But tribunal adjudicator Rebecca Morgan said in a recently released decision that while parenting can be overwhelming, the three antisocial incidents cannot be justified by stressful parenting.
Morgan ultimately terminated Hanham’s tenancy giving her two weeks to find new accommodation.
Three antisocial incidents
The decision comes after Hanham’s landlord Kāinga Ora lodged a claim with the tribunal to terminate the tenancy following antisocial behaviour that occurred across 90 days.
On December 4 Hanham put stickers over a neighbour’s work vehicle, accusing him of “s*** parking”.
On January 15 she wrote an abusive letter to an elderly neighbour, threatening to harm her cats, and directed abusive language at a home-care provider of the same neighbour.
And on February 26 she was verbally abusive to an elderly neighbour, including threatening her dog.
Kāinga Ora served Hanham antisocial behaviour notices for all three incidents.
The elderly neighbour, who has name suppression, told the tribunal that she wished to retire “in peace” but is living in fear of Hanham’s threats towards her and her pets.
“The language that has been directed to her and her pets is abhorrent and abusive,” Morgan said.
“Alternative carers had to be arranged following an outburst by Hanham. [The neighbour] has sought medical advice to help her deal with the effects of Hanham’s behaviour.”
Hanham also made TikTok posts stating she was going to disturb the neighbours, with the neighbour then making recordingsof that disturbance.
Children put stress on Hanham
Hanham raised seven points with the tribunal in relation to the alleged unfairness of the situation.
This included that she was neurodivergent and the incidents were just a “normal neighbourhood dispute”.
However, Morgan said this was more than a normal neighbourhood dispute and Hanham had months to seek support to manage her conditions, but had not done so.
Hanham alleged the condition of the property was substandard and Kāinga Ora acknowledged that some work was required.
Hanham also told the tribunal that she has children with additional needs and the stress of parenting has contributed to her behaviour.
“All parents face varying levels of stress from time to time, more so if the children have special needs,” Morgan said.
“In some instances, that stress may excuse a one-off ‘outburst’ or incident of frustrated behaviour.
“This case involved multiple incidents of antisocial behaviour and interference with quiet enjoyment of the neighbourhood. These cannot be explained away or justified by the stress of parenting.”
Head Massey University’s School of Psychology, Dr Kirsty Ross, said parenting high-needs children can be emotionally exhausting and can lead to nervous-system overload.
“From a psychological perspective, parenting a child with high emotional, behavioural, sensory or developmental needs places parents under sustained stress.
Massey University senior clinical psychologist Dr Kirsty Ross said parents of high-needs children can become mentally overloaded.
“Over time, this can lead to emotional dysregulation – where the brain shifts out of calm , problem-solving mode and into a fight, flight or freeze response.
“Once that happens, even relatively small triggers can provoke disproportionately strong reactions.”
She said evidence-based strategies like slowing breathing, movement and reducing noise where possible can help de-escalate emotions.
“Self-care is crucial – put the oxygen mask on yourself first.”
The tribunal decision said there had been seven police complaints regarding Hanham’s antisocial behaviour.
“I cannot think of any context in which a neighbourhood could reasonably be expected to tolerate or endure Ms Hanham’s disruptions,” Morgan said.
A Kāinga Ora spokesperson told NZME the decision “sums up our position” and did not wish to comment further.
Brianna McIlraith is a Queenstown-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the lower South Island. She has been a journalist since 2018 and has had a strong interest in business and financial journalism.