David Bain calls 111 again

David Bain. Photo / Janna Dixon

David Bain has again called 111 - after coming across a woman who was badly injured in a car accident, says his supporter Joe Karam.

But Karam was so confident the Good Samaritan emergency call would be used against Bain that he was reluctant to reveal details at the time.

Bain, who was cleared at the retrial of murdering his family, was driving from Northland to Auckland last month when he came across the accident scene.

In an interview with the Herald on Sunday after Tuesday's controversial documentary about the Bain family deaths in Dunedin in 1994, Karam said Bain called emergency services and waited with the woman until police and ambulance arrived before continuing his journey.

He said: "There was a woman on the side of the road by herself. She had careered of the side of the road and was bruised and bleeding. David stopped, helped her out and did all the right things."

Karam was cautious of releasing details of the incident because he was convinced it would be linked to Bain's infamous 111 call to police after his family were found dead.

Any interaction Bain had with police would find its way to the media if it could be cast in a negative light, said Karam.

"If he got a traffic ticket, it would find its way to the media," he said, adding the accompanying headline would read: "Bain calls 111 again".

TVNZ figures show last Tuesday 930,000 people watched journalist Bryan Bruce's documentary The Case Against Robin Bain, which tried to exonerate Bain's father Robin of the killings.

Famously, judges at both of David Bain's trials asked: "Was it Robin or was it David?"

Karam said he believed the documentary reflected a police view of the case, which had become irrelevant after a jury found Bain not guilty last year.

Since the verdict, the intense focus on Bain had made it almost impossible for him to lead a normal life.

Karam said the documentary was a biased presentation of some evidence, which left the viewer with the impression that Robin Bain could not have committed the murder. The introduction, which raised the judges' comments, was designed to create a negative impression of David Bain.

Bain wanted to be left alone to live "a normal life", Karam said. He had a fulltime job, belonged to a hunt club and rode with the club on weekends.

"David's just hacked off. David knows he's innocent. David knows he didn't do it. He can't win."

Karam said he had approached TVNZ before the screening to offer his and Bain's defence expertise for the sake of balance. He said the offer was not taken up.

TVNZ has received a formal complaint via the Broadcasting Standards Authority.

A spokeswoman said the complaint would be reviewed by an independent person who would decide whether it should be lodged with the BSA.

The broadcaster had also received "a handful of phone calls" after the documentary.