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Otago Daily Times
May 4 2002
Ellis case could be election issue - Hood
by Fiona Clarkson
The Peter Ellis case could become an election issue, the
author of a book calling for a full case review and pardon for the former
Christchurch man believes.
Responding to a National Business Review-Compaq poll which showed 51
percent of New Zealanders believed the former creche worker was innocent of
the child sexual abuse charges he was jailed for, author Lynley Hood said all
political parties should be interested in the issue.
"If the Government doesn't take it up, it could be a strong election
platform for another party given the strong electorate support," she
said.
The poll comes as Ellis' lawyer, Judith Ablett-Kerr QC, revealed she was
preparing to take the case to the Privy Council. She will file a petition in
the next month seeking special leave from the London-based council to proceed
with an appeal there.
The poll, taken at the beginning of April, found only 25 percent of people
surveyed believed Ellis to be guilty, while 24 percent were unsure or refused
to answer.
In Christchurch,
where the case originated, 55 percent of people said he was not guilty.
The poll also assessed people's beliefs of the guilty verdicts for convicted
murderers David Bain, Scott Watson and Mark Lundy.
It found 40 percent of people believed Bain to be innocent, with 33 percent
believing the verdict that he had killed his family was correct.
The Watson and Lundy verdicts were better supported, with 59 percent
believing Watson to be guilty and 76 percent agreeing Lundy was.
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