March 03, 2015
Pora appeal raises questions about justice
Greens co-leader Metiria Turei is welcoming a Privy Council decision to quash the conviction of Teina Pora for the 1992 rape and murder of Auckland woman Susan Burdett.
The Law Lords said the expert evidence they were given on the effects of Pora's fetal alcohol disorder meant that reliance on his confessions gives rise to a risk of a miscarriage of justice.
That gave Pora's lawyers four weeks to make submissions on whether there should be a third trial.
Ms Turei says Mr Pora has spent more than 20 years in jail, and he will need a lot of support to adjust to life outside.
She says the comprehensive nature of the Privy Council's judgment raises serious questions about the way the Susan Burdett murder case was handled.
"I think that there is a whole lot of wrong doing and we will see now what happens with the police, whether there is more investigation into what they actually did. In this case I'm really pleased it has been quashed,. It is long deserved," she says.
Ms Turei says Pora should be due compensation, but the Government's behaviour over David Bain's compensaiton request shows he could be in for a struggle.
Meanwhile Labour's justice spokesperson Jacinda Ardern says the Teina Pora case highlights the need for an independent body to deal with claims of wrongful conviction and miscarriage of justice.
She says a Criminal Cases Review Commission such as those in England, Scotland, and Norway would replace the Royal Prerogative of Mercy process, which is a lengthy and potentially conflicted procedure, leaving the decision to the ministry responsible for administering the justice system.
Ms Ardern says the justice system failed Teina Pora, and he spent more than 20 years in prison, despite overwhelming public evidence that a miscarriage of justice occurred.
FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH METIRTIA TUREI CLICK ON THE LINK
http://www.waateanews.com/play_podcast?podlink=MjY4NTc=
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