In what may be the last exercise of the Royal Prerogative of Mercy (RPOM) Scott Watson has had his first win after 22 years battling the Judicial for freedom. A trial, appeal to the Court of Appeal, another to the Privy Council before his first RPOM application all failed. Largely because of the infamous "2 hair" evidence. That evidence has dominated in this case, but it now lays wounded.
The great and famous science accomplishment is in tatters.
What we don't know yet is if the Crown will try to defend it, if they decide not to it would be most unusual but then again the evidence, the way it was found, and where it came from has always been unusual. The claim was always that it was found on Scott's boat but that was a lie. It was found on a blanket taken from Scott's boat after it had been searched and would take a further 3 months to turn up.
But from I understand while it was said to have come from the boat on the blanket there is new evidence to say otherwise. Evidence of malfeasance leading to an understanding of the fantastically unbelievable Crown case weakly, as it now stands, held together by 2 blond hairs and little else.
The case had the customary prison stoolies, witnesses who said one thing and later another, high drama and police spread rumour through police 'friends' in the media.
I expect the case to fall hard and heavy, its once apparent strength now a deadly and fatal weakness. I recall when the successful RPOM was filed ex-police claimed that the public didn't know what police knew about the case. What a load of a trollop, trials in New Zealand are public events where the evidence is heard, To suggest that there was other secret evidence that the public didn't know about was true - that however was evidence the police had hidden and which is now known about. One ex-police officer said he had "no time" for some of Scott's supporters - as though the faults were with Watson supporters and not the police. Well, that has changed.
