Editorial: Scant abuse sentence no joke

I felt sick on Saturday morning. I had had a few wines the night before but a hangover was not the cause of my nausea. I don't know what repulsed me more - reading about how a well known New Zealand comedian was so drunk one night that he pulled down his 4-year-old daughter's pyjamas and nappy and kissed her. Or reading the comments of Judge Phillipa Cunningham, who last Friday allowed the joker to walk free without charge, saying he had "stopped drinking and shown remorse".

She added: "He's a talented New Zealander. He makes people laugh. Laughter is an incredible medicine and we all need lots of it."

The internet boards are flooded with outrage.

We depend on judges to make decisions that reflect our beliefs and values.

Judge Cunningham's choice to discharge him without conviction is against the grain of most right thinking New Zealanders.

In 2009 the man - who has permanent name suppression - had gone to bed with his partner after returning home drunk from a Christmas party. The man had laid his daughter on her back, pulled down her pyjama pants and nappy and kissed her. The man's partner woke and asked him what he was doing. He told her that he thought his daughter was her. The man's partner called the police.

Their five-year relationship ended after this incident. She wept as she told the court the impact on her and her daughter, who are both still having counselling.

This mother did the right thing by leaving this man and went through what must have been a difficult battle for the sake of justice for her child. This justice system has failed her and the child, who did not have a voice in court.

Judge Cunningham said in her summing up that she had viewed the police video interview with the 4-year-old.

"What struck me about it was the wish of this child to see and be with her father again."

Of course she does. He is one of two people in the world she trusts most. Victims of child sex abuse or violence from a parent continue to give that parent unconditional love. It is up to adults to acknowledge that what her father did was terribly wrong. By allowing her father off without conviction the court is telling her what he did was not a crime.

But what most astonished me about this case was the fact that the judge said that alcohol was to blame for the incident. A forensic report found the man had had previous episodes of "unusual behaviour" after going to bed drunk and it was possible he had been "not fully awake" when he performed the indecent act.

In other words, he was blind drunk, and had been on many an occasion.

Alcohol may be the cause of criminal behaviour but should never be the defence. This case sets a terrible precedent.

This man's crime needs consequences. He should have been punished with a conviction. If he was truly remorseful then for the sake of his former partner and daughter, he should have accepted one.

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