Peter Hugh McGregor Ellis

Four female co-workers were charged with similar offences. At his trial, Ellis faced 28 charges involving 13 children. In June 1993, he was found guilty on 16 charges and was sentenced to 10 years' imprisonment. He was released on parole on 2 February 2000 after serving the mandatory two-thirds of his sentence. Although eligible for parole from March 1998, Ellis refused to appear before the parole board, saying he would prefer to stay in jail if accepting parole required him to admit to a crime that he did not commit. Read Less

At depositions they faced 15 charges that included sexual violation, indecent assault and one charge of performing an indecent act in a public place. The charges were dropped, after depositions, on three grounds: firstly that evidence against them was of insufficient weight to justify a trial; secondly that there was so great a potential for prejudice against them that they might be convicted for the “wrong reasons”; thirdly that the unavoidable delay in their trial may have resulted in hardship to the child involved. In March 1995 they, and six other former staff who had also lost their jobs when the creche was closed in September 1992, were awarded $1 million by the Employment Court. This was later reduced to $170,000 by the Court of Appeal in September 1996.

Following the first investigation into allegations of abuse at the creche, the Christchurch City Council requested that psychologist and sex therapist, Rosemary Smart, review the management practices at the crèche. The review of the management of the Civic Creche was in response to "incidents of alleged sexual abuse of children at the Centre over a period of six years by a male staff member" (Smart, 1992). Smart's report quoted from Finkelhor's Nursery Crimes: sexual abuse in day care (1988), supplied to Smart by the office of Ian Hassall, then Commissioner for Children. It is an examination of an epidemic of alleged sexual abuse, including satanic ritual abuse, in US day care centres. Read Less

The committee had several concerns with the way the case was prosecuted. It recommended several changes, although it acknowledged that changes had already been made to the way that children were now interviewed. It also suggested that the testimony of expert prosecution witness Karen Zelas would not be permitted if it were proffered now. The committee noted that: "The operation of the legal system in respect of this case did not inspire adequate public confidence in the operation of the legal system. A justice system should lead to certainty. In this case it seemed to increase the sense of uncertainty". However, the committee rejected the petitioners' call for a commission of inquiry, concluding that it was not practical to hold such an inquiry. Read Less