Police Investigation

Potential criminal charges for the CTV's design.

Stella Cheersmith

Following the Royal Commission of Inquiry and IPENZ investigation, the Police conducted their own investigation into the CTV building collapse to determine whether criminal charges were warranted against specific individuals involved. These charges could have ranged from criminal nuisance to manslaughter, but the Police eventually concluded that there were not sufficient grounds for prosecution.

History:

  • CTV Investigation | New Zealand Police - This page on the New Zealand Police website provides an overview of the investigation and its outcome. It includes a list of relevant reports and documents, as well as a video of the media briefing that took place in 2017. The page also contains a PDF file of the official media statement and the briefing given to the affected families, translated into several different languages.

Resources:

Emergency personnel searching for people trapped in the collapsed Canterbury Television Building on Madras Street. Smoke can be seen rising from the ruins.

Credit: Neil Macbeth. Source: https://quakestudies.canterbury.ac.nz/store/object/135293

  • Christchurch Press 25 February 2014: Section A, Page 1 | "Police probe CTV collapse." - Report on the progress of the Police investigation, which hired engineering firm Beca to review information about the building’s collapse. It also details the difference between the various inquiries that have taken place, and how the Police need to establish facts “beyond reasonable doubt” in order to prosecute a criminal charge. Continued on Page 2.
  • Christchurch Press 3 September 2014: Section A, Page 1 | "Charge possible over CTV collapse." - Report in The Press that states the Police investigation “would be advanced.” Though the inquiry was not yet complete, Detective Superintendent Peter Read said they were close to concluding there had been “gross negligence” in the design and construction of the CTV building.
  • Outcome of investigation of collapse of the CTV building | New Zealand Police - Statement issued by the Police Media Centre that gives an overview of the inquiry and its outcome. The investigation concluded that “there will be no criminal prosecution in relation to the collapse of the CTV building in Christchurch in February 2011.”
  • Dismay over police decision on CTV prosecution | RNZ - Report from Radio New Zealand National on the response to the Police’s decision not to prosecute the designers of the CTV building. The audio clip includes statements from some of the members of Police who were involved in making this decision, as well as a summary of the Police’s investigation and how they came to reach this outcome.
  • Justice for CTV families | RNZ - This brief audio clip includes discussion with barrister Jonathan Krebs about the outcome of the Police investigation, particularly the potential for different charges to be laid in the future. Krebs analyses the Police’s decision not to prosecute and theorises on the possibility of other charges, comparing the investigation to other criminal cases from New Zealand.

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