|
|
Allegations
of Sexual Abuse in NZ |
|
A 47-year-old woman
stood shaking in the dock today as she sought diversion on a charge of
falsely claiming she had been attacked and stabbed by a man while jogging in
Christchurch's Styx Mill Reserve. Police put hundreds of
hours into the investigation and called on public help to find the apparently
dangerous attacker who had injured the woman, before deciding to charge her. Christchurch District
Court Judge Oke Blaikie granted interim suppression of her name because of
health problems raised in a written memorandum submitted by her lawyer, Al
Manco. But the judge said he
wanted transparency in the court process and was not willing to endorse an
application for a remand so that the diversion scheme for first offenders
could be used. The woman has been
charged that on May 19 she made a false complaint in a written statement to a
police constable, stating an offence of assault with intent to rob had been
committed. When the case was first
called, Judge Blaikie stood it down for further talks between Mr Manco and
police but said he wanted transparency because of the intense interest in the
case. When it was recalled,
he accepted a plea of not guilty and a remand to a status hearing on August
14. The judge said the not
guilty plea would not rule out diversion being granted at the status hearing.
He said he was required
to weigh up the public and private interests to decide the question of name
suppression. "I have to be
satisfied there are compelling reasons or very special circumstances for an
order to be made suppressing your name." He said he had received
an extensive medical report from a senior and experienced medical specialist.
"That makes it
very clear to me that prior to the commission of the alleged offence, your
health had plummeted to such a point that it was clearly a significant factor
in the events that followed." He said he was
referring to psychological issues. The report spoke of her debilitating
illness and acute stress factors that had occurred prior to the event. "There are
circumstances beyond the usual, that are significant, compelling and very
special, and on that basis I make an interim order for suppression of
name," Judge Blaikie said. |
