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The Press
December 5, 1992.
Creche child 'threw tantrums'
The behaviour of a child complainant In the
Christchurch Civic Childcare Centre inquiry changed dramatically during her
attendance at the creche, a preliminary hearing in the District Court was
told yesterday.
The change became apparent after she was moved to the "big end" of
the creche set aside for older children, her mother told the court.
She began throwing tantrums for no apparent reason, would hit her parents,
throw things, and sometimes hurt herself. As her verbal skills developed she
began to swear and told her parents she was going to cut them up, burn them,
and throw them in a rubbish tin.
Things reached a point where she would be put in her room because it was
impossible to reason with her, her mother said.
The mother, whose name is suppressed, was giving evidence during a hearing to
decide if five former childcare centre staff accused of sexually abusing some
children who attended the creche, will be sent for trial.
Peter Hugh McGregor Ellis, aged 34, faces 45 indecency charges. The former
manager of the creche, Gaye Jocelyn Davidson, aged 39, Janice Virginia
Buckingham, aged 44, and Marie Keys, aged 44, each face four charges.
Deborah Janet Gillespie, aged 30, faces three charges.
The witness said she trusted the staff at the creche and she consulted Keys
about her daughter's behaviour. Keys had suggested she use a star chart for
her daughter at bed time.
She had also told Ellis of the difficulties she was having with her daughter
and he had said she was fine at the creche
The mother said she became so desperate she telephoned Parentline and was
advised to contact the Home and Family Society, but did not take the matter
further. When her child began primary school she was noticeably behind other
children in terms of physical development. She was incapable of doing simple tasks
such as pushing a hoop.
She was sometimes "very, very mean" to people close to her, such as
her grandmothers and close friends of the family.
Her behaviour began to improve after she started to talk about her alleged
abuse. However she would become worse again for about a week after her
interviews with the specialist services unit of the Department of Social
Welfare, the witness said.
On one occasion her daughter had said she did not want to grow up and wanted
to kill herself. When later asked why, she said Ellis had told her she would
hurt little children when she grew up.
The witness said one day her daughter and a friend from the creche had been
playing princes and princesses at home when her friend wanted to kiss her
daughter, "quite passionately", on the mouth. Her daughter did not
want to kiss her in that way.
On the same day her daughter's friend had shown an interest in the baby son
who was lying in the sun with his nappy off. She began running a toy car over
his penis and testicles and fondled his penis.
On another day when she called to play, her daughter's friend went straight
to the son who again had no nappy on. She began stroking his penis, pulling
on the end, trying to make it erect, the witness said.
When she picked her boy up the girl came after her, grabbing at her son's
penis. The girl had screamed at her to shut up and then ran to the pantry and
began pulling food out.
The witness said she was aware that Ellis had been baby-sitting her
daughter’s friend at that time and became quite anxious at her behaviour.
She told how on an earlier occasion, in November 1989, Ellis had visited her
house unexpectedly and began to chat. He asked if he could say goodnight to
her daughter, who was in bed. The witness said she thought that was "nice"
and took him to her room where he sat on the edge of her daughter's bed. She
left them alone for about five minutes to say goodnight.
Cross-examined by counsel for the four women defendants, Mr Gerald Nation,
the mother said she had been telephoned by a friend who told her of
disclosures made by another child who said Ellis had taken her daughter into
a toilet where he showed her his penis
The witness said she had repeated what she had been told to her daughter when
she questioned her about the allegation. In retrospect she knew that was the
wrong thing to do but had not been conscious of that feeling at the time. Her
overriding feeling at the time had been to discover what had happened.
She said she had been advised by an assistant psychologist at specialist
services, Ms Susan Sidey, at a meeting for parents in November, that she
should should not ask leading questions of her child.
The father of another child who attended the creche told the court during
cross-examination by counsel for Ellis, Mr Robert Harrison, that he had found
it "puzzling" that he had not noticed any physical injuries on his
son consistent with some of the abuse his son said had happened to him.
The hearing is not expected to finish until about the end of January.
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