to get a result—but there’s a real mob mentality.’
Marlene’s biggest worry was that this blinkered attitude would prevail in court. ‘I quite often say to Blair, “What if Ewen goes down for something he didn’t do?” and Blair just keeps saying, “Mum, that won’t happen.” And I say, “How do you know it won’t happen? It’s happened before.” But that’s me—“cup half-empty”, that’s what Kerry calls me.’
Indeed, despite his concerns with the police approach, three months out from the trial, Kerry retained resolute confidence in the court and judicial systems. ‘I think the truth wins out in the end. I’m a believer in that. And I’m an optimist and I just want the truth to come out. And yeah, I’ve got 100 per cent confidence in the court and that might be a little naive, but that’s the attitude I take. One of my favourite sayings has always been, “Common sense will prevail.” And I believe it does.’
CHAPTER 7
Hurdles and hindrance
Ewen Macdonald’s defence team faced an enormous battle to rebut what appeared to be an overwhelming case against their client—and it had to do this with a fraction of the resources available to the Crown.
This inequality was an issue that had long rankled with Greg King. While police and prosecution had near-limitless access to investigators and experts, those defending the accused—who is supposedly presumed innocent until proven otherwise in court—had to scrimp and beg for every hour or dollar.
The issue had been brought home to King in 2006 when representing Daniel Moore, who was accused of the bloody killing of Tony Stanlake, whose handless body had been found near Red Rocks in Wellington. While King was struggling to get assistance for Moore’s defence, a photo was published in The Dominion Post of a line of close to 20 police in protective clothing searching the beach where the body had been found. To King, it encapsulated the inequality of arms and the inherent unfairness of the court battle. And Macdonald’s trial was very similar. ‘This is the David and Goliath battle that anybody faces. How can we compete with that? If it was a game of rugby, these murder trials are like the All Blacks playing Vanuatu.’
Added to this disparity was a further complication. Greg King, the man who Macdonald was putting all his faith in, was going to be away from New Zealand for two months just before the trial, which was set to begin on 5 June 2012. In late 2011, King had been awarded a prestigious Eisenhower Fellowship, given to one New Zealand leader each year. The fellowship allowed him to travel to the United States and study different court and judicial systems for two months. So on 29 March he flew out and was scheduled to arrive back in New Zealand barely a fortnight before the trial began.
From the outside, this appeared a virtually impossible situation. In a case with so much detail, which required such exhaustive study, King’s absence seemed a seriously debilitating issue for the defence. But King remained confident it wouldn’t affect them. He had already spent hundreds of hours on the case and insisted he would be working on it every day while in America. In his view, cases like this were marathons and it was all about peaking at the right time.
With King away, Peter Coles took charge of overseeing the daily tasks needed to prepare their case. But assisting him was a novice lawyer, Liam Collins, who King had employed less than a year before. While Coles qualified as a lawyer in 1974, Collins was admitted to the bar only in August 2011. Collins, the son of Napier Crown solicitor and now District Court Judge Russell Collins, had completed his law degree at Victoria University then spent a winter managing a bar in Wanaka and honing his snowboarding skills at Treble Cone before returning to Wellington to job-hunt.
In May 2011, Collins sent a speculative email to Greg King asking if he could sit in on one of his trials. King said no,
Marlene’s biggest worry was that this blinkered attitude would prevail in court. ‘I quite often say to Blair, “What if Ewen goes down for something he didn’t do?” and Blair just keeps saying, “Mum, that won’t happen.” And I say, “How do you know it won’t happen? It’s happened before.” But that’s me—“cup half-empty”, that’s what Kerry calls me.’
Indeed, despite his concerns with the police approach, three months out from the trial, Kerry retained resolute confidence in the court and judicial systems. ‘I think the truth wins out in the end. I’m a believer in that. And I’m an optimist and I just want the truth to come out. And yeah, I’ve got 100 per cent confidence in the court and that might be a little naive, but that’s the attitude I take. One of my favourite sayings has always been, “Common sense will prevail.” And I believe it does.’
CHAPTER 7
Hurdles and hindrance
Ewen Macdonald’s defence team faced an enormous battle to rebut what appeared to be an overwhelming case against their client—and it had to do this with a fraction of the resources available to the Crown.
This inequality was an issue that had long rankled with Greg King. While police and prosecution had near-limitless access to investigators and experts, those defending the accused—who is supposedly presumed innocent until proven otherwise in court—had to scrimp and beg for every hour or dollar.
The issue had been brought home to King in 2006 when representing Daniel Moore, who was accused of the bloody killing of Tony Stanlake, whose handless body had been found near Red Rocks in Wellington. While King was struggling to get assistance for Moore’s defence, a photo was published in The Dominion Post of a line of close to 20 police in protective clothing searching the beach where the body had been found. To King, it encapsulated the inequality of arms and the inherent unfairness of the court battle. And Macdonald’s trial was very similar. ‘This is the David and Goliath battle that anybody faces. How can we compete with that? If it was a game of rugby, these murder trials are like the All Blacks playing Vanuatu.’
Added to this disparity was a further complication. Greg King, the man who Macdonald was putting all his faith in, was going to be away from New Zealand for two months just before the trial, which was set to begin on 5 June 2012. In late 2011, King had been awarded a prestigious Eisenhower Fellowship, given to one New Zealand leader each year. The fellowship allowed him to travel to the United States and study different court and judicial systems for two months. So on 29 March he flew out and was scheduled to arrive back in New Zealand barely a fortnight before the trial began.
From the outside, this appeared a virtually impossible situation. In a case with so much detail, which required such exhaustive study, King’s absence seemed a seriously debilitating issue for the defence. But King remained confident it wouldn’t affect them. He had already spent hundreds of hours on the case and insisted he would be working on it every day while in America. In his view, cases like this were marathons and it was all about peaking at the right time.
With King away, Peter Coles took charge of overseeing the daily tasks needed to prepare their case. But assisting him was a novice lawyer, Liam Collins, who King had employed less than a year before. While Coles qualified as a lawyer in 1974, Collins was admitted to the bar only in August 2011. Collins, the son of Napier Crown solicitor and now District Court Judge Russell Collins, had completed his law degree at Victoria University then spent a winter managing a bar in Wanaka and honing his snowboarding skills at Treble Cone before returning to Wellington to job-hunt.
In May 2011, Collins sent a speculative email to Greg King asking if he could sit in on one of his trials. King said no,
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