The Christchurch Civic Crèche Case
	News Reports Index
	1992
	The Press September 14 1992 Schools denied detail on sex offender NZPA Wellington – The Teacher Registration Board says it has been refused information on a convicted sex offender who may be teaching. The board is appealing to the High Court for details of the case so it can assess whether the teacher should be deregistered. In the meantime, any school employing the teacher could be unaware of his background. The board.director, Mr Peter Barlow, said it was an important test case for the board. "If withholding the information is going to be a habit, our statutory responsibility becomes extremely difficult," he said. If the High Court bid failed, the board would ask the Solicitor-General for the law to be revised. The case comes after a district court turned down an application from the board for information on a teacher convicted and jailed for a sexual offence in February. Details were suppressed, and the court has continued to refuse to make them available to the board. The offence occurred some years before and did not involve pupils at the school where the man was last employed. However, the school asked the board to investigate whether the man should be deregistered. It was possible he was now out of jail and could be teaching, Mr Barlow said. It was the first time a court had refused to make this sort of information available on a confidential basis to .the board. The board's lawyer had been seeking for several months to get the information and an application had been lodged with the High Court. "We can't even present a piece of paper to say this man has gone to court and what the charges are. All we have is a newspaper report with the details suppressed," Mr Barlow said. The district court judge initially declined to suppress the evidence because a teacher was involved. However, the defendant approached the High Court for suppression and the district court's ruling was overturned. When the board asked the district court for the details, it was told of .the High Court's suppression order. Mr Barlow said no date had been set for its hearing and it could take months or even years. Teachers do not have to be registered but almost all are, and a list of those who have been deregistered is available to schools. Deregistration indicates either incompetence or a serious offence.