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The Peter Ellis web
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In early 2004, a woman made public
allegations of rape against a former police officer. She sent these
allegations to the Prime Minister. Within a day, the Prime Minister saw fit
to publicly comment on the allegations, saying "Believe me, what was
sent to me ...my hair stood on end" . The Prime Minister claimed that
the allegations were the "final straw" when she considered the
Government's response to other allegations of rape against the police. And
despite the fact that the courts had already considered the investigation of
the allegations, the Prime Minister was responsible for including the claims
into the terms of reference for a commission of Inquiry into police conduct. On 8 November 2006, the man was
acquitted. Through superb investigation the accused man was fortunate to
overcome the hurdles of an historical allegation and finding witnesses and
evidence that would prove his innocence. There is no doubt that the case
only proceeded because the Prime Minister had become involved and referred
the case to the inquiry. As a consequence a man was unnecessarily subjected
to a long and arduous emotional ordeal, and to financial ruin. "The Prime Minister should
immediately issue an apology to the man and his family for her political
involvement in the case", peterellis.org spokesperson Paula Weir says.
"A sincere apology could and should be accompanied by an offer of
compensation for the man's expenses". The Prime Minister and her legal
advisors should also be forcefully reminded that truthfulness is not
necessarily correlated with how far the hairs on a person's head stand on
end.
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