The Christchurch Civic Creche Case
	News Reports
	2004
	National Business Review October 15 2004 Radio NZ balks at BSA order to apologise to Peter Ellis by John Drinnan Radio New Zealand is optimistic about settling a new contract for Linda Clark to host the National Radio Nine to Noon show. But at the same time as courting Ms Clark, Radio NZ's lawyers at law firm Izard Weston are trying to limit the latent damage from a August 25, 2003 interview - a heavily criticised broadcast in which she waded into the controversy surrounding former Christchurch Civic Creche worker Peter Ellis. Last month the interview attracted the Broadcasting Standards Authority's toughest ever penalty against a radio programme. With her strong Kiwi accent and left-of-centre politics, Ms Clark's role on Nine to Noon has been a "love it or hate it" part of National Radio since she took over two years ago. But the BSA has questioned aspects of her approach in eliciting information in the interview with people making allegations against Mr Ellis. Indeed, Radio NZ has signalled it faces the prospect of a defamation suit from Mr Ellis and raised concerns with the BSA about the impact of a BSA-ordered apology. Mr Ellis complained to the BSA that Ms Clark's August 25, 2003, interview made unsubstantiated allegations about him. The BSA found the Clark interview with new allegations by a former Christchurch Civic Creche child, "Nathan," and his mother amounted to a breach of fairness and that the interview was "so unfair it may never have been able to be balanced." Mr Ellis refused an invitation from Radio NZ to respond to the unsubstantiated and unspecific allegations on air, saying he did not like Ms Clark's approach. Mr Ellis has been at the centre of controversial sex-abuse allegations related to the Christchurch creche where he started working in August 1986 but has always denied any wrongdoing. The Clark interview broadcast in August 2003 was distinct from previous allegations that had seen Mr Ellis serve a prison term. "Nathan" claimed Mr Ellis sexually abused him when he attended the creche for a few weeks in 1985 - before Mr Ellis started working there. Radio NZ had rejected Mr Ellis' complaints about the Clark interview. But it is not now challenging the fundamental breaches of standards for fairness and balance detailed by the BSA. What it is challenging are the BSA's orders that Radio NZ apologise to Mr Ellis and that it print explanations of its actions and the events in metropolitan newspapers. The authority raised concern "at what amounted to a serious disregard for Mr Ellis' rights." "Mr Ellis has been convicted of and has served a prison sentence for sexual offences against young children at the Christchurch Civic Creche. He is nonetheless a citizen of this country and, like all other citizens, is entitled to be treated justly and fairly." In June 1993, a jury in the High Court at Christchurch found Peter Ellis guilty on 16 of 25 charges of committing sexual offences against young children at the Christchurch Civic Creche. He was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment. In September 1994 the Court of Appeal quashed three of the convictions relating to one of the children who had retracted her accusations during the course of the appeal hearing and dismissed the rest of the appeal. In February 2000 Mr Ellis was released from prison, having served the mandatory two-thirds of his sentence. Mr Ellis has always maintained his innocence and there has been deep-seated controversy in the media about the case. In March 2001 former chief justice Sir Thomas Eichelbaum released his report on a ministerial inquiry, which found Mr Ellis failed by a "distinct margin" to satisfy the inquiry that the convictions were unsafe or that a particular conviction was unsafe. UNSUBSTANTIATED ALLEGATIONS: The BSA found Linda Clark's interview with a former Christchurch Civic Creche child 'was so unfair it may never have been able to be balanced'