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Parole Board apology: Texting truckie Sarah Schmidt, who killed Caleb Baker, released before eligible date

Parole Board apology: Texting truckie Sarah Schmidt, who killed Caleb Baker, released before eligible date

The Parole Board has apologised “unreservedly” to Caleb Baker’s family after it set free the texting truckie who killed the young motorist before she was eligible for release. The 22-year-old’s family told NZME the mistake has caused them more pain and shattered what little trust they still had in the system. Truck driver Sarah Hope Schmidt served nine months of a jail term of two years and four months after causing the fatal crash on the Hawke’s Bay Expressway last year. Another driver was injured and hospitalised after the crash, in which Schmidt ran into a stationary queue of vehicles because she had been distracted by using her phone while driving. Schmidt later pleaded guilty to two charges of dangerous driving - one each of causing death and injury. She was released on parole on July 15 this year after appearing “visibly upset” and remorseful before the Parole Board on July 1, her first appearance. But Parole Board Chair Jan-Marie Doogue said today that it had now been identified that Schmidt was not eligible for release on parole until two weeks later - July 29. The board was “in error” in granting her release on July 15. Justice Doogue said Schmidt would not be recalled to prison to serve the two weeks. “She has not breached her release conditions and is not considered to be an undue risk to the community,” she said. Caleb Baker of Napier died in the motor vehicle accident on the Hawke's Bay Expressway in February 2024. Photo / Supplied Justice Doogue said the board wanted to publicly acknowledge and take accountability for what had happened. “It is particularly mindful of the additional distress this news will cause the family of Caleb Baker, and to the other driver injured in the crash, and apologises unreservedly to them,” she said. “All board members have been reminded of the importance of ensuring they are aware of an offender’s parole eligibility date and their decisions are consistent with that date.” Baker’s uncle, Shane Taurima, said last week that his family was “devastated” by Schmidt’s release after serving less than one-third of her sentence. “Nine months for taking a life is impossible to comprehend.” Today, Taurima said that Justice Doogue had contacted Baker’s mother, Janice Stevens, this morning to advise her of the error and offer the apology. “Janice was extremely distressed and unable to speak when told this,” he said. “The whānau are deeply distraught and upset that such a serious mistake could occur. “While the Board has acknowledged the error and apologised, this has caused further pain and disbelief for our whānau,” Taurima said. He said that while family members appreciated the board had taken responsibility, the mistake had “shattered what little trust we had left in the system”. “Families like ours deserve better - greater care, respect, and accountability from those making decisions that affect victims so deeply. “Our focus remains on Caleb, honouring his memory and continuing to speak up so that no other whānau has to endure this kind of hurt.” 44 minutes on the phone Schmidt spent 44 minutes using her phone during a two-hour run between Dannevirke and Napier Port in the early morning of February 9, 2024. After starting on her return journey down the Hawke’s Bay Expressway, she was still using her phone when she ploughed her 30-tonne Volvo truck into the back of Baker’s Toyota Hilux, which was at the rear of the stationary queue. In the 16 seconds before the collision, a dashboard camera captured Schmidt looking at her phone on 10 separate occasions, for between half a second and two seconds at a time. She looked down at her phone four times in the final six seconds. Schmidt was still using her phone two seconds before the crash, when she was travelling at 86km/h. Although she then applied the brakes, it was too late, and she was moving at 76km/h when her truck, laden with a shipping container, ran into the back of Baker’s ute. A view of the crash scene taken from behind Sarah Schm...

Auckland Prison unit housing mosque shooter has colourful $400,000 makeover with fresh paint job

Auckland Prison unit housing mosque shooter has colourful $400,000 makeover with fresh paint job

