After a year in prison, the Christchurch shooter has changed his plea from innocent to guilty. His charges include 51 counts of murder, 40 counts of attempted murder, and one charge of terrorism. The shooting occurred in March of 2019 and was the deadliest mass shooting in the nation’s history, prompting New Zealand’s parliament and prime minister to sign several bills into law that banned assault weapons, increased surveillance, and implemented a mandatory gun buyback program. Such measures have made it more difficult for such a tragedy to occur again, especially with the shooter’s guilty plea providing a bit of solace and closure for communities of the Al Noor Mosque and Linwood Islamic Centre.
Shortly after the gunman had changed his plea via videolink from Auckland prison, the judge presiding over the case, Justice Cameron Mander, also put out a statement to the press.
“[The shooter] has been convicted of each and every one of those charges [and] the entry of guilty pleas represent a very significant step towards bringing finality to this criminal proceeding.”
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern also commented that the guilty plea would “provide some relief to the many people whose lives were shattered” by the terrorist attacks.
New Zealand’s police commissioner Mike Bush echoed the prime minister in a concurring statement.
“Today’s guilty pleas are a significant milestone in respect of one of our darkest days,” Bush said. “I want to acknowledge the victims, their families and the community of Christchurch – the many lives that were changed forever.”
Bush also acknowledged that while several community members had wished to be at the gunman’s trial, the sentencing hearing would be suspended until the state of the COVID-19 pandemic allowed New Zealanders to gather in large groups without fear of spreading the virus.
Despite court delays due to New Zealand’s nationwide lockdown, the shooter’s change in plea will likely still amount to life in prison. According to the Washington Post, New Zealand law states that “a person pleading guilty is usually entitled to a reduction in their sentence for the guilty plea, [so] a guilty plea [may] mean there will only be a life sentence with a very long non-parole period, instead of a sentence of life without parole.” However, such an act of terror is unprecedented in New Zealand’s history, meaning that the shooter may not be given parole. Regardless of the gunman’s final sentencing, the New Zealand government has made it clear that they are in full support of the families and communities of the two mosques that were affected, and have promised to allow victims to be involved with the legal process if they choose to do so. Originally, this meant participating in the trial, a process that likely would have been far more public and potentially a forum for the shooter to espouse more hateful rhetoric. But a guilty plea was what some survivors of the shooting, including Ahmed Khan, had prayed for. “[People in the courtroom] were really angry and got really emotional because it seemed like the offender was not sorry,” Khan said. “Now we are hoping for a good outcome.”
From a longer-term perspective, the gun control legislation (passed only weeks after the tragedy) has greatly reduced the likelihood of such a tragedy from occurring again. Before the 2019 mass shooting, only 69 deaths could be attributed to an offence of murder by a firearm between 2008 to 2017, according to the New Zealand Police. However, the national spectacle of the Christchurch shooting led to a number of preventative measures, including a successful gun buyback program. According to the New Zealand Police, over 57,000 firearms had been collected with a cost of over $103 million in New Zealand currency ($62,730,000 USD). The ban mainly applies to semiautomatic weapons and a number of military-style assault weapons (including AR-15’s), and other weapons that have been modified to have a similar function. Such legislation not only reduces the number of deadly weapons available to citizens but also includes more stringent licensing and registration for gun owners that will ultimately decrease the number of firearms available to New Zealanders and diminishing the chances of another mass shooting.
The quick and decisive action by New Zealand’s government received global praise and provided a stark contrast to the United States’ response to its own problems with mass shootings. In comparison to New Zealand’s 69 homicides by firearm over the course of 11 years, the U.S. has an average of 33 homicides per day, and more guns than people. Even modest gun control measures have failed in the United States Congress, partly due to American gun culture and the Constitution’s Second Amendment. While some counties and jurisdictions do have buyback programs, many are underfunded and are never mandatory. Countries with fewer guns have fewer gun-related deaths and injuries. If the U.S. wants any chance of implementing legislation similar to that of New Zealand and reducing mass shootings and homicides, it must first take steps to limit the influence of pro-gun special interest groups while changing the gun culture across the country.
