Anonymous Host

Four medical practitioners testified about examinations they'd performed on the children, stating that they hadn't found anything that definitively proved or ruled out sexual abuse.

They testified to identifying symptoms consistent with abuse, though their findings were inconclusive and sometimes contradictory.

During one examination, a doctor found that a female complainant's hymen appeared to have been penetrated, but in a follow-up appointment, she later found the child's hymen showed no such thing.

Police officers also testified about their investigations.

They addressed something that people had long speculated about.

How was Peter Ellis supposed to have abused these children in a busy creche where people were always coming and going without anyone ever seeing anything?

More than 70 families used the creche each week and parents were known to show up at random throughout the day.

No adults, no colleagues or parents had ever seen Peter abuse a child.

The police testified that there were areas Peter had access to where he could abuse children uninterrupted, like the toilets and in a kitchen area that required a key to access.

Police also alleged that he had taken children out on walks to his home.

Peter vehemently denied this allegation.

Two staff members were almost always present on walks outside of the creche.

In addition to being questioned by the Crown attorneys, every witness was cross-examined by Peter Ellis' defence team and the four women's lawyers, who established that no physical evidence had been found to support any of the allegations.

Following up on Children's claims, investigators had searched the creche and other identified buildings for trap doors, secret tunnels, cages and child abuse material.

They found nothing.

nor had any graveyards been disturbed or links been uncovered to any other suspects, such as a group of Asian men.

All four female defendants dressed conservatively for the hearing, while Peter Ellis wore his usual casual clothes which made him look somewhat eccentric.

The group passed notes between themselves throughout the hearing.

Sometimes they made jokes and Peter drew comical cartoons about the proceedings.

One message read, I think we should publish a civic recipe book, needle tomato and poison soup, kitten stew, urine sorbet.