Serial rapist appeals murder conviction

Convicted serial rapist Malcolm Rewa has appealed his conviction for murdering Susan Burdett in 1992. His lawyer, Mark Ryan, told the Court of Appeal in Wellington yesterday the appropriate outcome would be another trial – a fourth – ‘‘as unattractive as that might seem’’. Rewa had been so unhappy with his former lawyer, Paul Chambers, that he wanted to sack him during the trial in 2019, Ryan said. Crown lawyer Rebecca Thomson told the court the trial prosecutor had no inkling there was disharmony between Rewa and Chambers. Rewa was not challenged on the content of his statement, and it should be seen as evidence of the truth, Ryan responded. Rewa should have a trial where he was properly represented by an appropriately classified lawyer on legal aid, Ryan said. The court was told that Chambers represented Rewa for free, and had never done a murder trial before.