Thursday 30 October 2008

D0C DISPENSES BAD MEDICINE

We hinted at this story a couple of weeks back... here at Roarprawn

And Kitchin has the good in the DomPost this morning - obviously kicked off the front page by Labour wiping poop all overthemselves.

Here is the start of the story - its very complicated but you will get the drift.

And remember Sue Grey was the Scampi lawyer who did the dirty deed with Ian - Ewan Street.

Police have inquired into a phone call Solicitor-General David Collins made to a government department boss, which is believed to have led to a lawyer's sacking.

The call was made to Conservation Department director-general Al Morrison and has been linked to the firing of Sue Grey, who worked as a lawyer for the department. She was sacked three weeks after the phone call.

Ms Grey's partner - former Green MP Ian Ewen-Street - believes Dr Collins made the telephone call because she is a lawyer in a Supreme Court case involving Dr Collins' boss, Attorney-General Michael Cullen.

Mr Ewen-Street has laid a complaint with police. He believes Dr Collins has an interest in the outcome of the case because it now involves a Supreme Court judge and Dr Cullen, who has been joined to the case as a defendant.

Dr Collins says he is "very confident" police will find no case to answer.

In the August 26 phone call, Dr Collins told Mr Morrison that Ms Grey had a conflict of interest because she worked for DOC, but she was also involved in a private capacity in the Saxmere case, a court case alleging judicial bias.

The phone call came two days after a Sunday Star-Times article about a Supreme Court judge's multimillion-dollar business relationship with a top lawyer in the Saxmere case.

After speaking to Dr Collins, Mr Morrison phoned Ms Grey at 9.30am the same day and asked about her involvement in the Saxmere case. He said he wanted the issue resolved quickly because of media interest.

She told him that DOC had already agreed to her working on the case till it ended. She said her bosses were informed throughout, and the case was "completely separate" from her work for DOC.

Despite this, she offered to resign from DOC that day. Her offer was refused. Three weeks later, Mr Morrison fired her by e-mail.

Mr Morrison, a former journalist, recorded his phone conversation with Ms Grey without telling her. He told The Dominion Post it was the only call he has taped as DOC director-general and he did it because of the "significance of the issue".


Read the rest here

This is a very significant story



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