The Department of Corrections spent more than $400,000 on a makeover – complete with a fresh paint job and colourful designs – of the prison unit housing New Zealand’s most notorious criminals, including mosque terrorist Brenton Tarrant. The costly renovation at the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (Peru) inside Auckland Prison – also known as Paremoremo – was carried out over the past couple of months to address reports which classed it as “oppressive” and “inhuman”. Peru was established in 2019, four months after the March 15 terror attack. At the end of 2024, it housed 13 of the country’s most violent and dangerous inmates, including Tarrant, who murdered 51 worshippers and injured 40 others at the Al Noor and Linwood mosques in Christchurch. The Herald revealed last month that maintenance work was being carried out in the 18-cell unit to address feedback from the Ombudsman and Office of the Inspectorate reports, and “create an environment that’s less stark and therefore more conducive to rehabilitating prisoners and better for our staff”. The work included repainting the unit’s visiting booths, entrance foyer, day rooms, yards and cells for the first time since it was built in 2018. Each of the 18 cells adjoining individual yards were painted with the same abstract landscape design. Photo / Department of Corrections Images shared by Corrections show inmates’ cells painted green and a wall in their adjoining individual yards with a colourful “geometric design” painted on a wall in the yard, where they are allowed to exercise for three to six hours daily. Now, figures released to the Herald under the Official Information Act (OIA) have revealed the total cost of the project was $407,307 – a sum Corrections say was funded from within its existing baselines as part of Budget 2025. Among this, $260,964 was spent on what was described as “painting preparations” – including chemical washing to remove old paint, graffiti and dirt – and repainting the unit. Corrections said the unit painting included two day rooms, two large exercise yards, the unit’s entrance foyer area and hallways, the visiting areas, 17 standard cells and their adjoining exercise yards, one accessibility cell with adjoining yard, and two dry cells. Inmates' cells have been painted green in a bid to lift their "oppressive" surroundings. Photo / Department of Corrections The remaining $146,343 was spent on placing “geometric designs” on the walls of two large exercise yards, two day rooms, the visitor areas, the unit’s entrance foyer and hallway areas, and the cell yards. The Department of Corrections’ commissioner of custodial services, Leigh Marsh, said they were required to use specialist paint that is resistant to graffiti and vandalism “given the nature of those we manage in prison”. “While the upfront cost of this paint can be higher in the short term, it can help reduce long-term costs.” The Herald understands Corrections hired a commercial painting company to carry out the project – as it required working at heights. “This maintenance work in Peru also required scaffolding to meet health and safety requirements. The work has also had to be done in stages and outside of usual hours to ensure the safety of those undertaking the work. All of these factors impact the cost of maintenance in this unit,” Marsh said. Images from inside the Prisoners of Extreme Risk Unit (Peru) in Auckland Prison during a 2023 inspection. Photo / Office of the Inspectorate Marsh said the condition of prison environments can impact inmates’ willingness to take part in rehabilitation, and the levels of tension and aggression towards frontline staff and other prisoners. “Creating brighter spaces within prisons, especially in areas frequently used by staff, visitors, and prisoners, is common and something Corrections has done in prisons for many years. “Work like this can often be carried out by prisoners to keep them engaged in constructive activities and help their rehabilitat...

There yesterday, gone today?

There yesterday, gone today?

New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition, 1925-26 The principal (south) elevation of the New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition, 1925-26. Panorama from L.S. Fanning, The Pictorial History: The N.Z. and South Seas Exhibition Dunedin, Dunedin, 1926. On November 17 it will be 100 years since the New Zealand and South Seas International Exhibition opened at Logan Park, showcasing the manufacturing, educational, governmental and artistic achievements of Dunedin, the province and Aotearoa - but also the Empire and the world.

What a ‘Joker’: First kiwi chick of the season hatches in Napier Kiwi Creche

What a ‘Joker’: First kiwi chick of the season hatches in Napier Kiwi Creche

Napier’s first kiwi chick of the season has hatched after arriving at the city’s Kiwi Creche from Kaweka Forest Park. The chick, named Joker, was brought to the creche on October 1 by Save Our Kaweka Kiwi volunteers after they discovered an egg already in the process of hatching during a planned nest check. The name continues a family theme, linked to its sire Ridler. Joker was only minutes away from hatching when it arrived at Napier Kiwi Creche. Photo / Save the Kiwi Husbandry manager Bev Wilkinson said it’s rare to receive an egg so close to hatching. “We would normally be expecting an egg or a chick, very seldom do we receive one in the last stages of hatching,” she said. Joker weighed 228g this week but is expected to lose some weight while absorbing its yolk. The chick will remain at the creche until it reaches 1kg, when it will be returned to the Kaweka Forest. “This is a safe weight for it to be released as it has more chance of fighting off predators. This will take approximately 3.5 months to reach the target weight,” Wilkinson says. Joker will stay at the creche until reaching one kilogram, then return to Kaweka Forest. Photo / Save the Kiwi While at the creche, Joker will be fed a mix of artificial and wild foods, weighed weekly, and given full health checks, she said. “We will take stool samples regularly to monitor for parasites, and the chick will be dosed accordingly. It will go into quarantine two weeks before release ... Feathers will be taken from Joker to determine its gender, [and] it will be microchipped.” Since opening in 2020, the Napier Kiwi Creche has released 251 kiwi into the Eastern District and can rear up to 58 chicks each season. “The Napier creche is vital in the recovery of Eastern Brown Kiwi. Eastern Brown Kiwi recovery is being managed through large-scale predator control, Operation Nest egg and habitat protection,” Wilkinson said. A Save the Kiwi spokeswoman said the hatching comes as Save the Kiwi Week gets under way. The organisation is currently fundraising for 10 new trail cameras to monitor kiwi behaviour and translocations across the country.

