The Dominion Post
August 28 2004
Police rape inquiry on hold
by Haydon Dewes
THE commission of inquiry
into police conduct is on hold -- possibly for years -- till an investigation
decides whether past and present officers should face criminal charges.
The commission announced
yesterday it would not meet again till late October and had no plans to begin
hearing evidence till any possible court action had finished.
The delay has come as a
body blow to two women whose allegations led to the commission of inquiry, but
they remain confident that justice will eventually be done.
In a ruling issued
yesterday, commissioners Justice Bruce Robertson and Dame Margaret Bazley said there was a "very real risk" that
police investigations into rape claims by Rotorua woman Louise Nicholas and Kaitaia woman Judith Garrett could be contaminated by the
commission proceeding.
Ms Nicholas said
yesterday frustration had crept in as the police investigation dragged on, but
she was adamant that it be done right. "If it means that the commission
has to take a break and sit back and wait, well hey, it's going to have to
happen."
Her heart went out to the
other women who had come forward, and she urged them to "hang in
there".
Ms Garrett agreed the
delay was yet another frustration in her pursuit for justice. She was satisfied
with the police investigation so far into her rape claims, but urged police not
to drag the chain with their inquiries.
The commission was established
after Ms Nicholas alleged in The Dominion Post in January that she was
pack-raped and violated with a police baton by three police officers in 1986
when she was 18. She named Assistant Commissioner Clint Rickards and two former
officers as the men who raped her.
The trio have denied the
allegations and say the sex was consensual.
Mr Rickards was stood
down as the
The allegations were followed
by details of Ms Garrett's alleged rape by a policeman in 1988 being sent to
Prime Minister Helen Clark.
Yesterday's ruling by
Justice Robertson and Dame Margaret included details of previously confidential
meetings by the commission, which show that it became apparent soon after it
was established in February that a police investigation could take some time
and that issues of conflict would probably arise if both were run together.
In a private meeting with
Police Commissioner Rob Robinson on May 10, it was decided the commission's
work would be conducted so as not to impede or contaminate the police inquiry.
This meant at least eight cases that had been brought to the attention of the
commission could not be investigated.
Police spokesman Jon Neilson
said yesterday that he was unsure of when the criminal investigation would be
completed.
In July, police
investigating Ms Nicholas' alleged rape arrested four men in connection with a
separate rape complaint, referring to Mt Maunganui at
New Year in 1989.
In yesterday's ruling,
Justice Robertson referred to a fifth man, a former police officer, who was
arrested on eight rape and sex offence charges this month, all relating to one
woman, more than a decade ago. The man, whose details are suppressed, appeared
in Whangarei District Court this month and was bailed
till October.