A woman who has been repeatedly warned she will go to jail, has been now given a curfew, as authorities struggle to keep track of her whereabouts.

Maiarii Kauvai Short appeared in the High Court on Friday as Probation sought a change in her sentence conditions.

Justice Christine Grice asked Short how she had been doing.

Short said she was good.

Probation said Short’s response to her sentence had been very poor.

Justice Grice said she had read the sentencing notes from August and seen Short had problems with bail breaches, before asking how Short would manage a curfew while on probation.

Probation had asked that she not be abroad between 7pm and 7am.

Justice Grice then asked Short if she could comply with those curfew conditions.

Short said yes.

Justice Grice asked Short why she continued leaving home.

Short said she had problems with her mother.

Justice Grice then asked Short how she would make sure it didn’t happen again.

“I will make sure it doesn’t happen again,” Short said.

Justice Grice said there was concern the curfew would be setting Short up to fail.

A second probation officer, Short’s supervision worker, approached the bench, and said there had been numerous complaints from Short’s parents, aunties and grandparents.

Justice Grice asked what they had been complaining about.

The probation officer said they had complained about Short taking property.

“This application is to monitor her movements; this is to keep track of her,” the officer said.

Justice Grice asked probation if there was anything they could do to help Short manage conflict.

Probation said there had been a family conference, and from that conversation, Short continued to blame her parents.

Justice Grice asked if counselling services were available, before telling Short probation would try and get her some help.

Justice Grice asked Short what she thought could help her.

Short said she could talk to one of her church leaders.

“You will listen to them, you don’t want to go to jail,” Justice Grice said.

Justice Grice agreed to vary the curfew to the hours between 7pm and 7am and asked probation to look into counselling and assistance for Short.

“You realise it’s getting quite serious; your family are trying to help.”  

Earlier this month, Short was released from custody following a string of charges, over a period of months.

She had spent 72 hours in custody when she appeared in the Criminal Court on a charge of breaching a community service order.

Short had failed to turn up for community service on November 4.

She was sentenced to two years of probation on August 23 on a raft of charges including burglary and obtaining credit by fraud.

At her sentencing, Short was spared jail by Justice of the Peace Tangi Taoro, JP Vania Kenning and JP Paul Turepu, with JP Taoro saying she could have easily been given a sentence of imprisonment.

Short faced eight charges of contempt, burglary, obtaining credit fraudulently and unlawfully taking a motor vehicle at sentencing in August.

She was ordered to complete the first six months of her sentence on community service, pay a combined $1950 in reparations, and $200 court costs.