Bucklands Beach fire victims named as father and son in homicide probe

Bucklands Beach fire victims named as father and son in homicide probe

Police have revealed the names of the young boy and his father, who were killed in a “deliberately lit” house fire. Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Va’aelua said police investigating the fatal fire at Bucklands Beach on October 2 can now confirm the details of those who died. They were Jung Sup Lee, 36, and Ha-il Lee, 11. Earlier, police revealed they believe the fire was “deliberately lit” and is being treated as a homicide investigation. An accelerant was used in the fire, and it was a substance that was foreign to the property. At 2.30am, emergency Services responded to the house fire that broke out on Murvale Drive. Today, police confirmed it is being treated as a double homicide and are calling for the public’s assistance in identifying those responsible for the fire. Anyone who resides in Bucklands Beach, Howick, Sunnyhills, Mellons Bay, Botany Downs, Highland Park, who has any CCTV footage between the hours of 10pm on Wednesday October 1 and 5am on Thursday, October 2, is urged to get in touch with police. Police are also seeking any dash cam or Go Pro footage from the same areas and times. “We want to reiterate that no detail is too small, or irrelevant,” Va’aelua said. Last week Va’aelua told the media there were no persons of interest. He said one of the survivors of the blaze was the mother who escaped through the home’s main door. Her surviving son had to force his way out. A fifth person, who was a boarder at the house, did not suffer any injuries.

Bucklands Beach fire victims named as father and son Jung Sup Lee, 36, and Ha-il Lee, 11, in homicide probe

Bucklands Beach fire victims named as father and son Jung Sup Lee, 36, and Ha-il Lee, 11, in homicide probe

Police have revealed the names of the young boy and his father killed in a “deliberately lit” house fire. Detective Inspector Tofilau Faamanuia Va’aelua said police investigating the fatal fire at Bucklands Beach on October 2 can now confirm the details of those who died. They were Jung Sup Lee, 36, and Ha-il Lee, 11. Earlier, police revealed they believe the fire was “deliberately lit” and it is being treated as a homicide investigation. An accelerant was used in the fire, and it was a substance that was foreign to the property. At 2.30am, emergency services responded to the house fire that broke out on Murvale Drive. Today, police confirmed it is being treated as a double homicide and are calling for the public’s assistance in identifying those responsible for the fire. Any resident of Bucklands Beach, Howick, Sunnyhills, Mellons Bay, Botany Downs or Highland Park who has CCTV footage between the hours of 10pm on Wednesday October 1 and 5am on Thursday, October 2, is urged to get in touch with police. Police are also seeking any dash cam or GoPro footage from the same areas and times. “We want to reiterate that no detail is too small, or irrelevant,” Va’aelua said. Firefighters extinguished a blaze at a home on Murvale Drive, Bucklands Beach. Photo / NZH Last week, Va’aelua told the media there were no persons of interest. He said one of the survivors of the blaze was the mother who escaped through the home’s main door. Her surviving son had to force his way out. A fifth person, who was a boarder at the house, did not suffer any injuries. ‘Delightful’ 11-year-old killed in fire Ha-il Lee was remembered as a “delightful” Bucklands Beach Intermediate student. Earlier, deputy principal Will Roper called the boy a credit to his family. The boy’s older brother, who is understood to have survived the fire, was a former pupil at the school, Roper told Stuff. “Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with their family, friends and all those affected at this very difficult time.” A fundraiser was launched for the grieving wife and son who survived the fire. A post on the Givealittle page, which was set up by a friend of the family, said the mother is facing the “unimaginable” and is now left to navigate living expenses. Thick plumes of smoke and orange flames pour out of the Bucklands Beach home on Murvale Drive. The property was severely damaged; windows were shattered and debris strewn about the blackened house. Neighbours recounted waking to the roar of fire and “mini explosions” as the blaze quickly gripped the home. Thick plumes of smoke and large orange flames could be seen as firefighters battled the fire for several hours.