective at all.”
But Bouchier responded: “People got the view that the criminals are running the show, which I don’t agree with. I think it’s a massive overstatement.
Joseph Los’e joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa Māori Editor. Los’e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and prior to joining NZME worked for 12 years for Te Whānau o Waipareira.
The Rotorua law student who authored it says the support was 'overwhelming but inspiring'.