A man who tried to gas his partner to death in a caravan was on bail at the time, court documents reveal.
Blair Tamihana was accused of assaulting his victim after a dispute over her cellphone on March 5 last year.
He was allowed bail but just eight days later, breached his conditions by having contact with the woman.
Police were called to a store after the pair had a loud argument in front of staff, the court heard.
When Tamihana was hauled before Judge Michael Turner in the Dunedin District Court, he was remanded in custody.
The judge said the paramount consideration was the protection of the complainant.
On April 17, however, Tamihana appealed the matter to the High Court.
There, Crown prosecutor Richard Smith continued to oppose the defendant’s release.
While he accepted the woman may have been complicit in the bail breach, it did not detract from the fact that Tamihana knew he should not engage with her and chose to anyway.
Justice Francis Cooke disagreed, noting the defendant had a limited criminal history which comprised mostly driving offences and featured only one breach of bail.
There were no convictions for violence, the judge said.
"The alleged offending involves domestic violence, but not of the usually more serious kind," said Justice Cooke in a judgement released to the Otago Daily Times.
"I do not regard the risk of any further conduct of the kind alleged to be significant in terms of [the Bail Act]."
He hoped a month in custody would deter Tamihana from breaching bail again.
It did not.
Six weeks later, the couple were locked inside a caravan thinking they were slowly dying.
Timeline
- March 5: Blair Tamihana charged with impeding his girlfriend’s breathing, granted bail.
- March 13: Breaches bail by having contact with the woman, bail declined by Judge Michael Turner.
- April 17: Bail appeal to the High Court granted by Justice Francis Cooke who rules there is no significant risk of further domestic violence.
- May 30: Tamihana tries to kill himself and the victim.
