Media statement
For immediate release
Tuesday, 29 January 2008

Ellis deserves Royal Commission of Inquiry - Dunne

UnitedFuture leader Peter Dunne is backing a request from Judith Ablett-Kerr, the lawyer of Peter Ellis, to hold a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the 1993 child-molestation case.

“There is a serious risk that a grave injustice has been done to Mr Ellis and there is enough doubt over the investigation and conviction, that a Royal Commission to examine his case is appropriate and necessary,” says Mr Dunne.

“There has been a widely held view for a long time that this case was poorly managed and a perception that Ellis may have been the victim of an over-zealous investigation.”

One of the preschoolers has since retracted the allegations, three of Ellis’ convictions have since been quashed, and new academic research last year has cast further doubts on the methodology used to question very young children.

“A Royal Commission would have the authority and credibility to resolve this matter once and for all.

“This case is in danger of being forgotten now that Mr Ellis has been released - but nevertheless he deserves the chance to clear his name, if indeed he has been wrongly convicted,” says Mr Dunne.

ENDS

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