Minister welcomes Coroner's findings

Corrections Minister Phil Goff has welcomed the Wellington Coroner’s findings that the Government quickly moved to deal with deficiencies which contributed to the death of Karl Kuchenbecker, and that he therefore has no further recommendations to make.

 

Mr Kuchenbecker was killed by Graeme Burton in Wainuiomata on 6 January, 2007 while Burton was on parole.

 

“Mr Kuchenbecker’s murder at the hands of Graeme Burton was a senseless act made worse by the fact that had other action been taken it may have been prevented. I would like again to extend my and my department’s regret and deepest sympathy to Mr Kuchenbecker’s family for their loss,” Phil Goff said.

 

“While nothing will bring Mr Kuchenbecker back, we must learn from failings which occurred during this tragic episode.

 

“I welcome the acknowledgement by the Coroner of the extensive changes made by the Government and justice sector agencies to the way that high risk offenders are dealt with in the community following their release. These changes are the result of government-ordered reviews into the events leading up to Mr Kuchenbecker’s death last year.

 

“The Coroner reports that: ‘The evidence shows that government moved quickly to enact a raft of amendments to the Parole Act after Mr Kuchenbecker’s death and that both the Department [of Corrections] and Police have taken firm steps to deal with the systemic deficiencies made apparent by the circumstances of his death’.

 

“He goes on to say: “It does not seem to the Court in the circumstances that there is a need for the making of any further recommendations to the [Parole] Board, the [Corrections] Department or the Police … [and] it is important to bear in mind that … critical comments [in the report of these agencies] relate to a failure to do certain things or to act in a certain way and do not stand for carelessness or a failure to take reasonable care …’.”

 

Mr Goff said: “The Corrections Department has a difficult job to do. Every day it has to deal with people who have offended against society and who potentially pose the greatest threats to it. For the Community Probation service, this includes managing offenders’ ultimate release from prison back into the community.

 

“While human error can never be prevented in every case, it is vitally important to have systems in place to avoid these leading to tragic consequences. I am pleased that the Coroner has concluded that the appropriate steps have been taken to try to avoid a repeat of the circumstances that led to Karl Kuchenbecker’s death,” Mr Goff said.

Related Documents
parole-changes-KK.doc (doc, 29 Kb)