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The Dominion Post
August 5, 2002
New allegations still to be put to crèche pair
by David McLoughlin
Christchurch police are yet to speak to former Civic Crèche worker Peter
Ellis and former crèche supervisor Gaye Davidson about "new"
allegations of child abuse believed to date from a decade ago.
Ellis said yesterday that one of the detectives who asked him more than a
fortnight ago to visit the police station with his lawyer had now gone
overseas for three weeks, but wanted to see him on his return.
Ms Davidson said she had not been approached since two detectives left their
business cards at her house asking her to contact them.
Ellis spent almost seven years in jail after being convicted in 1993 of 16
counts of sexual abuse of pre-schoolers at the creche. He has always claimed
his innocence.
Ms Davidson is one of four women crèche staff who were also arrested and
charged with abuse. The charges against them were dropped just before Ellis's
trial. She has always maintained that no children were abused at the Civic Crèche,
by Ellis or anyone else.
The new abuse allegations are believed to have come from an adult who has
been in therapy and "remembered" events which supposedly took place
while he was a child at the crèche.
Ms Davidson was horrified when she learned police had reopened the case and
felt she was back living in a nightmare. But she said yesterday it had all
gone quiet and she had not heard more from the detectives. She had asked her
lawyer to ask police what lay behind the new allegations, but had not heard
back from him.
Ellis said he had not yet spoken to his lawyer, Dunedin-based Judith
Ablett-Kerr QC, who had been overseas.
He said the police had gone too far by dragging Ms Davidson back into the
limelight.
"If they were just looking at me, it would be okay, but they should
leave Gaye alone. It's gone beyond a joke."
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