Jury denied to Urewera raids accused
Date: 29 March 2011
From: October 15th Solidarity

‘The Court of Appeal are refusing to grant a jury trial for the 15 people accused in the so-called ‘terror raids’. In essence the Crown prosecutor has convinced the Court that the case will be too long and complex for a jury to handle. The Crown is genuinely worried that real jurors would see through the ridiculousness of the allegations and drop the charges’ said defendant Valerie Morse.

‘A jury trial is supposed to be one of the pillars of the western legal system, but it seems in this case it is inconvenient and dangerous for the Crown to have the people decide. Five hundred years of jurisprudence has been thrown out the window in the name of bureaucratic efficiency and getting the verdict they want. A jury trial doesn’t offer them the security they need to win.’

‘The right to a speedy trial is one of the other pillars of our legal system, but clearly after nearly four years it no longer matters either.’

‘The whole operation has been a hash up from start to finish. On the 15th of October 2007, the police raided over 60 houses around the country, blockaded and invaded the small community of Ruatoki, and rounded up political activists. Now they have to justify their multi-million dollar dodgy spying operation on the people of Tuhoe and legitimate political activity.’

‘Solicitor-General David Collins refused to bring charges under the Terrorism Suppression Act in 2007. This matter should have ended then and there. Now, there is only one way out of this morass, it is for the Crown to drop the charges against all of the accused.’

ENDS

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