Judge soft on Maori - MP

Trevor Mallard. Photo / Mark Mitchell

A senior Labour MP says five Maori who avoided imprisonment for the exorcism killing of a relative would have gone to jail if they were Pakeha.

Trevor Mallard posted his comments on the Labour Parliamentary Caucus's blog, Red Alert. "These five people killed their niece. It happened over an extended period," the former education minister wrote.

"I accept that they almost certainly would not reoffend and prison may be an expensive waste of time. And there are too many Maori in prison.

"But I am certain that a Pakeha exorcism that resulted in torture and death would result in a prison term albeit not necessarily a long one."

His posting has caused particular surprise because of its criticism of the sentencing judge, Justice Simon France. It is a constitutional no-no for politicians to comment on judges' decision as Mallard acknowledged and an extraordinary step to imply that the judge has displayed racial bias.

Janet Moses, 22, drowned when water was forced into her in an attempt to rid her of a makutu, or Maori curse. She lay dead in the Wainuiomata house for nine hours before her family contacted police.

Her body was marked with grazes to her upper arms, forearms and torso.

Last night Mallard, who lives in Wainuiomata and represents the suburb in Parliament, was unrepentant. He said he had not advised Labour leader Phil Goff of the posting, nor sought his approval.

"I obviously feel quite strongly a mistake has been made," he said. "I am not going to hold back on something just because some people will be uncomfortable by me raising the issue."

Mallard said that in sentencing the five to community sentences, Justice France had "sent a signal that's the wrong one" about what was effectively "torture".

"The expectation should be that people go to jail for it."

However, Mallard admitted that after drafting the posting on Friday, he left off posting it until yesterday morning, "in case I changed my mind."

The five received community sentences ranging from 150 to 300 hours community work.

The blog received mixed responses from the readers.

One branded his posting "cheap, populist knee-jerk" politics.

Another responded: "Oh boy Trevor, you are in for a hiding on this one, but you are right."