Fresh look at Scott Watson case

Ben Smart and Olivia Hope. Photo / Supplied

Convicted killer Scott Watson's bid for freedom has been boosted by the appointment of a top taxpayer-funded lawyer to reinterview key witnesses in the case of Ben Smart and Olivia Hope.

The Ministry of Justice has hired Kirsty McDonald QC to review Watson's latest legal move, and she identified key areas of "potentially fresh evidence" during those interviews.

Journalist Keith Hunter, who has led the campaign to free Watson, is planning a formal interview of another witness, water taxi operator Guy Wallace, this week.

Watson has always maintained he is not guilty of murdering Hope and Smart, who disappeared in the Marlborough Sounds on New Year's Day in 1998.

He was found guilty of murdering both, largely on evidence which has since been questioned.

The developments follow Watson's last-ditch move for another chance at court - or freedom - by applying to the Governor-General for a Royal Prerogative of Mercy.

The application has three possible outcomes - denial, a full pardon, or a hearing in the Court of Appeal.

The application is investigated by the Ministry of Justice which will advise Justice Minister Simon Power of its findings.

Power will pass those findings to the Governor-General for the final declaration.

The ministry appointed McDonald for legal analysis and inquiry work.

A letter from Power to Watson - supplied to the Herald on Sunday through Watson's dad Chris - said McDonald had reviewed the application and found possible evidence unavailable at the time of the trial. Power said Watson had to provide evidence to support the areas that had been identified but added that some of the material would be gathered by McDonald.

Among the evidence was an interview with Secret Witness A, whose identity was protected when he gave evidence that Watson had confessed to the killings while the pair were in prison together.

The man later recanted the testimony in a taped interview with the New Zealand Herald, saying he had been pushed into it by police.

Power considered it "more preferable for a Queen's Counsel to endeavour to interview Secret Witness A and assess the reliability of his evidence".

It followed advice from McDonald that Secret Witness A should be quizzed and "formal evidence" taken on his retraction.

McDonald also set herself the task of interviewing a witness who has said she was "tricked" into identifying Watson.

She would also inquire into claims that statements made to police - likely to have been in Watson's favour - appeared never to have been made public.

Hunter, who wrote about the case in Trial by Trickery, was disappointed about how McDonald had structured the inquiry, which only investigated so-called "fresh evidence" that emerged after the trial.

It did not examine the trial itself, or the actions of some of those involved leading up to the trial.

He did not believe McDonald was the appropriate appointment because she had previously worked as lawyer for the police and served as a prosecutor.

"I don't even think it has to be a lawyer. It's commonsense that operates here."

Hunter said he had an interview arranged with key witness Guy Wallace at a lawyer's office in Marlborough this week.

He believed Watson's application would get him to the Court of Appeal but said he should be freed and compensated. "I think he should get $10 million."

Last year, a senior police officer apologised to Chris Watson for taking so long to deal with a complaint against the officer who led the murder inquiry - now Deputy Police Commissioner Rob Pope.

Chris Watson claimed Pope had given misleading information to get warrants during the murder investigation. Pope was cleared after an inquiry that Watson said was too narrow.

Hope-Smart killings: the questions remain

Justice Minister Simon Power identified seven points of "fresh evidence" in a letter to Scott Watson.

The jury was told that Ben Smart and Olivia Hope saw in the New Year at Furneaux Lodge in Endeavour Inlet, Marlborough Sounds. The Crown said Hope and Smart later accompanied Watson to his yacht Blade, where he murdered them.

1 Watertaxi operator Guy Wallace was a key Crown witness, identifying Watson as the last person seen with Hope and Watson. He has since retracted his identification.

2 Rozlyn McNeilly identified Watson as being at Furneaux Lodge on New Year's Eve. She has since retracted her identification, saying she was tricked.

3 Wallace says he can identify the exact place in Endeavour Inlet where he delivered Smart, Hope and another man he previously said was Watson. The specific location could have significant impact.

4 In a media interview, Secret Witness A retracted evidence that Watson confessed in prison. The protected witness is being sought to testify about whether or not he stands by his retraction.

5 There have been numerous accusations that police ignored sightings of other yachts matching the description of the two-masted ketch they say was involved in the murder.

6 Evidence from journalist Keith Hunter about the timing of a trip from Cook Strait to Eerie Bay makes Crown evidence about Watson's presence in those places improbable.

7 "New evidence" has been received from watertaxi driver John Mullen that he took someone resembling Watson to his boat on New Year's Day - separate to the journey Watson is alleged to have taken with Hope and Smart.