Sex court trial

The Government is applauding the creation of specialised sexual violence courts which will bring serious rape and sexual assault cases to resolution more quickly. But it says the initiative by district court judges does not signal a broader move away from New Zealand’s adversarial court system. Chief District Court Judge Jan-Marie Doogue said yesterday that two dedicated sexual violence courts will be trialled in Whangarei and Auckland. The courts aimed to reduce trauma for victims by reducing delays for cases.