Slap with a wet bus ticket

[Oldfellah]

An Auckland lawyer who pleaded guilty to breaching lockdown rules to travel from Auckland to W─ünaka has been discharged without conviction, while her partner has been fined $750.

William John Lawrence Willis, 35, and Hannah Rawnsley, 26, travelled to Hamilton under the guise of delivering hay on September 9, while Auckland was in alert level 4.

They got through the Auckland-Waikato checkpoint unlawfully, by using essential worker exemptions.

They were then driven to Hamilton Airport, where they took a commercial flight to Queenstown, via Wellington, rented a vehicle and drove to a holiday home in W─ünaka.


REALLY!!!

Now if this hadnt been a judges son and his lawyer girlfriend but someone else I bet the fine would have been a damn site worse, what an insult, good on ya justice system 

[Oh_hunnihunni]

Corrupt system.

[Olive]

I think we need to read the judge's full sentencing remarks before criticising, but on the face of it the sentences seem so light as to insult the entire population of Aotearoa.

[Oldfellah]

I agree Olive but it does stink of favoritism or rich entitlement.

[king1]

although to be fair I feel like the Adern government's approach to covid/lockdown breaches has generally been more so towards education with a bit of tolerance and kindness thrown in for good measure, rather than a heavy handed, throw the book at them approach. You only have to look at what the numbsky from Destiny Cult got away with to see that at work...

[crafters_corner]

I think we need to read the judge's full sentencing remarks before criticising, but on the face of it the sentences seem so light as to insult the entire population of Aotearoa.

I didn't read anything in the judges sentencing that would change my opinion about this 'wet bus ticket' approach.

Sure, they apologised. Easy to do that after the fact though. They lied. They left and went through the border under false pretenses. And she is a lawyer.

[Magoo]

border patrol.... good evening sir, whats in the back?
lawyer ...... hay
border patrol...... hey yourself, whats in the back?
lawyer...... hay
border patrol...... sounds like we got another lawyer up here Sid, better get the tazer