Parole Hearing for Sex Offender Sean Surgeon Despite New Conviction

A man who sexually offended two girls will appear before the Parole Board tomorrow, despite being recently convicted of a similar crime against another boy.

It has caused outrage from the families of Sean Surgeon victims, who wonder why the hearing is being held. They say that there should be no chance of the Hawke’s Bay man being released given that his first sentence is not complete yet, much less the new one.

“It just doesn’t seem right for him to have been sentenced and still be able to see a Parole Board, that doesn’t sit well with anyone we’ve talked to,” said a male relative of a girl. “Whether by law or not, it is unrealistic to think that two months later he may be sitting before the Parole Board seeking release after admitting to another similar act. It is insane.”

The surgeon is serving a three-year and seven-month sentence for the rape of an 8-year-old girl in 2017 and inappropriately touching a 9-year-old girl a decade earlier.

He only admitted to offending the 9-year-old girl while being questioned about the 2017 case, but did not reveal that he had also offended another girl in 2014.

The 2014 victim had never told anyone, but when she did, a charge of illegal sexual connection was filed and Surgeon was sentenced in June to 11 months in prison.

Therefore, the families of two of his victims were very frustrated at being able to appear before the Parole Board this week.

The mother of the 2017 victim told the Herald her stomach clenched when her daughter walked in and told her what Surgeon, a family friend, had done to her in a garden shed.

“She was white as a ghost.”

“My stomach just flipped, it was absolute panic, everything went through my mind: what will this mean for his future, how is he going to handle this.”

Since her conviction, the mother has appeared before the board twice before to tell them about the impact on her daughter and why she believes Surgeon should have to serve his full sentence, which will end in November.

It’s always a stressful time to prepare for the hearing and relive what happened, but she didn’t think she would have to do it again this week, given that another 11 months had been added to her sentence.

“It’s really unsettling, it’s stressful. I don’t like any of it. I don’t think they realize how frustrating it is to go through the process.”

But, the law states that Surgeon still has the right to a hearing for his original sentence. The board will likely consider the new conviction, but the hearing goes ahead regardless.

The Board considered granting the surgeon parole in June 2019, but he refused, saying it remained an undue risk because there were no confirmed accommodations available for his release.

In his decision he noted that he had written a letter “expressing his deep remorse for the offense, understanding and accepting that he had been a bully with these children, that he had abused them and that his behavior had been addressed in the treatment programs that he had undertaken. “.

The board also took note of the views of the victims’ families who had “expressed concern that there may be other people against whom he has offended.”

The mother believed that the fact that the surgeon did not mention the 2014 victim told in itself how much remorse she really felt.

Surgeon appeared before the board again in October, at which point he was aware of the new charges and suspended the case until this year for the matter to be resolved.

Earlier this week, the girl’s mother, partner and father reiterated their views to the board at a hearing for the victims. They said he shouldn’t go out and they still believed there might be other victims out there and fear he will offend again.

The mother of the 2014 victim echoed similar sentiments, telling the board in a letter that he shouldn’t be released yet.

She told the Herald that her daughter, who had been inappropriately touched, never told anyone about the offense at the time. The family moved away from Hawkes Bay and she was a happy girl who was thriving in school.

It was only when they returned to the area and she began suffering from panic attacks, having problems at school and misbehaving that the truth came out.

“It has been horrible, his childhood has been ruined.”

The mother said the surgeon put her daughter through the stress of going to trial and only admitted guilt after she testified.

She said she couldn’t understand why he was entitled to a hearing this week given that he was only sentenced in June for what he did to his daughter.

“I don’t even understand how they can view parole.”

He also fears that there may be other girls like his daughter, and the victim from 10 years ago, who never made themselves known at the time and is concerned about the impact on them if they see him in the community after his release.

A spokeswoman for the Parole Board said the board was aware of the new conviction and sentence. While the sentencing end date changes to reflect the additional 11 months, section 75 of the Parole Act meant that the parole eligibility date does not change and a hearing is still due this week.

SCHEDULE

LATE 2006 / EARLY 2007: Inappropriately touched a 9-year-old girl while visiting the girl’s home as a family friend. She never told anyone.

MARCH 2017: Sexually offended against an 8-year-old girl in a garden shed. She told her mother what happened right away. It was only during the police investigation that she told the police about the previous incident.

JUL 2017: Sentenced to three years and seven months in prison after pleading guilty to one count of indecent assault and another of illicit sexual connection.

JUN 2018: Parole Denied

JUNE 2019: Parole Denied

OCT 2019: The Parole Board learns that a third girl is showing up.

JUNE 2020: Sentenced to 11 months for illegal sexual connection with a girl in 2014.

SEPT 2020: Fourth hearing before the Parole Board again, on Friday 4.