New Zealand's justice minister resigns after car crash

ISTANBUL

New Zealand's Justice Minister Kiri Allan resigned on Monday following a car crash in Wellington and being charged with reckless driving and resisting arrest.

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said Allan was involved in the crash shortly after 9 p.m. local time (0900GMT) on Sunday, and was held in custody for four hours.

She was also handed an infringement notice for having excess breath alcohol.

"While her alleged actions are inexcusable, I’ve been advised she was experiencing extreme emotional distress at the time of the incident. Her recent personal struggles with mental health have been well documented and it appears some of those issues came to a head yesterday," Hipkins said in a statement.

The premier said he advised Allan that she was not in fit state to be a minister, and that it's "untenable" for a justice minister to be charged with criminal offending. She agreed and resigned from her ministerial roles, he added.

Meanwhile, Hipkins, who took over as prime minister in January after the resignation of Jacinda Ardern, appointed Ginny Andersen as the new justice minister.​​​​​​​