|
The
Dominion
December 2, 1997
Petition asks for pardoning of Ellis
by Alan Samson
A petition for the pardon of childcare worker Peter Ellis, convicted of child
abuse, was delivered to Governor-General Sir Michael Hardie Boys yesterday.
Delivered by two barristers on behalf of Ellis's counsel, Judith Ablett-Kerr,
it was later couriered to Justice Minister Doug Graham.
There was no indication what the ministerial response would be.
A spokeswoman for Mr Graham said the petition would be given to officials to
examine in what was likely to be "an intensive, time-consuming process.
It could take months", she said.
Senior Wellington barrister Gary Turkington said there was no time limit on
deciding whether a free pardon -- where a conviction is deemed not to have
occurred -- should be granted.
Such petitions were "very rare", but could be referred to the Court
of Appeal by the governor-general "on the advice of the minister of
justice with a view to getting the court to rule whether the conviction
should remain".
The court could make a ruling leading to the governor-general granting a free
pardon -- but, again, on the advice of the justice minister.
The court could order a retrial, Mr Turkington said.
It could also find the original conviction "safe, which would probably
be the end of the matter".
Counsel for Ellis would still have the option of referring the matter to the
Privy Council, "but I think it would be a forlorn hope".
"The Court of Appeal has looked at such cases, but they're quite
rare."
Dean Wickliffe had his conviction for murder overturned in 1986 for one of
manslaughter, but the sentence remained the same.
Convicted murderer Ross Appelgren was granted a new trial in 1994, but was
again convicted.
The only full pardon believed to have been granted was to Arthur Allan Thomas
in 1979.
However, that was the result of the recommendations of a separate commission
of inquiry being recognised by the government of the day.
|
