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The Christchurch Civic
Creche Case |
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The rejection of a new call for a full
royal commission of inquiry into the case of convicted Christchurch childcare
worker Peter Ellis has been described as "cavalier" by Dunedin
author Lynley Hood. Associate Justice Minister Rick
Barker told a researcher working on Ellis' case that a royal commission
cannot be convened to determine the guilt or innocence of an individual as
its primary purpose. Researcher Ross Francis said today
that a letter from Mr Barker made it clear the Government would not be
establishing an inquiry into the case. "He agrees with the Justice
and Electoral select committee, which in 2005 concluded that a commission of
inquiry was unlikely to reach a better view of the facts than was reached at
Ellis' trial," Mr Francis said. Ms Hood, an Ellis supporter and
author of A City Possessed: The Christchurch Civic Creche Case, said Mr
Barker's decision was frustrating. "It's particularly
disappointing in the cavalier way he has dismissed the compelling new
evidence that's come forward that prompted the recent call," Ms Hood told
NZPA today. The request for a commission was
made in January by Ellis' lawyer, Judith Ablett-Kerr QC, to Justice Minister
Annette King, who delegated it to Mr Barker. Ellis was convicted in 1993 of
sexually molesting children at the Christchurch Civic Creche where he worked. One of the seven pre-schoolers he
was found guilty of abusing later retracted the allegations and three of
Ellis' convictions were quashed. Fresh doubts about the evidential
interviews of children in the case were cast last year in research findings
by Otago University academic Professor Harlene Hayne. She said there was a "strong
risk" that the evidence of children who told of sexual abuse by Ellis
was contaminated by the way the interviews were carried out. She urged the
courts to consider the case again. Ellis has always maintained his
innocence. He served two-thirds of a 10-year jail sentence. After his High Court trial and two
failed Court of Appeal hearings, a ministerial inquiry conducted by former
Chief Justice Sir Thomas Eichelbaum in 2000 found the interviewing of the
children was appropriate and had not been undermined or contaminated by
others. Ms Hood said Prof Hayne was a
highly respected psychological researcher whose work was independently
peer-reviewed all around the world. "For them to just say Sir
Thomas Eichelbaum said the interviewing was all right, so it's all right...
it's simply outrageous. "It shows the Ministry of
Justice is incapable of rationally and objectively evaluating new
evidence." Mr Francis said the flaws in
Ellis' trial, the failure of the appeals court to address expert opinion
evidence, and Prof Hayne's recent findings raised serious doubts about the
safety of Ellis' convictions. "I believe an inquiry of some
description needs to be set up in order to lay the case to rest." Ms Ablett-Kerr, who is still
working on a petition to take the case to the Privy Council, was unavailable
for comment today. If Ellis' case does make it to the
Privy Council it may be one of the last New Zealand cases heard there. The right for New Zealanders to
appeal there was abolished from January 1, 2004, with the establishment of
the Supreme Court. But appeals can still be made in
cases where the Court of Appeal made its final judgment or decision before
that date. |
