Mazengarb Report

This is not to deny the importance of the Report; however, its real significance has been obscured by inaccurate accounts in popular histories and newspaper and magazine articles.

[1] On 20 June 1954, shortly after her mother and stepfather had reported her as missing, a 15½-year-old girl turned up at the local police station in the former Hutt Valley borough of Petone.

A review of New Zealand newspapers of the time reveals reports of "youths charged with indecent assault upon, or carnal knowledge of" underage females.

It was noted that postal staff complained of the weight when carrying out another unusual task: distributing copies of the report to every household in the country.

Highlights included:[2] Parliament responded to the Mazengarb Report with a special select committee appointed on September 28, 1954.