In 1993 a gay man called Peter Ellis was convicted and sentenced to 10 years in jail on charges he had sexually abused seven children at a child care centre in Christchurch, New Zealand. Despite concerns about how the investigation was handled, unreliable testimony and a retraction from one of the key witnesses, several appeals against his conviction were unsuccessful.
In October 2022 however, the New Zealand Supreme Court found that evidence against him, and misleading expert testimony in the original trial had resulted in a miscarriage of justice and therefore quashed all of the convictions. Peter Ellis himself was unable to savour that decision as he had died of bladder cancer in 2019.
Joining me now to discuss the case and appeal process is Peter Ellis’s long term lawyer and supporter Rob Harrison.
Press play to listen to the interview:
