By Jono Hutchison
There were emotional scenes in an Auckland court today as a man was sent to prison for violently attacking his own stepson.
Not surprisingly, much of the emotion came from the victim, but not for the reasons you might think.
Rex Kipa was silent, even sheepish, but he was far from that on the morning in February when he stabbed and hit his stepson, Ratima Taylor.
Filmed after the attack, he seemed more concerned about his pie than the many stab wounds he'd inflicted on his relative.
But the victim came to court to support the 46-year-old who'd stabbed him, one of several unlikely voices in his favour.
"Your current employer is, in fact, a former police officer, and speaks very highly of you, and is prepared to re-engage you in the event that you are sentenced to imprisonment," said Judge Brooke Gibson.
First jailed at 15, Kipa ended up in a gang. But the judge said while imprisoned in 1994, Kipa had an epiphany.
"You removed your facial marks and tattoos, you left the gang; you enrolled in a polytech and achieved a certificate in social work; you found employment. And your employers speak very highly of you."
Kipa's sentence was reduced because he pleaded guilty and took part in a restorative justice meeting. But the judge said the incident was still a violent and serious assault, and required two-and-a-half years in prison.
As Kipa was being led away, his son, who he attacked, stood up, crying and called out: "I love you dad. Thank you." He slapped his hands against the glass between them and left the court room in tears.
3 News