March 03, 2015
Teina Pora conviction quashed
Lawyers for Teina Pora will argue there is no need for a third trial after the Privy Council last night quashed his conviction for the 1992 rape and murder of Auckland woman Susan Burdett.
The Law Lords including New Zealand Chief Justice Dame Sian Elias found Pora’s 1994 confession to police was unreliable and could have led to a miscarriage of justice.
Expert witnesses gave evidence Pora had a fetal alcohol disorder, which meant he had great difficulty in understanding questions put to him.
After Pora’s initial conviction, DNA evidence linked the attack to serial rapist Malcolm Rewa, but that was not enough to sway the jury in a second trial in 2000.
Lawyer Jonathan Krebs says Pora, who was released on bail last year after more than two decades in prison wants to convey his gratitude to his many supporters in New Zealand.
It’s the last New Zealand case that will go before the Privy Council, and legal experts are now suggesting this country needs something like a criminal cases review panel which can look at future such miscarriages of justice.
Copyright © 2015, UMA Broadcasting Ltd: www.waateanews.com