Bill Hodge: Retired Law Professor on the call to overhaul the Clean Slate Act

A call for an overhaul of the Clean Slate Act.  

Last week tutor Timothy Fisher was sentenced to four years and five months in prison for sexual abuse charges. 

He had historical indecency convictions but was able to pass multiple police vets and become registered as a teacher. 

Despite receiving a red stamp warning from police, the council renewed his practising certificate after receiving an investigation report from its Complaints Assessment Committee and another clear police vet. 

Retired Law Professor Bill Hodge told Mike Hosking there should be an expansion of what crimes aren't allowed to be swept under the carpet. 

He says the act was designed for minor offences, like marijuana possession. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Uh calls this morning for a look, if not an
overhaula but what we call the Clean Slate Act. This
is after a teacher hit passed convictions but nevertheless became
registered went on to abuse nine girls. It wasn't like
they went warnings, but the teaching council ignored what they
call red stamp warnings. Anyway, Bill Hodges, a retired Auckland
University law professor in respect, Well, there's Bill morning to you.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
Well, good morning.

Speaker 1 (00:20):
Is the problem the Clean Slight Act or is it
people not being a white when they see red flags?

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Well, I think it's both. I can't understand what happened
in the teaching council. I mean, how do you ignore
a red flag? Did they go back and look at
the actual offending? And if they had, I can't see
how they would then say under the statute he was
a person of good character and fit to teach, which
is their statutory obligation. But I'm saying that the statute

(00:49):
does need to be overhauled, brought up to date. It's
based on the nineteen sixty one Crimes Act in terms
of the specified offenses and the nineteen oh eight Crime
ex Act of all things, but you just need to
bring it up to date, like harmful digital communications to
be in there. Bring it up to date.

Speaker 1 (01:07):
Who does it apply to in terms of professions and chicks?

Speaker 3 (01:13):
Well, the exclusions it's easier to say who's excluded. If
you apply to the police as a per job, you
can't lie about your past. If you apply to corrections,
you can't lie about your past. If you're applying ver
sies documents overseas governments, you can't lie about your past.
But generally, anybody in the private sector, if you're going

(01:37):
into jobs in the private sector and you've had i'll
call them offenses, it's not serious crimes where you went
to jail. It's only offenses maybe marijuana possession, maybe a
drunkenness episode. Youthful indiscretions. You can lie about those going
forward in your career. That's what it was meant to cover.
Youthful indiscretions. In the private sectoring private education, including all

(02:03):
the health professions, care and assistance for aged persons, you
can lie about your background.

Speaker 1 (02:09):
Good stuff. You'll appreciate the insights. So clearly one of
those laws that's been left idle, and they'll get around
to it eventually. You would think you would hope.

Speaker 4 (02:17):
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