Christchurch gunman seeks to appeal convictions and withdraw guilty plea | New Zealand
The Australian white supremacist who killed 51 Muslim worshipers at two mosques in Christchurch in 2019, the worst mass shooting in New Zealand history, is asking one of the country’s highest courts to withdraw his guilty plea and hold a new trial.
Brenton Tarrant pleaded guilty to 51 charges of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder and terrorism in March 2020 after initially saying he would plead to the charges. In August 2020, Tarrant became the first person in New Zealand to be sentenced to life imprisonment with no chance of release under current law.
However, he appealed both his convictions and sentence to the court of appeal in 2022. The court will evaluate whether the appeal can continue because it was filed outside the legal period.
The 35-year-old is expected to give evidence via video link at a week-long hearing starting on February 9 in Wellington.
According to court documents, the court will first consider the application to cancel the criminal complaint.
The main issue before the court will be whether Mr Tarrant was capable of making rational decisions at the time he confessed his guilt as a result of torture and conditions of detention which he said were inhumane.
If the court accepts the request to remove the defense, the file will be sent back to the high court for the terrorist to be tried. If he rejects the application, an appeal of the sentence will be considered at the next hearing later this year.
While only media, lawyers and authorized persons were allowed to attend the hearing in the courtroom, security measures were increased. While limited space was provided for the public in an adjoining room, arrangements were made for victims and family members to watch the hearing in Christchurch via delayed broadcast. Tarrant’s legal counsel was granted permanent anonymity.
Aya Al-Umari, whose brother Hussein al-Umari was killed in Masjid al-Nur he told The Post. The hearing was making him uncomfortable, and it would be difficult to hear Tarrant testify for the first time.
“For the sake of my sanity… I have to think of these as words with absolutely no meaning behind them,” he said. “But it is also reopening a wound that you have tried so hard to close and move forward in life.”
Tarrant moved to New Zealand in 2017 planning to launch a white supremacist attack. He planned the mass shooting for months, scouting mosques, distributing a manifesto expressing his racist views before opening fire, and livestreaming part of the attack on Facebook.
Following the attacks, the former government led by Jacinda Ardern banned military-style semi-automatic rifles and created a firearms registry.
The investigation into the attacks is the largest criminal investigation New Zealand has ever seen and is still ongoing. In October 2025, the high court left the door open. Tarrant to be called as a witness It is being investigated despite the objections of survivors and victims’ families.
