Sunday Star Times
August 3 2003

Ellis case transcripts go public
by Deidre Mussen

An Auckland businessman who offered a $100,000 reward for new evidence into convicted child sex abuser Peter Ellis' case has today revealed some of the children's withheld testimonies.

Millionaire National Business Review publisher Barry Colman has spent $20,500 on two full-page advertisements in today's Sunday Star-Times - despite efforts by Child, Youth and Family to stop publication - featuring excerpts of some children's taped testimonies never shown during Ellis' 1992 trial.

Justice Neil Williamson ruled some tapes could not be shown to the jury, preventing Ellis' defence lawyer from using them. The issue was later raised in a 1994 Court of Appeal case but was judged insufficient grounds to overturn his conviction. It was believed court-held copies of the tapes disappeared before the next Court of Appeal proceedings in 1998.

"I believe no jury would have ever convicted Ellis if they had been able to see the (withheld video) tapes," Colman said.

Ellis, a former Christchurch Civic Creche worker, spent seven years of a 10-year sentence in jail after being found guilty in 1993 of abusing seven creche children. He was freed in 2000 and has claimed he was innocent.

Colman, a director of Amnesty International's Freedom Foundation, said he had a great interest in civil liberties.

"It's not the same as a political prisoner being locked up but I believe Peter Ellis was a victim of a hysterical witch-hunt."

His actions were aimed at pressuring Justice Minister Phil Goff into a royal commission of inquiry into an alleged miscarriage of justice.

Ellis' high court trial and two appeals were followed by a a ministerial inquiry by former chief justice Sir Thomas Eichelbaum.

Controversy was fanned in 2001 by author Lynley Hood's book A City Possessed, based on her seven-year investigation into Ellis' case.

The book attracted Colman's attention to the case.

"I thought the outcome of the case was quite astonishing and considering what the book exposed, I thought there would be an inquiry and that he would receive a pardon."

But that didn't happen so Colman joined a group of high-profile New Zealanders in signing a petition calling for a royal commission of inquiry.

When nothing resulted, Colman decided in June to offer the hefty reward for new evidence, despite never meeting or talking to Ellis.

During the month-long appeal, 12 people came forward with information but none was sufficient to qualify as new evidence. Finally, another person gave him the withheld transcripts. Colman said no one wanted the reward.

Ellis' former lawyer Rob Harrison told the Sunday Star-Times he remained convinced the jury would not have convicted Ellis had it heard all the children's transcripts.

Goff has steadfastly refused an inquiry unless new evidence is uncovered.

Ellis' lawyer, Dunedin QC Judith Ablett Kerr, said in a statement last week she had no involvement with Colman's proposals.

She said she would attempt to advance Ellis' case through "the appropriate channel of the Privy Council".

Ablett Kerr declined to give further details.

In May last year, she was quoted saying Ellis was poised to take his case to the Privy Council before New Zealand cut ties with the London-based court.

At the time, Ablett Kerr said the council would be asked to review all parts of the case, including legal rulings made during the trial.

That would include rulings preventing all the transcripts from being heard in the high court trial.