Former Taranaki pastor in court on indecent assault charges
Nicholas William Keig, a pastor with the C3 Church in New Plymouth, faces multiple charges, including committing an indecent act and indecent assault on a woman over 16 years of age. The charges involve several different women, which began in the late 1990s.
In New Plymouth District Court in November 2020, Nicholas William Keig was found guilty on four counts of indecently assaulting a female over the age of 16 and not guilty on a fifth charge of the same nature. Judge Mina Wharepouri accepted Keig, 51, known for “hugging, jostling, tickling, and play-fighting” with church members. But as a pastor, there was an inherent power imbalance between Keig and the young female parishioners he said.
Keig was the senior pastor of New Plymouth's C3 (Christian City Church) from 2011 until May 2019 when he resigned – one month before his first court appearance about the charges. Judge Wharepouri’s decision followed a judge-alone trial held in New Plymouth District Court earlier this month in which Keig defended the five charges. The trial heard that in 1997 Keig had tickled a woman during a visit to her home. The woman, who was known to Keig through the Assembly of God Church in New Plymouth, laughed but told him to stop, which he did.
Moments later, he tackled her, sat astride her, and put his hands up her top. She told him, “don’t,” but he left his hands on her breasts until a telephone call interrupted the incident. Judge Wharepouri ruled the complainant’s evidence disproved Keig’s claim that he genuinely believed she consented.
In 2013, Keig ran his hand up the bare leg of a 16-year-old member of his congregation and, on another occasion, tackled her on a bouncy castle at the church. Defence argued the bare leg touch was not indecent, but Judge Wharepouri said that it was both indecent and intended based on the complainant’s testimony and propensity evidence; the bouncy castle incident, however, could not be considered indecent given Keig’s penchant for playing around. He was found not guilty on this matter.
Susan Hughes QC submitted that, as Keig was no longer part of the church, his reoffending risk was shallow, going so far as to say he had “zero” risk. In her submissions, she outlined Keig’s fall from grace. She said there had been no skin on skin contact except for one victim and also noted several character statements in his favour Keig had also offered emotional harm reparation, which the victims declined, she said. “This court must be focused on the rehabilitation of Mr. Keig.”
Judge Wharepouri said he did not accept the hardship faced by being convicted met the threshold of ‘extreme,’ as required by law. He said Keig did have some insight and remorse and noted previous good character and contribution to society.
The judge said he regarded the offending as “the low end of indecency,” but “that is not to say that I regard it as insignificant.” “The gravity of offending should still be seen as moderately serious.” Judge Wharepouri entered convictions and sentenced Kiegto to four months of community detention and 100 hours of community work. He also ordered him to pay $4000 in emotional harm reparation, divided equally among the victims.
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