Pora (Appellant) v The Queen (Respondent) (New Zealand)

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• published: 03 Mar 2015
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[2015] UKPC 9 JCPC 2013/0081 Pora (Appellant) v The Queen (Respondent) (New Zealand) The Court of Appeal of New Zealand In June 1994 the appellant was convicted as a party to the rape and murder of Susan Burdett, largely but not exclusively on the basis of his confessions. In 1996, DNA evidence linked the attack on Ms Burdett to Mr Rewa. Mr Rewa was eventually convicted of sexual offending (mostly by rape) against more than 20 women, including Ms Burdett. In 1999 the Court of Appeal quashed the appellant’s convictions as a result of the DNA evidence implicating Mr Rewa and evidence that Mr Rewa might have acted alone. The appellant was again convicted at his retrial in 2000 and his appeal to the Court of Appeal in October of that year was dismissed. The appeal is brought against that decision of the Court of Appeal. The appeal considered whether there was a miscarriage of justice at the retrial and whether the JCPC should admit and consider fresh evidence raised by the appellant. The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council humbly advises Her Majesty that the appeal against conviction should be allowed. The Board also gives the parties the opportunity to make written submissions within four weeks as to whether a re-trial of the Appellant should take place.