Crown wants teen Mongrel Mob member Tana Ormsby-Turner jailed for involvement in Taranaki murder

It would be inhumane and cause injustice to a teenage Mongrel Mob member if the home detention sentence he is currently serving for his involvement in a murder was thrown out and he was put in jail, his lawyer has argued.

Tana Ormsby-Turner, 17, was initially charged with the murder of Rei Joseph Tumatauinga Maihi Marshall, but went on to plead guilty to reduced charges of being an accessory after the fact to murder and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

He was sentenced to 12 months of home detention in July when he appeared in the High Court at New Plymouth before Justice Francis Cooke.

The Crown immediately filed an appeal against the sentence, arguing home detention was a manifestly inadequate outcome given the seriousness of the crime.

Marshall, a 23-year-old father-of-two, was hit a number of times in the head with a claw hammer by Ormsby-Turner, then 16.

Only moments prior, the teen’s brother, Turanganui Ormsby-Turner, who is president of the Mongrel Mob’s West Coast chapter, had stabbed Marshall, an affiliate of rival gang Uru Taha, in the torso with a hunting knife.

While the hammer blows fractured the back of Marshall’s head, it was the stab wound that caused his death on August 3 last year in Taranaki.

The teen also went on to cover up the murder by disposing of evidence at the instruction of his brother.

Yesterday, the Crown’s appeal was heard by Justices Sarah Katz, Cameron Mander and Rob Osborne in the Court of Appeal.

Marshall’s whānau, who has been present at every hearing throughout the prosecution of those involved with his death, filled the public gallery of the Auckland courtroom.

The murder occurred at a South Rd property in New Plymouth. Photo / Tara Shaskey

Crown lawyer Ian Auld opened his submissions by saying a large reason for the appeal was to look after the interests of the whānau and to ensure Ormsby-Turner is held to account for the harm he has caused them.

He said the teen’s offending was “a very serious matter of wounding” that required a custodial sentence.

“One year of home detention is manifestly inadequate to denounce the serious offending, to hold Tana accountable for the harm he has caused, to instil in him a sense of responsibility and to deter him and others from further violent offending.”

Auld said the starting point of seven and a half years imprisonment taken by Justice Cooke was too low and the 70 per cent credit he applied for mitigating factors was “excessive”.

The judge focused on his prospect of rehabilitation, which he said could not be achieved in prison, and to divert him from a life of gang crime.

Auld said that while that approach “was understandable on one level”, it failed to address the reality of Ormsby-Turner’s continued desire to associate with the gang, and the likelihood of that happening at the address he is serving home detention.

While awaiting sentencing, the teen was patched into the Mongrel Mob, complete with the gang’s insignia tattooed on his back.

He and his family had also lied to report writers, who were collecting information to inform the sentencing, by claiming he had cut ties with the gang, in an attempt to manipulate the sentencing process.

“In those circumstances, the Crown says it is wrong in principle to allow discounts for remorse and rehabilitation and that in doing so in these circumstances it brings the administration of justice into disrepute.”

Auld said a starting point of at least nine years was warranted with an end sentence of three years and 10 months, following discounts for guilty plea, youth, background factors and time spent on bail.

He said no credit should be given for remorse or rehabilitation prospects.

Defence lawyer Kylie Pascoe submitted that no error had occurred at sentencing.

“It was open for the honorable judge to impose a sentence with a rehabilitative focus, however, the sentence of home detention was equally available following an orthodox sentencing methodology.”

Pascoe pointed out the home detention sentence was followed by 12 months of post-detention conditions, which meant Ormsby-Turner was subject to restrictions on his liberty, compliance obligations - including not to associate with any gang members - and rehabilitative treatment for two years.

“Not an insignificant period in the life of a young person.”

However, if the Court of Appeal did find the sentence imposed was manifestly inadequate, Pascoe argued the correct response was to maintain the sentence.

“To do otherwise would create an element of inhumanity and cause injustice to the teenage offender.”

While the Crown believed Ormsby-Turner wasn’t interested in rehabilitation and Justice Katz said there “doesn’t seem to much hope at the moment” concerning him leaving the gang, Pascoe pointed to a report that said despite his indoctrination into the gang, his moral compass was not damaged “irreparably”.

She said the teen had demonstrated genuine remorse and that he was also currently achieving “quite well” in an educational setting.

While the justices reserved their decision, Justice Katz acknowledged the importance of it and said they would treat it as a priority.

Turanganui Ormsby-Turner was jailed in May for life with a minimum period of imprisonment of 10 years and six months for murdering Marshall.

A third person charged in relation to the killing, patched Mobster Hamiroa Laupama, was sentenced in December to five months of home detention for being an accessory after the fact. He was also initially charged with murder before it was reduced.

Tara Shaskey joined NZME in 2022 as a news director and Open Justice reporter. She has been a reporter since 2014 and previously worked at Stuff where she covered crime and justice, arts and entertainment, and Māori issues.