NZ judge allows images of Christchurch accused

A New Zealand judge has ruled that media outlets can now show the face of the man accused of killing 51 people at two Christchurch mosques.

Previously, the courts ruled media could only publish images which pixelated the face of Brenton Harrison Tarrant, the 28-year-old Australian white supremacist accused of the March 15 mass shooting.

But High Court Judge Cameron Mander on Thursday wrote that prosecutors had advised him there was no longer any need to suppress images of the man's face and he was lifting the order.

Retired law professor Bill Hodge says the initial argument for suppression was likely made to ensure witnesses weren't tainted — that they could identify the gunman from their own recollection and not from seeing a picture in a newspaper.