The over ambition of the Watson Miscarriage of Justice

One thing which is plain in the Watson case (Marlborough Sounds Murders of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope) is the sheer size of the scale Rob Pope and his team needed to extend themselves to in their endeavour to frame Scott Watson and make it appear there were no other trails they did not fully investigate. I believe time will prove they over extended themselves in a manner that was not only unlawful but which has shown itself to be ill conceived and poorly thought through - or to capture a single word, reckless. Why would police be so reckless one could ask. Arrogance in this case.

Despite that before the Watson case Pope lost the 'poisoned professor' case where it was revealed he endeavoured to have witnesses change their accounts, we could say Pope had his modus operandi still intact. He was not dismissed from the police force in that instance, nor face an internal inquiry known to this writer. There are other factors to consider and the Thomas case is an excellent example as it remains the most significant Miscarriage of Justice accepted by the public. In Thomas, the Commissioner at the time was calling the shots, it was he whom by letter ordered that police did not investigate Len Demler's new partner. Even after all these years her version of events by timeline was exceptionally easy to break down. Of course when the balloon went up years later with the Royal Commission of Inquiry saying that the shell case was planted, police did nothing. To add insult to injury a couple of decades later our current Commissioner of Police would speak out in support of the Thomas head of inquiry Hutton at the later's funeral. I say, all of this goes to cycles that continue to repeat themselves in cases like that of Scott Watson's. When the Lundy convictions were quashed at the Privy Council a new officer was put in charge of the case, perhaps as a public display of police wanting to be seen as doing its job properly. For all the intent expressed by that move, the new officer in charge went down exactly the same track and, like his predecessor,  did not investigate strong evidence as to the real offenders.

New Zealanders often react with horror with some of the police shootings we see on video coming from America, the homeless being shot, the handicapped, the innocent. Despite that horror New Zealander may feel relieved that the same does not happen here when indeed a version of it does and has for decades, the setting up of the innocent. Pope arose from that arena with his conduct in the poisoned professor case completely ignored, if he had not already met Paul Davison QC he was soon to make that acquaintance of a man who, whilst now a High Court Judge, had the trophies of  the Tamihere convictions, and would later have both Watson and Teina Pora. I'll let readers decide what they think of that combination or indeed how it was ever able to come about then be ignored by the powers that be for more than 2 decades, even after the wheels fell off the Pora case, and now that of David Tamihere.

I don't think there is much that needs to be traversed in fine details of evidence about the Watson case other than to say what is now known. I'll make a short list:
Witness statements hidden or altered.
At least 80 suspect ketch sightings with the real number being in the 100s.
Co-operation between police and ESR which resulted in incomplete evidence given to the Court on the issue of the fundamental evidence in this case - the 2 hairs.
Evidence of the couple being alive after the were said to have been killed.
A witness tip as to where the bodies may have been which was ignored around a period when the Cook Strait was searched to, in my opinion, reinforce in the public mind, that the police theory was correct 'but the search for bodies unsuccessful because of the deep water.' Whereas the witness position indicated was not in deep water and chances were high that tide shift would not have had an impact.
Witnesses being convinced that Scott Watson had killed Nancy Frey and that police 'really needed' to put him away. Many of those witnesses changed their accounts, as did others who police knew had broken the law in minor ways.
That police had already investigated the '2 trip' theory and knew there was no evidence in support of it after which Paul Davison raised that 'evidence' after all witnesses had given evidence, allowing for no cross examination or normal planning of a defence after the depositions (preliminary) hearing.
The destruction of photographs, statements and job sheets.
The hiding of evidence and the list goes on and on.

The only flaw being that trail that was left carelessly behind by police who 'cleansed' the file, ignored or threatened witnesses. That trail is now in the hands of the defence and one day, soon I hope, will be in the hands also of the public.