Early release hope for Zak Grieve after mum’s letter plea

An early ­release will be considered for an Aboriginal man serving life for a murder the judge found he did not physically commit.

Zak Grieve’s mother Glenice.

The Northern Territory Administrator will consider an early ­release for a young Aboriginal man serving a life sentence for a murder the judge found he did not physically commit, following an investigation by The Australian that has raised serious questions about his case.

Administrator John Hardy yesterday confirmed he would formally consider releasing Zak Grieve from prison years earlier on a “mercy plea”, a dramatic ­development in the six-year-old case and one that left the young man’s mother in tears.

Grieve’s barrister, Felicity Gerry QC, will visit him in Darwin prison today to discuss what legal avenues are open to him and how best to pursue his potential release. Grieve’s mother Glenice said yesterday Mr Hardy, who is the equivalent of a state governor, had given her “this extra hope”.

“Our family have had doors and doors and doors closed on us and now they are opening,” she said after The Australian revealed the decision to her. “We are walking through and having hope.”

Grieve’s father Warren said: “Glenice and I got closed down for years and no one wanted to know about Zak.

“They’re thinking about him now, as of today.”

Mr Hardy’s decision came after Ms Grieve sent him an emotional open letter, saying: “I’m appealing to you as a parent, as a father. How would you feel if this happened to your child?

“What would you do? I need your help. Please help me.”

The letter — also sent to ­Malcolm Turnbull, Governor-General Peter Cosgrove and NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner — followed an unprecedented multimedia investigation by The Australian, which has spent the past week revealing how Grieve became one of three men jailed for life over the 2011 murder of Ray Niceforo in Katherine, Northern Territory.

Mobile users click here to view open letter from Glenice Grieve

While all three were found guilty by a jury, Grieve insisted he had pulled out of the crime at the last minute.

Judge Dean Mildren subsequently found he was not there when the killing took place. Despite this, the judge said mandatory sentencing laws in the Northern Territory compelled him to send the young man to jail for a minimum of 20 years.

“I take no pleasure in this outcome,” Justice Mildren said. “It is the fault of the minimum mandatory sentencing provisions, which inevitably bring about injustice.”

This criticism has since been echoed by other judges and senior lawyers, including the Law ­Council of Australia president Fiona McLeod SC, who told The Australian: “There is absolutely no evidence that mandatory sentencing works as a deterrent to crime.”

Glenice Grieve said she had previously attempted to lobby federal and territory MPs about her son’s case, without success.

She asked The Australian to forward her open letter to the Prime Minister, Governor-General, NT Chief Minister and NT Administrator as she did not have access to a computer.

“I’m gutted. I’m frustrated. Confused by how to understand the law, the system,” Ms Grieve’s letter reads.

“I understand there should be some punishment, but 20 years to life for not making a phone call (to police)?

“I’m a mother who’s looking to you to find some sort of mercy … Can you make sure he is released? Can you pardon Zak?”

In an emailed response sent to The Australian to pass on to Ms Grieve, the NT Administrator’s official secretary, Scott Samson, said her letter had formally ­provoked the process of considering whether to grant her son a mercy plea.

“I refer to your letter dated 30 August 2017, requesting the Administrator exercise his ­prerogative of mercy in favour of Mr Zak Grieve, a prisoner held in detention within the Northern Territory,” Mr Samson said. “I advise that your request is being considered and this office will provide you with an answer in due course.”

Justice Mildren has previously called on the Administrator to make such a decision and release Grieve after serving 12 years of his life sentence.

A spokeswoman for the ­Department of Correctional ­Services said that no mercy pleas had been granted in the Northern Territory in the past 10 years.

Emma Fuller, a 22-year-old law student working with Ms Gerry on Grieve’s case, yesterday completed a review of the mercy plea process.

“Mercy is necessary because mercy is the quality that takes into consideration all of the ­circumstances,” Ms Fuller said.

“You have the life of the person who died, but you also have the life of the person involved.”