Lawyers representing Christchurch mosque attacker ordered to withhold names

Flowers for the victims of the terrorist attack in front of the Al Noor Mosque in Christchurch.
Photograph: RNZ/Nathan Mckinnon

Lawyers appointed to represent the Christchurch mosque terrorist in his appeal have been granted permanent anonymity.

Brenton Tarrant in March 2020 pleaded guilty There are 51 murder charges, 40 attempted murder charges and one charge of participating in a terrorist act.

However, he filed an application in November 2022. appeal against conviction and sentence.

Two lawyers appointed to act on his behalf for the appeal applied for an order to permanently suppress their names and credentials.

Lawyer A said they have been involved in many high-profile cases and have received a limited amount of malicious email in that capacity.

They were concerned that Tarrant’s case was both different and unique because of the nature of the crimes for which he was convicted.

The lawyer said that they were concerned not only about their own safety but also about the safety of their children.

Lawyer B is also an experienced criminal defense attorney. They also said they were concerned about the safety of themselves, their spouses and children.

The court said the two lawyers may have been the target of harassment and threats from people “hiding behind the relative anonymity provided by social media platforms”.

“It is impossible to predict the exact sources of this abuse, and we think it may come from both those who hate Mr. Tarrant and those who support Mr. Tarrant.”

The court said Tarrant was a unique criminal convicted of crimes that qualified him as New Zealand’s worst mass murderer and a convicted terrorist.

The court said lawyers were likely to be subjected to extreme harassment and threats, which could cause undue hardship.

He accepted the application.

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