WARNING: Distressing sexual content
A former Auckland relief teacher turned convicted sex offender who was caught with a prolific cache of illicit, secretly recorded videos of women and children was described today as a remorseless “vile old man” as he was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment.
Massey resident Malcolm Ross Davidson, 72, pleaded guilty in June to nearly 200 counts of sexual offending - a list so long that his lawyer was allowed to enter one all-encompassing guilty plea on his behalf rather than the far lengthier process of having each individual charge read aloud.
He returned to Auckland District Court today - along with some of the 83 victims who police were able to identify - so that the court could hear victim impact statements before Judge Kathryn Maxwell determined his sentence.
“I want you to be put away so you cannot deceive and hurt anyone else,” said the mother of a girl who was 3 when Davidson targeted her, adding that she didn’t think Davidson was capable of changing his behaviour.
“Your heart is so rotten and there is no cure. Know that I do not forgive you.”
The same child’s father told the court that Davidson initially “seemed like a nice person involved in the church” and was quick to refer to his teaching career when they first met him.
“When I think about ... the trust we had in him, I feel disgusted,” the man said. “At the end of the day, he is a vile old man. I don’t believe he’s sorry for his actions - he’s sorry he got caught.”
Davidson was initially charged in November 2021 with one count of possessing an objectionable publication and two counts of making intimate visual recordings after a father shopping for Christmas decorations with his 5-year-old daughter caught the defendant taking an upskirt recording of his child.
A tsunami of follow-up charges were filed in July 2022 after police conducted a forensic examination of Davidson’s electronic devices and discovered 648 more upskirt videos and nearly 11,000 images of women in various locations. Police were able to identify 53 victims between the ages of 2 and 16 years old and 30 adult victims, while an additional group of about 50 victims could not be identified.
“It is believed that most upskirt victims would have been unaware of his actions,” court documents state.
The investigation resulted in 189 charges in all - 131 counts of making an intimate visual recording, 45 counts of sexual conduct with a child under 12, one count of unlawful sexual connection and 12 counts of knowingly making objectionable videos.
The indecent assault charges range from holding children over a mobile phone - in one instance, using ice cream and a soft toy behind his back to entice a toddler to walk over the camera - to putting them in poses and inappropriate touching.
He groomed some of the adult victims who were secretly recorded by “learning their first names and presenting as a harmless elderly gentleman”, court documents state.
The locations of the offending included a church, a school, playgrounds, beaches and shopping areas.
The objectionable publications charges related both to child exploitation and to “dehumanising behaviour” - a reference to 18,000 images and 77 videos of used menstrual products which he had removed from gender-neutral toilets around Auckland.
The menstrual product videos were initially deemed R18 by the Classification Office, meaning they wouldn’t be illegal, but they were reclassified as illegal objectionable material after police appealed the decision to the Film and Literature Review Board. The videos evoked a reaction of “primordial disgust” in the viewer, the review board found, adding that they were “injurious to the public good”.
“The board considers that most people would view the idea of used menstrual products being fished from bins and disposal units and used for sexual gratification, as abhorrent,” the board noted in its written decision.
Judge Kathryn Maxwell agreed today that the menstruation-related videos were abhorrent, and noted that the nature of his crime was so abnormal there are no previous legal cases in New Zealand to compare it to for purposes of sentencing.
“You breached privacy and common decency,” she said.
Davidson faced up to 14 years’ imprisonment for making objectionable videos, 10 years for each of the indecent assault charges and three years on each of the intimate visual recording charges.
Crown prosecutor Robin McCoubrey said aggravating factors of the case included the “incredibly pre-meditated” nature of the crimes, the betrayal of trust and the “unprecedented scale” of his offending.
“It’s really hard to envisage any aspect of Mr Davidson’s life that he didn’t manipulate for his own sexual gratification,” McCoubrey said.
Defence lawyer Paul Dacre, KC, agreed with the aggravating factors and acknowledged there was no excuse for his client’s “reprehensible” and “incomprehensible” behaviour. However, he sought a 25 per cent discount for Davidson’s guilty pleas and another 25 per cent for his previous good character and various health conditions.
“There doesn’t appear to be any pattern or any behaviour that pre-dates this set of offending,” he said, arguing that his client should be given credit for the 70 years of good behaviour prior to his arrest. “The police inquiry has been comprehensive.”
Judge Maxwell allowed the standard guilty plea discount but rejected the request for a reduced sentence due to health or prior good behaviour.
“Your health conditions did not prevent you from offending,” she said, noting the irony that it was his good standing in the community that made him such a successful predator for four years.
“You used your position as a teacher, a trusted guardian of young children, to gain access to your victims.”
Davidson had worked as a casual relief teacher for a number of Auckland schools since 2010. The media has been barred from identifying them.
The defendant, who has been in jail since his guilty pleas in June, sat between two guards today and didn’t turn around or look up from his lap to see those who addressed him with victim impact statements.
Aside from the two parents who addressed him in court, two others gave victim impact statements via audio-video feed and prosecutors read aloud 14 other statements from those who did not wish to read it themselves.
Almost every parent who provided a statement described the shock of getting a call from police and the hyper-vigilance that ensued, fearful that more might have happened to their children that they don’t know about. His adult victims described an ongoing inability to trust friendly older men or wear skirts in public.
“I shouldn’t have to live in constant fear and vigilance because of men like you,” one adult victim said. “I hope these words ring in your ears for a long time. Your acts are indefensible and disgusting and our communities are not safe with you in them.”
The director of a mall kiosk whose employees were targeted by Davidson said she has lost income because of her employees’ new lack of trust in customers.
“The world will be a better place with Malcolm behind bars,” she said.
The mother of a 2-year-old said she is still disturbed by how “brazen” his offending was, explaining that he cheerfully chatted with the mother after the offending had occurred.
“How could you possibly be so calm and bold after what you’d just done?” she asked.
The mother of an 8-year-old who was filmed in her school uniform at a shopping area told Davidson he is a “disgusting predator”.
“We hope you live the rest of your life in misery,” she said. “We will never forgive you.”
Judge Maxwell later addressed the parents and victims directly, noting that some of them still seem to blame themselves.
“These parents and guardians need to understand there was nothing they could have done,” she said. “You were a master manipulator, Mr Davidson. You did not fool the victims, you failed them.”
In addition to the prison sentence, Davidson’s name will be added to the child sex offence register.
Craig Kapitan is an Auckland-based journalist covering courts and justice. He joined the Herald in 2021 and has reported on courts since 2002 in three newsrooms in the US and New Zealand.
SEXUAL HARM
Where to get help:
If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:
• Call 0800 044 334
• Text 4334
• Email [email protected]
• For more info or to web chat visit safetotalk.nz
Alternatively contact your local police station - click here for a list.
If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it's not your fault.
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