A police officer who appears in Local Courts and Children's Courts, with the consent of the magistrate, as the representative of the police informant and to conduct the prosecution. If the offence is an indictable offence that may be dealt with summarily in the Local Court, the police prosecutor assesses whether it should be dealt with summarily or on indictment. If the police prosecutor decides that the offender should be indicted, the matter will be transferred to the Director of Public Prosecutions.
In the judicial system of New Zealand, a Police Prosecutor is a lawyer employed by the Police to present cases in district court, as the counsel for the prosecution. This may be a sworn member of the police (normally a sergeant) or, in larger courts, a civilian lawyer employed as a non-sworn member of the police. In smaller courts, the police prosecutors will normally consist entirely of sworn officers, while in larger courts a combination of sworn and non-sworn prosecutors will be employed.