Hawke's Bay Today
Hastings, New Zealand.
Saturday, December 8, 2001.
Modern day witch hunt uncovered
A City
Possessed – The Christchurch Civic creche Case,
by Lynley hood (Longacre Press, $59.95).
Reviewed by Peter de Graaf.
Even before you open A City Possessed, the cover - with its Gothic
lettering and 17th century woodcut - hints at the author's conclusion. Peter
Ellis, convicted for child sexual abuse in one of the most shocking criminal
cases of the last decade, was the victim of a witch hunt.
It's an edifying, meticulously researched read, but this 600-page work is
unlikely to be a popular stocking filler. Instead, it's a book that will (or
should) be studied by lawyers, sociologists, psychologists and childhealth
workers.
Hood spent seven years on the project and, unlike some recent books on other
high-profile cases, she did not set out to prove Ellis' innocence. Instead, she
was motivated at first by her interest in folk tales and how they shape our
beliefs.
Hood's tale begins 30 years ago, tracing the inexorable rise of the "moral
panic" that meant someone, somewhere, would be accused of ritual child
sexual abuse.
If Hood is right, Peter Ellis' greatest crime was being in the wrong place at
the wrong time. His homosexuality, hard drinking and unconventional behaviour
made him the modern witch hunt's equivalent of the elderly widow.
Although the evidence against Ellis was enough to lose him a trial and two
appeals, Hood raises serious questions about his convictions: the leading
questions put to child witnesses, the manipulation of video evidence, the
mysterious discharge of all other accused, and the shift of the crimes from the
creche to mystery locations, aided by mystery accomplices.
Importantly, Hood shows that none of the people involved conspired to jail an
innocent man. All were driven by a desire to uncover child abuse and punish its
perpetrators.
Whatever you make of Hood's conclusion, A City Possessed can only cast
more doubt on Ellis' convictions and on our legal processes. But more chilling
still is the thought of how little has changed from 17th century Salem to 20th
century Christchurch.