Why teens charged with critically injuring Manawatū cop likely won’t be named - or sent to adult court
Legal experts explain why two teenagers charged with critically injuring a police officer in New Zealand are unlikely to be tried as adults. Despite public outcry, the Oranga Tamariki Act mandates that youth offenders remain in the Youth Court unless charged with specific violent crimes like murder or manslaughter.
Why it matters
This highlights the ongoing tension between public demands for punitive justice and established legal frameworks designed to protect and rehabilitate minors.
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Online critics have called for adult justice for the teenagers charged after a Manawatū police officer was critically injured in a fleeing driver incident.
But a law professor says that’s unlikely to happen, as the teens are not “mini-adults” and shouldn’t be treated as such.
Two boys, aged 14 and 15, face multiple charges over a crash on Saturday which left the officer fighting for his life in hospital .
The alleged driver, the older of the two teenagers, faces charges relating to theft, failing to stop, dangerous driving and reckless driving causing injury, while the younger teen has been charged with unlawfully getting into a motor vehicle.
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