A man who took to the sea to protest against deep-water oil exploration off the Gisborne coast will now have to face trial - on charges of resisting police and operating his boat in a risky manner.
Elvis Teddy was arrested outside territorial waters in April 2011 during protests against the Brazilian oil giant Petrobras.
In his first court appearance, the District Court threw out the charges, saying it had no jurisdiction to hear them because they occurred outside the country's territorial zone.
That was overturned by the High Court and this view was upheld at the Court of Appeal.
Mr Teddy then sought leave to appeal to the Supreme Court but that body has declined to hear the case, saying Mr Teddy has failed to establish that there was a substantial miscarriage of justice.
