Anita Killeen

The Anita Killeen case goes from bad to worse, and one can’t go past the erudite conclusions of Stephen Franks:

Behind the NBR paywall is a depressing report that the judge (Mary-Beth Sharpe) had tried to reserve rights to censor Radio New Zealand coverage of the trial.

The Herald has taken the story up, and we are reminded that earlier proceedings were made secret.

The overall impression from what  is public, is of prosecution and defence as a privileged profession colluding with its even more privileged members in the judiciary to shield favoured members in ways that they would not for ordinary people.

Good judges often do, and should,  approach lawyer defendants rigorously. We should know better, but more importantly on the Casear’s wife principle, lawyers should accept that the courts will err if necessary  to emphasise that there is no favouritism.

My initial post focussed wrongly on the gender and class issues. This is now a  more serious case which appears to present favouritism from the prosecution, indifference to the victims, and the misuse of the power the Court should never have been given,  to keep it all secret for as long as possible.

Certainly looks like lawyers are dodgier than politicians:

Legal counsel before the courts

Name suppressed – barrister
A criminal lawyer has appeared in court charged with delivering a cellphone, cigarettes and a lighter to a high-profile murderer serving a life sentence. Suppression orders prevent the publication of the woman’s name and age, the name of the prisoner and details of his crime, history and sentence.

Name suppressed – barrister
A prominent Auckland barrister is facing a disciplinary hearing on three misconduct charges brought against him by the standards committee of the New Zealand Law Society. He has been granted interim name suppression until his case is heard next year.

Tim Sarah – police prosecutor
Before the Auckland District Court on 20 charges including the possession and supply of methamphetamine and Ecstasy, participating in an organised criminal group and passing information from the police computer system to three co-accused.

Emily Toner – Crown prosecutor for Meredith Connell
Awaiting sentencing in the North Shore District Court after she admitted stealing almost $200 worth of groceries from a supermarket while on a break from a court case she was prosecuting. Toner blamed the theft on an eating disorder which “prevented her from thinking straight”.

Anita Killeen – former chief prosecutor for the Serious Fraud Office, barrister
Charged with forgery, using a forged document and recklessly damaging a computer system. The charges are believed to be in relation to forged documents sent to the media this year in an attempt to smear SFO boss Adam Feeley.