A retired district court judge has had a charge of intentionally damaging a car dismissed at the North Shore District Court.
Michael Lance, 73, was accused of scratching the car with a key as it blocked the entrance of his Browns Bay apartment in Auckland on 23 March 2009.
On Thursday afternoon, Judge Kevin Phillips dismissed the charge saying the evidence of a key Crown witness had changed considerably under cross examination.
Mr Lance told the North Shore District court on Thursday there had been considerable unrest among apartment dwellers about the entrance being blocked by vehicles before the incident.
He said he called a tow truck company to have the Volkswagen removed and noticed the scratches, which he said looked fresh.
He said he wondered whether the marks were the work of a disgruntled tenant, and rubbed the scratches to see if they were fresh.
Mr Lance denied scratching the car, and said he did not know who caused the marks.
Outside the North Shore District Court, Mr Lance's lawyer, John Haigh QC, questioned why the charges were brought.
He says he will be seeking costs and wants a review into the police decision to bring the charges.
Two witnesses told the court on Thursday afternoon that they saw scratches on the car before Mr Lance is alleged to have scratched it.
Martin Treadwell told the court he noticed the scratches as he left the apartment at least half an hour before a witness alleges he saw Mr Lance scratch the car.
He says he gave the police the name of another tenant who he thought had caused the scratches.
Another witness, Charles Tuson, told the court he noticed the scratches as he tried to identify the owner of the car, also before Mr Lance was accused of causing the damage.
