The Christchurch Civic Creche Case
	News Reports Index
	1999 July-Dec
	The Evening Post July 8 1999 Ellis jury had `full picture' - Crown NZPA The jury that found Peter Ellis guilty of sex offences in 1993 had the "full picture," the Court of Appeal was told yesterday. Ellis is serving a 10-year jail sentence in Christchurch after being convicted of 13 charges of abusing children at the Christchurch Civic Creche and other Christchurch addresses. On the third day of Ellis' second appeal, Simon France, from the Crown Law Office, said "the new evidence just isn't there". Ellis lost his first appeal in 1994. Ellis' lawyer, Judith Ablett-Kerr, has argued for the convictions to be quashed on six grounds: techniques used to obtain evidence, risks of contamination, retraction of evidence, the trial procedure, the jury and the non-disclosure of material. The defence had said that later research had produced a clearer understanding of children's development compared to 1992. However, Mr France said the research was limited and the risks it exposed were not quantifiable beyond broad assessments. "Some of the (appeal) material would seem plainly inadmissible, such as experts giving their opinion on a particular child's credibility, or testimony that as a group parents cannot be believed." He said there was "nothing new" factually in attempts by the defence to prove that the children's evidence had been contaminated by repeated interviews with their parents. "The repackaging of existing material does not amount to new and cogent material." While defence lawyer Greg King said the retraction of one child's evidence was an important factor that was overlooked by the trial jury, Mr France said the conviction relating from that allegation was quashed. "That is where the significance begins and ends."