{"id":343761,"date":"2026-03-23T13:58:21","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T13:58:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/343761\/"},"modified":"2026-03-23T13:58:21","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T13:58:21","slug":"david-seymour-to-present-grieving-mums-tougher-sentences-petition-to-parliament","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/343761\/","title":{"rendered":"David Seymour to present grieving mum\u2019s tougher sentences petition to Parliament"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cThe petition was created following Eru\u2019s death and reflects my drive to ensure that no other wh\u0101nau have to experience the same pain without seeing meaningful justice,\u201d Sonya Oakes <\/a>told the Herald from her home in Australia.<\/p>\n

She said the petition seeks to change current sentencing laws \u2013 particularly sentence reductions that can significantly lower incarceration times.<\/p>\n

She wants sentences that, in her opinion, better reflect the seriousness of violent crime and the lifelong impact on victims\u2019 families.<\/p>\n

Eru was 29 when he died \u2013 a partner and father of two. He also left behind four brothers, including his twin, Wharehuia.<\/p>\n

\"TristanTristan “Eru” Oakes, 29, died in Tauranga Hospital on October 26. He was found with a gunshot wound at his Te Puke home on October 25. Photo \/ Sonya Oakes<\/p>\n

\u201cThe petition is about ensuring that justice is not only seen to be done, but felt by the families left behind,\u201c Oakes said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am grateful that Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour has agreed to present my petition to Parliament, scheduled for March 24. <\/p>\n

\u201cHaving a Member of Parliament take this forward means that not only my son\u2019s voice, but the voices of over 8000 people who supported this petition, will now be heard at a national level.<\/p>\n

I would like to thank every single person who signed and stood beside me<\/p>\n

Sonya Oakes<\/p>\n

\u201cThis petition is not just about Eru. It represents every wh\u0101nau who has lost a loved one and feels the justice system has not fully reflected the gravity of their loss.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would like to thank every person who signed and stood beside me, because without that support this petition would not have been possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cI appreciate the opportunity for this petition to be formally considered and I hope it leads to meaningful change.\u201d<\/p>\n

Oakes has also written an online book, outlining the emotions she has felt since her son died.<\/p>\n

\"DeputyDeputy Prime Minister David Seymour will present Sonya Oakes petition “Eru’s Law” to parliament on Tuesday. <\/p>\n

Tristan Eruera Oakes, known as Eru, died in Tauranga Hospital on October 26, 2025, after he was found in his home with a gunshot wound.<\/p>\n

Three men were charged with Eru\u2019s murder and entered not guilty pleas.<\/p>\n

Seymour told the Herald he supports Oakes\u2019 petition.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy thoughts are with Sonya. No sentence will ever fix the damage caused by a tragedy like this, but it is important that actions have serious consequences. I have heard too many stories like hers and am proud to present her petition to Parliament,\u201d Seymour said.<\/p>\n

Joseph Los\u2019e joined NZME in 2022 as Kaupapa M\u0101ori Editor. Los\u2019e was a chief reporter, news director at the Sunday News newspaper covering crime, justice and sport. He was also editor of the NZ Truth and before NZME worked for urban M\u0101ori organisation Wh\u0101nau Waipareira.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cThe petition was created following Eru\u2019s death and reflects my drive to ensure that no other wh\u0101nau have…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":343762,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[183322,6284,33092,71,62821,6722,30504,111,43,139,69,15222,24637,128,29545,415,177368,16797,31706,61,53355,20424,14638],"class_list":["post-343761","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-zealand","tag-8000strong","tag-david","tag-deputy","tag-from","tag-grieving","tag-minister","tag-mums","tag-new-zealand","tag-news","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-offenders","tag-parliament","tag-petition","tag-present","tag-prime","tag-sentences","tag-seymour","tag-signed","tag-to","tag-tougher","tag-violent","tag-wants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343761","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=343761"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/343761\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/343762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=343761"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=343761"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=343761"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}