Appeal considering the approach taken by the Parole Board in making decisions on the imposition, variation and removal of special conditions – is undue risk the measure to be applied in such decisions? – in deciding whether to continue special conditions must the board undertake a s 5 Bill of Rights proportionality analysis – is the board required to proceed on a condition-by-condition basis?

Grinder v Attorney-General [2025] NZSC 165

Brett Grinder was convicted of serious sexual offending against children and young people between 1976 and 2001. In 2003, the High Court sentenced him to preventive detention.

After an earlier unsuccessful parole, Grinder was paroled again in 2019. His risk of sexual reoffending was assessed as medium to high, but the Parole Board was satisfied that with the support available to him in the community, and with the imposition of special conditions mitigating risk, he did not represent an undue risk to the safety of the community.