New Zealand Parole Board -

Parole Hearing

Under section 21(2) of the Parole Act 2002

Neil John Phillip RISCHBIETER

Hearing: 14 December 2018

at Rimutaka Prison

Members of the Board:

• Ms T Williams Blyth – Panel Convenor
• Ms S Driver
• Mr C King

Counsel:

• Ms S Shone

Support Persons:

• [withheld]
• [withheld]

DECISION OF THE BOARD

1. Neil Rischbieter (62) appears for consideration of parole.  He is serving a two-year two months sentence for serious sexual offending including indecent assault of a female under 12, an indecent act upon a girl under 12 and knowingly making an objectionable publication.
2. Mr Rischbieter’s offending involved three victims and took place between September 2010 and January 2017.
3. In the prison setting he has a RoC*RoI of .0608, a prison security classification of low and a statutory release date of 24 June 2020.  There is approximately one year and six months remaining on his sentence.
4. The parole assessment report advises that there have been no incidents or misconducts in the prison setting.  He is described as polite, compliant and a hard worker.
5. The sentence plan for Mr Rischbieter is to complete the Short Intervention Programme for child sex offenders (SIP-CSO).  The programme is to start at the end of January 2019.  As part of that programme Mr Rischbieter will develop relapse prevention and safety plans.  He will also be required to present these to his support network and the professionals that will be supporting him in the community.
6. At the outset of today's hearing the counsel advised that Mr Rischbieter was not seeking parole. Counsel highlighted that Mr Rischbieter is genuinely remorseful and sorry for the offending that he committed, and he is motivated to complete the SIP-CSO.  As part of the programme counsel confirmed that he will share his plans with his support network.
7. Counsel also provided a copy of a letter from clinical psychologist [A] dated 28 November 2018.  Mr Rischbieter engaged in weekly sessions with [A] from June 2017 until he was sentenced.  The letter refers to a comprehensive report completed by [A] for sentencing.  The Board does not have a copy of that report.
8. The Principal Corrections Officer advised that there have been no issues in the prison setting.
9. Mr Rischbieter was supported in the hearing by [withheld].
10. Mr Rischbieter’s offending is serious and he needs to complete the SIP-CSO before the Board could be in a position to consider that his risk is reduced.  As matters currently stand, there is work to do.  Parole is declined.  Mr Rischbieter will be seen for further with consideration of parole in June 2019 and by no later than 30 June 2019.
11. In the meantime, the Board supports Mr Rischbieter completing the SIP-CSO and developing a robust relapse prevention plan, a safety plan as well as a strong release proposal.
12. If Mr Rischbieter wishes the Board to consider the report completed by [A] (for sentencing) at the next hearing, counsel is asked to make a copy available to the Board.