Justice delayed: Why two Waikato murder trials won’t happen for at least two years

Saturday, 16 August 2025

The mother of a slain Hamilton woman is asking where the justice is as she faces a two year wait for the trial of a man accused of murdering her daughter in an horrific traffic incident.

“(It’s) fricking shoddy. Where’s the justice?” said Carina Gilbert, speaking to the Waikato Times about her daughter Jayde’s death on May 15. The accused, Michael Karekare, will not stand trial for her death until 2028.

This isn’t the only murder trial in Waikato where whānau, and the accused themselves, will have to wait more than two years for answers.

The man charged with the murder of Tokoroa man Rapana Tukuru Tahana-Heretini on May 27, Jaziah Johnson, has also been told his trial will not take place until 2028.

Karekare, who is alleged to have murdered Gilbert after she was run down at a major Hamilton intersection, was told by Justice Kiri Tahana, who set a 2028 trial date, “I appreciate that this is some time out”.

According to Johnson’s lawyer Andy Hill, the issue of lengthy trial delays is impacting a number of files, “particularly in cases involving serious criminal allegations”.

“It’s an untenable situation for victims and their families, witnesses, police and defendants,” he said.

“It’s simply not good enough that all these people have to wait two, three years for a trial.”

Hill said that at the same time the Government is pushing “tough on crime” policies, “they’re entirely incapable of turning their mind to how an already strained system is supposed to cope”.

He also said he feared the situation would get worse before it got better.

“A significant proportion of our District Court judges are approaching retirement age in the next five years. They will need to be replaced by senior lawyers and there simply aren’t enough intermediate and junior criminal lawyers in the system to step up and fill the void,” he said.

“Criminal legal work is not an attractive option for young lawyers because the legal aid system isn’t properly funded. It’s a problem that successive governments have ignored and it has very serious implications on access to justice in New Zealand.”

He said the central issue was a lack of investment in more judges, courthouses and lawyers.

Hill isn’t the only one with concerns about delays impacting those involved in criminal proceedings.

General manager of strategy and advocacy at Victim Support, Dr Petrina Hargrave, said support workers witness the heavy toll long wait times and complex legal proceedings have on “victims and their whānau”.

She said they help more than 50,000 victims each year navigate the court system, and that many face “psychological, safety and cultural barriers just to take part”.

“Long delays make things even harder, leaving victims in limbo, unable to move on while the case hangs over them.”

Hargrave also said many victims can find the justice system revolves around the offender, and “long waits can exacerbate this imbalance”.

“Reminding victims that they are not the priority in the process.

“This means a long wait for a trial can be deeply disempowering for victims when the system is already stacked against them.”

They often hear from victims that drawn out processes “can erode trust in the justice system”.

“Long trial timelines don’t just delay outcomes, they risk losing victims altogether,” she said.

“Every day waiting for trial is another day a victim waits for safety, acknowledgement and justice. Too many are left wondering if justice is really worth the wait.”

She said their latest Client Evaluation Survey found 41% of victims would likely have dropped out of the legal process without their support.

“That shows just how fragile and unsustainable the waiting can be,” she said.

“The delays don’t just test people’s patience, they can break their resolve.”

So why are murder trials being pushed out so far into the future?

According to a spokesperson from the Office of the Chief Justice, there are two principal issues across the High Court in the Waikato/Bay of Plenty region.

“Limited courtroom availability, and the high number of jury trials that are currently progressing to trial”.

They said it did not help either that the Waikato/Bay of Plenty area “is a busy circuit”.

“It has a comparatively high number of jury trials on hand (43 as at the end of May 2025). This can be compared to the High Court at Auckland – which serves the largest population base in New Zealand,” they said.

“Auckland had 46 jury trials on hand at the same time, and has six jury-enabled courtrooms available, as well as 10 other courtrooms to accommodate all other criminal and civil work.

“By way of contrast, for the whole of the Waikato-Bay of Plenty circuit (Tauranga, Rotorua and Hamilton), there are only three jury-enabled courtrooms available to the High Court.”

The spokesperson said the Chief Justice has raised the issue of delays caused by a shortage of courtrooms with the Attorney General, but admitted “courtroom constraints are likely to continue for some time”.

They said work was underway on a new Tauranga courthouse, due to finish mid-2028, and land has been acquired in Rotorua by the Ministry of Justice for a new courthouse, though “the timing for construction is presently unknown”.

“High Court judges are keenly aware of the added distress that delays to trial cause for victims and whānau, as well as defendants and whānau.”