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The Dominion
May 4, 2002
Ellis turns to Privy Council
Peter
Ellis, jailed for 10 years after being convicted of child sex abuse, would
almost certainly take his case to the Privy Council, his lawyer, Judith
Ablett Kerr, said yesterday.
Ellis, who was found guilty of abusing seven children from a Christchurch creche in
1993 and freed from jail in 2000, has always maintained his innocence. But he
has exhausted all avenues in New
Zealand to clear his name.
Mrs Ablett Kerr said that after months of considering the options, he was
poised to take his case to the Privy Council before New Zealand severed ties with the
London-based court.
Attorney-General Margaret Wilson has outlined plans to set up a stand-alone,
five-judge Supreme Court to act as the final appeal court for New Zealand.
The Criminal Bar Association opposes the move, saying there is not enough
high-level legal expertise in New
Zealand.
Mrs Ablett Kerr said the Privy Council was a hugely expensive endeavour and a
disappointing move for Ellis and his mother, Lesley, to make.
"You have a man who really thought that New Zealand would sort it out. He
was really quite convinced of that."
Ellis had been reluctant to take the case to London, she said. "But it may be that
they are left with no alternative but to do that."
His latest efforts to clear his name failed a year ago when Justice Minister
Phil Goff advised governor-general Sir Michael Hardie Boys not to give him
the pardon he had asked for.
That followed a ministerial inquiry by former chief justice Sir Thomas
Eichelbaum, two Court of Appeal proceedings and a High Court trial.
Children's commissioner Roger McClay has pleaded for the case to "go
away" so the children and their families involved can get on with their
lives.
Ellis's supporters have refused to give up. In the past year, they hung their
hopes on a book by Lynley Hood, A City Possessed, which followed her
seven-year investigation into Ellis's case. In February, there were calls for
Mr Goff to start a new inquiry when the New Zealand Law Journal highlighted
flaws in the way his case was handled.
The Privy Council would be asked to review the entire case, including the
legal rulings that were made during the trial and the decision of the Court
of Appeal to look at only part of the case, Mrs Ablett Kerr said.
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