The Christchurch Civic Creche Case
	News Reports Index
	1994 Index
	The Independent September 23, 1994 TVNZ fined for breaching court's name suppression by Nikki Mandow TVNZ has been fined $650 and told to pay $95 costs for broadcasting the name of one of the complainants during television coverage of the trial of Christchurch creche worker Peter Ellis on sex abuse charges. In the Auckland District Court yesterday, TVNZ pleaded guilty to breaching a name suppression order on a One Network News bulletin on 8 September. The case was brought by Solicitor-General John McGrath. TVNZ's lawyer Willy Akel said the inadvertent broadcasting of the name, which was clearly audible as part of an item showing Ellis' mother taking a call telling her of the Appeal Court judgment regarding her son, was a true mistake and due to human error. But the judge said TVNZ was under an obligation to get things right and mistakes undermined confidence in suppression orders. A TVNZ spokesman said broadcasting the name was the result of a "chain of circumstances." It should not be able to happen again since the company has changed procedures. Meanwhile, judges in the Wellington High Court have reserved decision on the Herald-Tribune and the Gisborne Herald, accused by the Solicitor-General of contempt of court for their reporting of the John Gillies stabbing incident last year. McGrath argues articles saying Gilles had previous convictions for assaulting police officers were contemptuous because they were likely to interfere with the fair administration of justice. The papers argue that such matters are of compelling public interest and that the courts are restricting free speech by expecting news media to wait until trials are finished before publishing such details.