Tēnā koe Paul,

I acknowledge receipt of your Official Information Act 1982 (OIA) request below.

Your reference number is IR-01-25-39560.

You can expect a response to your request on or before 27 November 2025 unless an extension is needed.

Ngā mihi

Jonelle Smith|Advisor: Ministerial Services |(she/her)
Policy & Partnerships |Police National Headquarters |

-----Original Message-----
From: Paul White <[FOI #32692 email]>
Sent: Thursday, 30 October 2025 3:49 am
To: Ministerial Services <[email address]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Official Information request - Police Instructions Policy and Section 30(1) of the Policing Act 2008

CAUTION: This email originated from outside the New Zealand Police Network. DO NOT click links or open attachments unless you recognise the sender and are assured that the content is safe.

Dear New Zealand Police,

I refer to;
Police Instructions Policy
According to section 30(1) of the Policing Act 2008, all Police employees are required to adhere to the guidelines in the Police Manual and Local Orders, as published in Police Instructions. where relevant to their role, and to follow the recommended practices and procedures unless there are valid and justifiable reasons for not doing so.

In a situation where an Officer decides to not adhere to Police Instructions, evidential sufficiency did not allow an arrest, however the Officer under S.315 of the CrimesAct makes the arrest and charges the suspect.

The information I request;

- An Officer's obligations following the arrest to make a report/record or inform a senior member of the valid and justified reason for not adhering to Police Instructions.

- In the event the arresting Officer either does not report or is not required to report their reasons for not adhering to Police Instructions, what oversight is in place to review the arrest and whether it was unlawful.

- Any other information that may relate to an Officer not adhering to Police Instructions.

Should you wish further clarification please let me know.

Yours faithfully,

Paul White

-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is an Official Information request made via the FYI website.

Please use this email address for all replies to this request:
[FOI #32692 email]

Is [New Zealand Police request email] the wrong address for Official Information requests to New Zealand Police? If so, please contact us using this form:
https://fyi.org.nz/change_request/new?bo...

Disclaimer: This message and any reply that you make will be published on the internet. Our privacy and copyright policies:
https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

If you find this service useful as an Official Information officer, please ask your web manager to link to us from your organisation's OIA or LGOIMA page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

===============================================================

WARNING

The information contained in this email message is intended for the addressee only and may contain privileged information. It may also be subject to the provisions of section 50 of the Policing Act 2008, which creates an offence to have unlawful possession of Police property. If you are not the intended recipient of this message or have received this message in error, you must not peruse, use, distribute or copy this message or any of its contents. Also note, the views expressed in this message may not necessarily reflect those of the New Zealand Police. If you have received this message in error, please email or telephone the sender immediately

hide quoted sections