A Queenstown teacher has pleaded not guilty to a charge of assaulting a child. Defence counsel Nic Soper successfully argued for the male's interim name suppression order to be extended until his next appearance, on April 29. Judge John Brandts-Giesen said granted that application, taking into consideration the background of the offending, the man's denial of the charge of assaulting a 10-year-old on November 21 and because publication of his name may prejudice his right to a fair trial. The Otago Daily Times reported last week the Ministry of Education had received a complaint about the alleged incident in December. The school stood the teacher down and the child was no longer attending the school.

Source: Otago Daily Times March 11, 2019 00:22 UTC