Money wanted for years spent in jail
A Christchurch man who wrongly spent three years in jail on sex charges after a judge made a procedural error is seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in compensation.
Mervyn Finlayson, 60 — a stroke victim with a serious heart condition — was jailed for six years in 2000 on charges of indecently assaulting a boy aged nine, inducing the boy to do an indecent act on him, and two charges of sodomy.
Finlayson’s appeal said the trial judge in his case, Colin Doherty, made a procedural error by failing to provide balancing evidence from the defence case when he replayed the boy’s evidential video to the jury during its deliberations.
$5 says this judge will not apologise to Mervyn. Suggest judge be sentenced to 5 days community service in prison for his ‘procedural error.’
if the judge makes errors like this how do other defendents stand a chance ie; John Lawernce (1 sept 06) 8 years prison for sex attack on 22yr old male but no evidence to back it up, just the 22yr old males word.
Procedural Error? OK thats fine…….does that mean the evidence stacked up?