Pretrial ruling — dismissal of charges — previous consistent statements — “retains” — claim of right — limitation period — Crimes Act 1961, ss 25 & 240 — Electoral Act 1993, ss 205N, 209, 209B & 226 — Evidence Act 2006, ss 7, 8 & 35 — Criminal Procedure Act 2011, ss 10, 18, 133 & 147 — Carlos v R [2010] NZCA 248. The defendant was facing several charges under the Electoral and Crimes Acts. In the current pretrial matter, he sought to call three witnesses to give evidence of his previous consistent statements. The Court considered that the evidence that the witnesses would give was relevant to the proceedings, and allowed the witnesses to be called. The defendant also sought the dismissal of some or all of the charges. The Court found that a properly-directed jury could convict the defendant on charges of obtaining a pecuniary advantage by deception. The defendant argued that the four charges of failing to file donations should be dismissed as time-barred. The Court amended two of the charges by changing the dates of the alleged offending; it determined that doing so would create no prejudice to the defendant. The other two charges were dismissed. The Court then rejected the defendant's argument that the charges should be dismissed because the prosecution needed to show that the donations were made to an individual candidate rather than to a party. The Court considered that this question should be left to a jury to determine. Finally the Court found that there was enough evidence for a properly-directed jury to convict the defendant on charges of failing to keep proper records of candidate donations, and declined to dismiss these charges. Judgment Date: 6 September 2023