Dismissal of charges — delay — aggravated robbery — Criminal Procedure Act 2011, ss 146 & 147 — Criminal Disclosure Act 2008, s 30 — Oranga Tamariki Act 1989, ss 4, 4A, 5, 208 & 322 — UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, arts 19 & 40 — New Zealand Police v HH [2021] NZYC 583 — X v DC [2020] NZHC 2952 — R v AB and CD [2021] NZHC 3524 — New Zealand Police v MR [2022] NZYC 54. Three young persons were jointly charged with aggravated robbery. It was alleged that they, along with two others, had robbed the complainant of his shoes. The young persons were arrested almost five weeks after the alleged date of offending. The complainant did not wish the matter to proceed to trial and preferred to put the incident behind him. The police did not wish to compel the complainant to give evidence at trial, and without the complainant's evidence the police did not have a case. The police applied for leave to withdraw the charging documents pursuant to s 146 of the Criminal Procedure Act ("CPA") which would mean the police were not precluded from bringing proceedings in relation to this matter in the future. At issue was whether the charging documents should be withdrawn under s 146 or whether the charges should be dismissed under s 147 of the CPA, meaning no further proceedings could be brought in relation to this matter. The Judge considered the background of the proceedings and delays to date, and also considered the purpose and principles of the Oranga Tamariki Act as well as the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and concluded that the appropriate course of action was to dismiss the charges under s 147 of the CPA. The Judge dismissed the charge of aggravated robbery against each of the young persons. Judgment date: 31 March 2022. * * * Note: names have been changed to comply with legal requirements. * **