A secondary school teacher “thought it would be fun” for 15 students to take a ride in a trailer he was towing, as they’d been working hard all morning on a school fundraiser. 

But after towing the students from a ute around the grounds of Horowhenua College, Dylan Kiriona took a sharp turn and the trailer tipped, detached from the tow-bar and spilt students onto the field they’d been driving around. 

All 15 students had abrasions of some kind and were seen by paramedics, while four students were taken to the hospital; three with fractures and one with a concussion. 

The parents of the injured children did not support police charging Kiriona for the injuries, and three criminal charges of careless driving causing injury were withdrawn. 

Kiriona instead faced two charges of careless driving and a single charge of driving causing injury, both of which he was discharged without conviction for in 2023. 

However, the Teacher’s Council wanted Kiriona’s licence cancelled and laid its own charges before the Teachers’ Disciplinary Tribunal. 

Now, in a recently released decision, the tribunal, which is independent of the Teachers’ Council, has said that cancelling or suspending Kiriona’s licence wasn’t necessary and instead ordered that he be formally censured for the incident. 

According to the tribunal’s decision, the judge who dealt with the criminal case was surprised that three charges of careless driving causing injury were withdrawn. 

However, the decision to discharge him without conviction relied on his strong community support, as well as the result of an internal investigation by the school and Kiriona’s participation in a whānau hui. 

Horowhenua College was the scene of an incident that resulted in four children being injured during a fundraising event on Sunday, April 3, 2022. Photo / Supplied 

A complaints assessment committee (CAC) of the Teachers’ Council wanted Kiriona’s registration cancelled, given his conduct meant four students were seriously injured. 

In submissions to the tribunal, the CAC said that no safety briefing was given to the students, Kiriona’s driving caused the trailer to roll, the vehicle and trailer were in an unsafe condition, and there were 15 students packed into it. 

It was alleged that Kiriona showed little insight into the cause of the incident. 

In its decision, the tribunal said that Kiriona’s behaviour amounted to serious misconduct. 

“The decision to allow 15 students to enter the trailer with the intention of towing them around the field, and then doing so, regardless of whether any ‘briefing’ was given, was inherently risky and displayed a lack of judgment,” the tribunal said. 

“This was an accident, but an accident due to misconduct and which caused harm. There is evidence of significant physical injuries to at least four children, and abrasions to others.” 

However, the tribunal found that neither cancellation nor suspension of his teaching registration was required. 

“This appears to be a one-off incident, and Mr Kiriona has continued to teach with the support of his principal. The risk of recurrence is low,” the tribunal said. 

“We accept that there is no obvious need for a penalty which is imposed for protective purposes or to provide reassurance about Mr Kiriona’s teaching. 

“However, it is important to reflect disapproval for a culpable breach of professional standards, and to ensure that those who need to be aware of this matter are.” 

Jeremy Wilkinson is an Open Justice reporter based in Manawatū, covering courts and justice issues with an interest in tribunals. He has been a journalist for nearly a decade and has worked for NZME since 2022.