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Lesley Ellis, mother of convicted
child abuser Peter Ellis, made her strongest appeal yet yesterday on behalf
of her son, delivering a written plea to Justice Minister Tony Ryall for a
royal commission of inquiry. Mrs Ellis's letter to Mr Ryall,
together with letters calling for support to every other member of
Parliament, were received on Parliament steps by NZ First leader Winston
Peters and party whip Ron Mark. Ellis's case is awaiting judgment
from the Court of Appeal. Should the appeal be declined and Mr Ryall consent
to an inquiry, it would be unlikely any action could be taken before Ellis
was freed from prison. He is due out, automatically, after
two-thirds of his sentence has been served, in February. Asked if this was a last-ditch
attempt to free her son, Mrs Ellis said: "I've been doing this for eight
years, I'm not going to give up now." Yesterday, Ellis was to have been
let out on home leave from He would also decline Christmas
Day leave should it be offered -- Mrs Ellis had recently been visited by
authorities to judge if her home was "suitable" for a Christmas
visit. But Ellis, convicted in 1993 on 13
abuse charges at Mr Peters said he supported an
inquiry because he held grave concerns about some aspects of the case, and an
inquiry should proceed even after Ellis was freed. "I don't see why someone
should go through life a convicted felon if they're innocent," he said. Mrs Ellis's letter questions the
narrowness of focus of two appeal hearings. "I have learned from the
appeal that other countries have recognised the need for special care in
creche-type cases and "Why as a country do we in A Court of Appeal registry
spokeswoman said there had been no indication of an appeal decision. The
appeal hearing ended on July 8. A spokesman for Mr Ryall would
only say that the appeal for an inquiry would be considered. |
