Simon Power MP
National Party Justice & Corrections Spokesman

11 December 2007

Labour must listen to victims of crime

Corrections Minister Phil Goff has not explained what the Government is going to do to prevent recurrences of prisoners being paroled to live next to their victims, says National’s Justice & Corrections spokesman, Simon Power.

He is commenting after the son of a murdered woman said Mr Goff had offered no ‘effective action’ after her killer was paroled to a house next to the victim’s daughter, who had been present at the time of the killing.

“But all Phil Goff can say in reply is that the murderer’s placement was ‘unacceptable’, and that this woman, who was six years old at the time her mother was killed, ‘wasn’t on the register’.

“The son said he appeared before the Parole Board and asked them to do everything in their power to keep the killer away from his family.

“Even then this criminal somehow managed to be placed in a house next door to her, and later just down the road from her work.

“The son also said Corrections told him they have no official policy to stop offenders moving in next door to victims, and that ‘Corrections and its Minister have misled the public and purported to have systems in place that they clearly have not’.

“Victims need an answer from this Government that it is doing everything it can to ensure there is no repeat of this incident.

“Right now, Phil Goff seems unable to give them any assurances.”

ENDS

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