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[WELLINGTON, 22 April 2010] - Giving evidence in court is a stressful and sometimes traumatic experience for child witnesses, and the process should be made fairer for children, according to a new report. Children cowering under examination, being mocked in the courtroom, and facing language barriers and excessive delays were among the issues raised in the report, Child Witnesses in the New Zealand Criminal Courts, by Auckland University of Technology's (AUT) Institute of Public Policy... The report focuses on children aged 17 and under who have given evidence for the prosecution in criminal proceedings as complainants or witnesses. Data was collected from district and high courts in Auckland, Manukau, Wellington and Christchurch during 2008 and 2009. Researcher and AUT social development programme director Emma Davies said the results were disturbing because children acting as witnesses were already vulnerable, having likely been subjected to trauma or abuse. "The report considers how to make the process fairer for children while ensuring the accused gets a fair trial," she said. Child witnesses faced an average wait of 15 months for their cases to come to trial, stretched out to 20 months including police investigation and sentencing - in some cases, nearly a quarter of their life, the researchers said. The waiting period was stressful for children and their supporters, and could impact on memory. The report also examined the language used by lawyers and other adults when questioning children, with typical legal terms like "allegation" not necessarily being understood by children. The report also identified alternative processes which could be used to gather testimony, such as pre-recorded cross-examination and re-examination by a court-appointed specialist child examiner. Children's Commissioner John Angus said the research showed that New Zealand could do "a lot better" in the way it treated child witnesses. He said inconsistencies in practice between courts, such as the use of video examinations, should be addressed. "It is also of concern that the researchers conclude that children are still cross-examined in ways that are 'forensically unsafe'." Dr Angus encouraged the Ministry of Justice to consider the report and its recommendations. Unicef welcomed the report and said respect and concern for children "must be of the highest regard". Unicef NZ executive director Dennis McKinlay said the report showed child witnesses were inappropriately questioned by defence lawyers and subjected to humiliation, and some became distraught and were left in a state of trauma. [Source of press release: Voxy.co.nz] Further information
pdf: http://www.crin.org/docs/NZ_Child_Witnesses.pdf