Education Minister Hekia Parata has finally ordered an urgent review into the cancellation of teacher registrations for those with serious convictions after it was revealed in the media that three convicted sex offenders still remain registered: (1) deputy school principal James Robertson Parker – sentenced to preventive detention with a minimum non-parole period of seven years after admitting to having committed 74 sex offences against 20 school boys aged 9 to 16 at the time, and dating from 1999 to 2012. He admitted five charges of sexual violation involving two of the boys. (2) Andrew Ray Loader, the Otumoetai College teacher who paid $240 to twice watch teenagers have sex and who was sentenced to 100 hours’ community work in March 2013 (the charge was laid under the Prostitution Reform Act 2003); and (3) Douglas Haora Martin, former assistant principal of Lincoln High School, who filmed up the skirts of 20 unsuspecting girls and women, pleaded guilty in January 2013, and was sentenced in April to 10 months’ home detention. All three [sexual] “predators”, as the NZ Herald refers to them, remain on the Teachers Council register.

As of 11 September 2013:

1. James Robertson Parker (Reg. No. 217428) [referred to as a ‘parasitic paedophile and “one of New Zealand’s worst paedophiles” in a TV 3 News report], is recorded on the Teachers Council website as holding Full Teacher Registration with a practicing certificate that will expire on 5 Oct 2014. The Annotation states “Referred to the Disciplinary Tribunal”. Parker was deputy principal of Pamapuria Primary, Northland when he was first charged with sexual offences against schoolboys.  Despite over a year ago admitting “guilty” to the 74 sex charges relating to sleepovers with boys at his Awanui farm between 1999 and 2012 (the court was told the charges related to upwards of 300 offences) he retains Full Registration.

2. Andrew Ray Loader (Reg. No. 131751) is listed as holding Full Teacher Registration with a “Practicing Certificate” that will expire on 22 September 2015. An “Annotation” states that he “Voluntarily agreed not to teach pending completion of conduct investigation”. The only thing stopping his return to the classroom is that he has “voluntarily agreed” to stop teaching. Therefore despite conviction he is still officially recorded as retaining full teacher registration.

3. Douglas Haora Martin (Reg. No. 133887) is listed as holding Full Teacher Registration with a practicing certificate that expired on 13 April 2013. The Annotation states “Referred to the Disciplinary Tribunal”.

As the NZ Herald reported on Sunday 8 September:

The Teachers Council maintains the register of teachers, which notes any disciplinary action taken. Teachers seriously sanctioned remain on the register with the words “cancelled” and “censured” beside their names – but not Parker, Loader and Martin. They are listed as having full registration.

The council’s director, Peter Lind, is overseas and didn’t comment, but a spokesman said it took time and “due process” for teachers to be deregistered.

It is more than a year since Parker’s August 2012 guilty plea to offending against boys, and three weeks have passed since he was sentenced to preventive detention on 74 sex charges.

The Teachers Council’s complaints assessment committee waited until Parker’s sentencing notes were available before referring him to the Teachers Disciplinary Tribunal, which has the power to cancel his registration – but hasn’t yet acted.

Manager of teacher practice Andrew Greig said: “It is important that due process is followed and that natural justice occurs, which is why these processes do take time.”

Only the Disciplinary Tribunal can remove a teacher from the register, and only once the complaints assessment committee has investigated.

Greig said Parker was referred to the tribunal as soon as his sentencing notes were available. “Because the tribunal is able to use the sentencing notes and witness statements as evidence, it means that witnesses do not have to be called before the tribunal.

In the Far North, Te Runanga-a-Iwi o Ngati Kahu chief executive Anahera Herbert-Graves reacted angrily to the news James Parker was still a registered teacher. “You’re kidding? What bastards. Honestly, I just don’t know where the hell their heads are.”

Post Primary Teachers Association president Angela Roberts said parts of the discipline and deregistration process “absolutely” needed refinement. “‘If somebody pleads guilty there should be a fast-track process.

Sources

Predators still on Teachers Council Register

By Kathryn Powley. Sept 8, 2013

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11121378

Community work for voyeur teacher

By Sandra Conchie. Mar 16, 2013

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503343&objectid=11093674

James Parker a ‘parasitic paedophile’

TV 3 Report. Wednesday 12 June 2013

http://www.3news.co.nz/James-Parker-a-parasitic-paedophile/tabid/1771/articleID/301196/Default.aspx

Radio NZ Morning Report. (Monday, 9 September)

http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/2568576/unions-says-deregistration-of-dangerous-teachers-needs-changing

Child abuser James Parker sentenced to preventative detention

By Matthew Theunissen  Thursday Aug 15, 2

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10912715

Urgent review of teacher registration ordered

Dominion Post Wednesday 11 September 2013 p. A2