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The
Christchurch Civic Creche Case |
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Wellington: National
Party leader Don Brash said yesterday he supported a call for an independent
body to identify miscarriages of justice. He was commenting on a
report by retired High Court judge Sir Thomas Thorp, which said up to 20
people may be wrongly imprisoned in New Zealand. Sir Thomas has called
for an independent authority to be set up to identify miscarriages of
justice. The recommendation
follows a two-year study of the nature and incidence of miscarriages of
justice, and the way New Zealand and comparable countries deal with such
claims. Sir Thomas looked into
the Peter Ellis Christchurch creche case for the Government. Dr Brash and National
MP Katherine Rich supported the call for a Royal Commission of Inquiry into
the Ellis case in 2003, and attracted support from 11 law professors and two
former prime ministers for the inquiry. It is cases like the
Peter Ellis case that highlight the need for an independent body with the
resources and authority to investigate possible miscarriages of justice, Dr
Brash said. It is critical that the
public have complete confidence in our legal system. The Ellis case cast
doubt in people’s minds. An independent
authority would take steps towards alleviating the public’s concerns. Sir Thomas said up to a
score of New Zealand inmates may be wrongly jailed. Analysis of 53
applications to the Justice Ministry claimed miscarriages of justice from
1995 to 2002, he revealed. Of these, he classified: • 26% as raising issues
that clearly required careful investigation. • 16% were plainly without
merit. • 58% had sufficient potensome further investigation. Sir Thomas’ report,
titled Miscarriages of Justice, has been published by the Legal Research
Foundation, a non-profit body associated with Auckland University’s law
faculty. Sir Thomas believed
there were proportionally fewer complaints of miscarriages of justice in New
Zealand than in Britain. Counsel for Ellis,
Judith Ablett Kerr QC, said the proposal looked extremely interesting. From what I’ve been
able to understand at present, I’m supportive. It’s something I’ve
been pushing for several years, not just in relation to the Ellis case. It’s positive to see
some momentum in relation to the adoption of the select committee’s
recommendations. In August, Parliament’s
justice and electoral committee also recommended the establishment of a body
to look into miscarriages of justice. |
