Police file significantly more serious charge against Cliff Curtis

Hollywood blockbuster actor Cliff Curtis is believed by authorities to have had more than one-and-a-half times the legal limit for alcohol in his system when he crashed his Tesla into a taxi on Auckland’s waterfront last month, hospitalising the other driver. 

The alleged blood alcohol level was revealed in court documents made public this morning as his lawyers appeared on his behalf in the Auckland District Court for the first time. 

The 58-year-old, full name Clifford Vivian Devon Curtis, was medically excused from appearing at the brief “first appearance” hearing. But most major New Zealand media outlets were there as lawyer Samuel Moore addressed the judge on his behalf. 

A plea was not entered, but a next court appearance was set for October 29. Curtis is currently expected to attend. 

The actor initially faced charges of recklessly operating a motor vehicle and drink driving, both of which carry maximum possible sentences of three months’ imprisonment, six months’ disqualification from driving and fines of up to $4500. 

In court today, police asked Judge Ajit Swaran Singh to amend the drink-driving allegation to a significantly more serious charge of drink driving causing injury – punishable by up to five years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to $20,000 and a minimum 12-month driving disqualification. 

The reckless driving charge remains the same. 

Police allege in court documents that Curtis had 122mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood in his system on the night of September 23 when he caused the crash at the intersection of Jellicoe St and Halsey St in the Wynyard Quarter of Auckland Central. 

For adults, any reading over 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood can result in an infringement and 80mg or above results in criminal prosecution. 

Authorities told the Herald previously that the Tesla hit a parked Toyota Prius taxi around 10.30 that night. A person was “badly trapped” inside the Prius, firefighter Michael Manning said, explaining that he and colleagues participated in a difficult extraction and provided advanced life support until ambulances arrived. 

Police investigate the scene in downtown Auckland where a taxi driver was trapped in his vehicle after it was hit by a Tesla driven by actor Cliff Curtis. Photo / Hayden Woodward 

“It appears to be a very high-speed crash for this part of town,” Manning said at the scene. 

Taxi driver Gagan Deep Singh told the Herald earlier this month that he had been waiting for another fare in the bustling pedestrian area and had briefly taken off his seatbelt to relax when the other vehicle slammed into his, pushing his car into a nearby concrete bench. 

The speed limit for the area is 30km/h. 

Singh needed stitches in his head after striking the window glass and suffered eight broken ribs, a broken collarbone, a lower hip fracture and multiple injuries to his hand, he recalled. 

“With that pressure, my chest got pressed and my lungs bled inside,” he said. “Because of that, I couldn’t breathe at that time, and I forgot everything that had happened.” 

Singh spoke to a reporter from his home, where he has been ordered by a doctor to remain on bed rest for two months. His inability to earn a living for the forseable future has been a cause of anxiety, he said. 

Curtis is also recovering at his home, in Rotorua. He suffered internal injuries in the crash, he has said. 

“I made a devastating mistake, and I’ll have to live with the consequences and do what I can to address the harm caused,” he said in a statement sent to media last night. “I am deeply sorry. My thoughts are with the injured taxi driver and his family.” 

He does not intend to make any further statements while the case is pending, he said. 

Cliff Curtis as Genesis Potini in The Dark Horse. 

Curtis rose to fame in New Zealand with his role as Uncle Bully in the 1994 film Once Were Warriors. In the decades since, he has acted alongside Hollywood’s biggest stars in numerous big-budget films as well as some of New Zealand’s most iconic movies of recent decades, including Boy and Whale Rider. 

Curtis remains on bail, with conditions put in place today that he not contact the other driver and he not drive. His lawyer said the conditions, requested by police prosecutor Karam Talwar, were not disputed. 

Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.